oneshot onekill

Yes... I need "simple" because I am so much a Newbie. When I said "He said a "True Hamon" comes from clay tempering one piece of steel." I meant to add "quenching" because he did say quenching was what brought out the difference.

I've read both of those and other information as well and that's what I thought. I tried to explain that the Hamon was there regardless of the blade construction but he insisted that was never the case with a Sanmai blade unless the blade was acid-etched. I'll just chalk it up to not arguing with an "expert" who isn't willing to listen.

I'm still what I would consider "New" at all of this but I'm learning a lot thanks to this forum and friends who are more knowledgeable. I recently acquired a "new to me" Nihonto. I love showing these to people and trying to do them justice. I showed this particular sword to a knife maker friend. He makes nice knives and pretty expensive knives. He will be the first to tell you he knows a lot about metallurgy and techniques for making blades. He was looking at my sword and I was explaining that I didn't think it was super old because the Hamon was pretty wavy and the curve of the blade was not very pronounced. (I'm guessing Kanbun from what I've seen and learned.) He looked at me and said that looks more like "Sanmai", not a Hamon. My brain froze because I didn't know what that meant. I know basically what sanmai means. He said, "If they fold one steel around another steel and then hammer it out to a blade where the center steel is harder it's Sanmai. Sanmai blades don't have a 'true' Hamon. It's just different where the steel in the center comes through." He said a "True Hamon" comes from clay tempering one piece of steel. So I'm a little confused. I have to say in the purest sense I think he's right about the construction method. But how do I reconcile the term "Hamon" and explain it properly? Here are pictures of what I call the "Hamon" on my blade

I think you generally get what you pay for from that seller. I bought one sword from him that unfortunately had problems that weren't mentioned but he was fine with me returning it for a refund when I pointed them out. From what I've seen over the last few years he has had some pretty nice stuff and not-so-nice stuff but the selling price is generally in line. He's not "trying" to misrepresent anything when it comes to the actual "Blade". Yours looks like a nice one to me. Congrats!

A bent blade. I've actually bought, and returned 3 swords in the last year that had blades that swept to the left or right when you looked at it lengthwise. I understand it can be fixed. To me it just shows blatant disrespect because I understand the most common reason for a blade to be bent is from trying to cut something when you have zero experience. I envision some Billy-Bobus Rednecksus running around the back yard swatting down cat-tails and tree branches playing Samurai.

Still hard to see what's going on there with the Boshi but it does appear to have a Yokote. But my eye is not as good as others here. Seems like a good polish will answer all of the questions. I like how Crazy that Hamon is.

I don't see a well defined Yokote. Or does it not have one? The Kissaki looks a little unusual to me... and the pictures don't allow you to see the Boshi. I'm still a newbie so I'm only commenting in the interest of learning but I'd like to see a closer picture of the Kissaki.

Hi All, I'm sure this has probably been discussed but I was unable to search it and find recent information. I'm wondering approximately how much it costs to have AOI ship a Katana to the US? I have not purchased anything yet but I've seen some intriguing offerings. If anyone has recently purchased a sword from them can you give me some kind of shipping cost estimate? I don't expect exact information because I know every case will be different. But should I expect to pay $100-$300? $500+? I know there will be a wait. I also may end up purchasing from someone here who is a dealer. But AOI seems to have a pretty good selection in many price ranges. I know you get what you pay for as well. Especially from someone like AOI who knows what they have and what it's worth. But they make it pretty easy to get a good look at the sword and I assume their information is correct. Please feel free to comment anything you've seen or heard. I have very limited knowledge. Thanks in advance. John

Not that it's the case here because even as a total Newbie I can see this is being misrepresented. But Ebay generally has a "Money Back Guarantee" even if the seller does not take returns. But a vaguely worded description (like the one in question) and a seller who is not willing to admit he was wrong will negate Ebay's involvement. I've had to use the money back guarantee on a "no refund" auction but fortunately the seller was a good person and it went smoothly.

I'm a knucklehead who has also jumped in too soon. I got lucky with one sword but I've purchased several sight-unseen that I had to return and one deal that fell through for the same reason that pictures don't generally reveal. That reason is a bent blade. I mean bent side to side. It usually means someone decided to try to cut something "Samurai-style" and didn't have the years of training it takes to do it right. Very slight in all cases but I have an aversion to having to send my sword to a polisher and pay whatever that service costs and wait a long time because I didn't look at it in person first. It's not a fatal flaw but could be a costly one to get fixed. Sellers, especially auction site sellers on the most popular auction site in the world, tend to either not notice this or don't think it's a problem worth mentioning. I've even asked and was assured it wasn't bent when it actually was. Luckily I've been able to return the bent sword for a full refund every time so far... so far. Also, if the seller sells a lot of swords they know what it's worth and will have it schill-bid up to its value to them. That's my 2 cents. FWIW.

