Davo

https://shop.nihontou.jp/products/detail/29510 It is not very expensive and not sure why? But I really like the way it looks. Thanks for any help it will be greatly appreciated

They sold it already

What do you think about this site? They have many affordable Nihonto including this wazakashi https://shop.nihontou.jp/products/detail/29520

I really appreciate everyone for taking the time to respond and give advice. It is reassuring to know there are good people here and I’m sure elsewhere to support me on my journey.

I was thinking expensive but for my first Nihonto I think $4k is a good start. Then as I learn more and maybe a year or two down the road I could go more $8k to $15k

Mostly the Hamon. I haven’t seen any like this so far. The hitat-sura areas

It actually was much less than i expected. I am between jobs and thats why i have limited time. 2 weeks hotel and round trip from texas is 2.5 to 3k.

https://www.toukenkomachi.com/index_en_tachi&katana_A010525.html Looking for a first Nihonto and just want something nice but can have few flaws. For my first buy i dont want to spend a lot and therefore i expect the blade to have some flaws.

Oh ok the profile. I thought I was filling that out for the admin lol.

How did you know I was in Texas? Didn’t know it would show here. I’m new here so I don’t know.

I tried to find places before and was surprised my searches didn’t find anything being im near DFW area. Maybe I need to search organizations or something. But I don’t know any or what to search for.

What are some trusted U.S. sources to get Nihonto ?

Yea. If I find a Nihonto that just feels right I can’t worry about tariffs. Just have to bite the bullet. If I don’t find a sword at least I will have a better understanding and feel for Nihonto to help me decide if I will purchase U.S.A. later. But a ww2 gendaito in the states won’t have NTBHK papers? Oh can you get a sword appraised in USA. It has to be done in Japan right?

Thanks for having this forum. For sure I will only buy with the NTBHK papers and probably just Shirasaya. Although I have no idea how much or who could custom make me a Tsuba and Saya someday? I do want koshirae but so many don’t have it so chances are I will like a blade that doesn’t have koshirae. I’m guessing I will make my budget but too much because yeah it may take many years before I truly know what older Nihonto I may want. Don’t want to make large purchase and regret it later. I am sure a nice papered Nihonto in good shape that is not too much money will be a nice start to my collection and I will enjoy it.

Good advice. Yea I’m thinking to get an old Nihonto in good condition without flaws you mentioned would be too much for me to spend at this time due to me just getting into buying. Maybe I need to buy a newer Nihonto that would have minimal flaws and cost much less?

Yes I will make sure to be there. Sounds much better than Seki which is second week October so can’t do both Oh ok. You think that’s a good choice for a first Nihonto? Something that can be good quality without being too expensive? Then later someday when I know what I want I can spend more?

Oh ok. You think that’s a good choice for a first Nihonto? Something that can be good quality without being too expensive? Then later someday when I know what I want I can spend more?

What does a gendaito exception mean? I don’t think papers recognize the term gendaito do they? Maybe they do not sure.

It’s hard to explain. I can write a lot and I will get back to you. But it started as just a “cool” looking sword that has been glamorized in movies and stories. So was always in my mind since my youth. I just never thought about owning one until I ran across some online for entry level and then I loved those because I started to appreciate the beauty of the swords rather than thinking of them as “cool”. In fact my wife hates weapons and hates knives etc. But she actually did not have a problem with my katana being on display. Which means that she saw the beauty in something that normally would scare her. If you knew my wife you would understand why this is significant. Anyway, then through looking online for other katana I learned of all the parts of it. Which made me see it more as something with meaning in it. This is when it started to become more. And when I learned about Nihonto antique swords the feelings felt more of the reality and just the feelings people relate to antiques. I don’t know it’s hard to list everything. It still took me by surprise how I felt when I actually thought about owning a Nihonto and it isn’t easily describable and so it’s hard to pinpoint specific interests.

Ah yes I might repost this to make it clear. I mean enough knowledge to make a purchase.

I just recently purchased a few cheap replicas but then my focus shifted to nihontos and mainly antique katanas,probably pretty old ones. I am going to Japan in October and I want to learn all I can about my new passion. I did just receive The Connoisseurs Book of Japanese Swords to start. But I need suggestions on what I need to learn and resources etc. More books? Online reading or videos? How to inspect a Nihonto for certain features? I am truly serious about my interest in Japanese swords and am actually going to Japan for this alone. I just have to do it before November or I may lose my chance to go for a long time. I should be there during the Seki Homono festival. I don’t even know where I’m gonna stay. Probably Tokyo and travel to Seki for a day or two. Thank you for any assistance it will be very gladly appreciated!