Excellent advice and I'll definitely be getting books and studying more and more. But I'm a "Treasure Hunter" by nature and by that I don't mean hunting for things of great value for profit. I mean finding that "Diamond in the rough" that was hidden in someone's closet for decades or mis-appraised for whatever reason or just parted with because interest was lost. In my life I've hunted for and found silver coins from a fleet of ships that sunk off the Florida coast in 1715. I've lucked into buying rare firearms because neither I nor the seller knew what it was until I researched afterward. I've found many things with a metal detector. Because its my "nature" you may still see me here posting pictures of my latest find, asking for opinions because Nihonto is my latest "Treasure" to search for. But I WILL be more respectful to the knowledge found here. Besides... I think at least some of the members here like to see people's Treasures and everyone has an opinion.

No, I can't be sure. I'm not that knowledgeable or confident. I'm going by what I've studied and what the seller told me. He said it was late Edo but didn't tell me how he knew that. Honestly, I'd love to buy papered swords. I simply can't afford them. I can't generally even afford signed swords. My budget is generally less than $1000. Even saving up for something is difficult.

Well, The deal fell through. It was a nice looking sword with lots of activity. It was likely an Edo Katana based on the condition and shape of the nakago, the weight(Heavy), the price and how tight the Hada was. The Hamon was Suguha (Chu Suguha) with visible Nie and yes, it was under $1000. I got it in my hands and immediately found a problem. The blade had a slight bend. Actually it was bent at the HaMachi and MuneMachi. The Nakago was straight but the blade was bent off at a slight angle. The Koshirae was nice, and old but the Tsuba was a bit loose. One more Seppa would have tightened it up. And I don't think the Habaki was very old (The edges seemed to sharp and squared. Old Habaki's usually seem worn more given the rest of the Koshirae seemed old). The important part was the blade and if it hadn't been bent I would have loved to post pictures and get opinions (without throwing my amateur thoughts around).

That's Awesome! Seems to be a fairly common theme.

I think it must be the photo. The wrap on either side of the Kurigata? is original. Not a repair job.

Agreed that the Seppa are wrong. Too many IMO and one seems to be "new". Tsuba also fits loosely.

I think the original picture is a huge sword because you can see a door behind the man and the piled up swords and proportionately compared to that door and the position of the hinge on the right side he looks to be over 5' tall but under 6'.

I thought the Seki stamp was more of a Military Acceptance stamp and the sword may or may not be traditionally made. Is that the accepted take on a Seki Stamp? I'm just curious.

I think the reason they are mounted in that particular orientation is simply because that is the same way the Saya curves. Probably has no significance. I think I was reading too much into them. Anyone been able to figure out what those Menuki are? A friend suggested they might be a Bridle Reins from a Horse.

Yes... absolutely. I read that post and the lion's share of it falls in line with what I have learned... Whether I like it or not. I won't even consider buying a blade that doesn't have some degree of polish. If I can't tell that it at least appears to be traditionally made I run away. I'm afraid to make any calls on WWII mounted blades because I just don't have the knowledge or experience. I've recently seen blades on auction sites that are actually rusty and impossible to identify (except for a signature that could be a fake) that the seller is asking tens of thousands of dollars for! Crazy! Maybe worth it, but not to me. I think I know my limitations. But maybe not. Time will tell.

Yes Dreaming... Of course. But also learning. The two go hand in hand. Learning about something like Nihonto without dreaming as well is pointless to me. YMMV. I do appreciate the advice of getting books and I will heed that advice. I've amassed libraries of books about other things I've collected over the years but only after I've had a good start collecting those things. I know that's backward to most people here but it has always worked for me. I carefully weigh out how much I'm spending vs the potential losses. I never go into purchasing ANY collectible without being willing to lose that investment if I made a mistake. It's called "The School of Hard Knocks" and I'm fully ready to be beat up. I've also started out not spending much money. I'm not wealthy at all. In fact, I know I'm in way over my head but I'm hooked. One day maybe I'll be able to afford even a moderately priced, signed and papered sword but not today. Heck, I can't even afford to have the sword I have papered... let alone polished. FWIW I think the Internet is also a good source of basic information but I know there is a lot of misinformation as well. I've read a lot of what Markus Sesko has put online. I also go through AOI's auctions and offerings strictly as a study guide. They have good pictures and descriptions. I study pictures of hundreds of blades as well as I can online. You cannot get the whole story that way but you can learn some things. A picture is worth a thousand words. I have always had a good eye once I have a base of information for comparison.

Total novice here... But looking at the Kissaki it appears the following statement I copied from Markus Sesko might apply :" "check the interplay of hamon and bôshi. Is the bôshi a continuation of the hamon or does the outline of the hardening change with the yokote? If so, chances are high that you are facing a shintô work as in kotô times it was more common to let the hamon run out “naturally” into the kissaki." I know the original post is old. I'm just trying to learn more.

For some reason I keep getting a Network Error when I try to attach the one picture I think is the best one.

I do appreciate everything you are saying although it may seem like I don't. Thank you for conversing with me. I'm listening. You're absolutely right about books instead of another sword. But this one presented itself by someone who needs money and may or may not be taking a loss on it. His pictures are terrible so I'll just post some when and if I get it. I was told by the previous owner the sword I have looked better when he got it but he didn't really know how to take care of it and it got worse when he tried to clean it. He bought the sword around 50 years ago from what I found out recently. There was other paperwork with it but sadly it was lost over years of moving around.