chris covington Posted October 10, 2013 Report Posted October 10, 2013 Hello all, So I was digging through my things and located a gunto I've had for years now. It has a few slight bends and a few chips in the edge and the whole thing is covered in black rust. There is no pitting so I am leaving it as is for now. The mei is "Ogawa Kanekuni saku" I am assuming it is the Seki smith not the Tokyo smith. The nakago is heavily rusted like the rest of the blade but there is a little bit of old pitting making it difficult, if not impossible, to detect if it has a Seki or Showa stamp on it or not. The nakago is long and slender and the nagasa is about 27+ inches. I've read that Mr. Bowen holds this smith in much lower regard than the Tokyo Kanekuni. Does anyone know much about the Seki smith? Did he mostly make Showato or did he make gendaito as well? Who did he train under? Did he leave any students? I'm guessing he is of no relationship to the late Ogawa Kanekuni smith. I'd really love to get an idea of what to do with the sword. Should I have a decent polish put on it (if it can even take a polish given the condition)? Do I get a cheaper polish assuming it is a Showato and just use it for budo? Get someone to polish a window into it? The length would be good for budo. I am open to any opinions. I've yet to figure out how to attach images here. Once I figure that out I'll throw up some photos of this poor old sword. Best regards and thanks for any help or opinions, Chris Covington Quote
cabowen Posted October 10, 2013 Report Posted October 10, 2013 Actually, I believe the recently deceased Ogawa Kanekuni who made a name for himself with his Tsuda Sukehiro copies, is your smith. He did work during WWII as I recall. I do not know if he made strictly traditional blades or if, like most Seki smiths of the period, he made mostly showa-to. I would suggest having a window put on and see what is there.... Quote
w.y.chan Posted October 11, 2013 Report Posted October 11, 2013 I've seen a WW2 Ogawa Kanekuni that was clearly traditionally made with nie based hamon and not too shabby. Of course it is likely he also made showato. Quote
chris covington Posted October 14, 2013 Author Report Posted October 14, 2013 Mr. Bowen and Mr. Chan, Thank you both for you replies. I've been digging a little deeper into my sword (which is difficult given that it is more like a rusted crowbar than a sword at the moment). I am forming the opinion that my sword is not the late Ogawa Kanekuni as Mr. Bowen referenced but is the work of his first teacher of the same name. This is based on a few different references I've been able to locate online. I need to buy more books on this topic since this is such a complex time in Japanese sword history (I guess they all are, aren't they?). The late mukansa ranked smith Ogawa Kanekuni's real name was Ogawa Kunihiko (born Jan. 25th, 1925). The Ogawa is spelled "尾川." He became a swordsmith when he joined his first teacher Ogawa Kanekuni's sword forging school in 1939. His teacher spelled Ogawa "小川." Mr. Ogawa Kunihiko used the name Kunitada "圀忠" during the war years. It wasn't until after the war he began to use Kanekuni; his teacher's name. (http://www.sanmei.com/contents/en-us/p1719.html) Ogawa Kanekuni (小川兼國) began learning swordsmithing in 1907 under his teacher Kosaka Kinbei at the Seki token tanren jo. (http://books.google.com/books?id=BWy3gx ... ni&f=false) The mei on my sword is very much like the one in this post: viewtopic.php?f=15&t=10275&p=86070&hilit=kanekuni&sid=ea0e25ffdb426a135eb958117c92bf00#p86070 only it has the Ogawa "小川" above the Kanekuni saku. My sword also has a more slender and long nakago like the one shown in this post. The ha machi also seems very pronounced as well. I guess my next task is to try to figure out how to get the wife to let me spend the $$$ for a polish... I've had the sword about 20 years, so what's another 20 til I get it polished? :lol: Best regards, Chris Quote
w.y.chan Posted October 14, 2013 Report Posted October 14, 2013 Hi Chris, The brief moment I had with the Ogawa Kanekuni some years back I recall it had a noticeable folding line that ran along the middle on the back of the blade which would suggest makuri-gitae or were the shingane and kawagane are wrapped to speed up production. Quote
cabowen Posted October 14, 2013 Report Posted October 14, 2013 Thanks for the update....It shows why including kanji is always helpful.....Let us know where you go with the sword. Early Showa works by these traditional Seki smiths are rare. Quote
chris covington Posted October 14, 2013 Author Report Posted October 14, 2013 Thank you again gentlemen for your posts. I will keep everyone posted when I figure out what I will do with this sword. $3,000 for polish plus $300 for a habaki and $450 for shirasaya is a lot of money to me these days (I started over careers and now I am a police officer... cops don't make a whole lot of money. Love the job though). When I get the chance I will post photos of the blade in the current condition. There are a few small bends and some chips that look like they could be polished out (depending on how deep the hamon is). Might be more possible if I get a few stripes on my shoulders. Quote
george trotter Posted October 17, 2013 Report Posted October 17, 2013 Just a word of caution. I know you have not posted pics yet, but judging from the depth of rust you describe on the nakago, I suggest you ask the knowledgeable gendaito people here about "rotten tangs". Bad rust on a gendaito nakago may well mean you would be polishing a blade that will never be considered as other than "fatally" flawed. I may be wrong and this condition may be waived in some circumstances (rarity, historical importance etc), but better to check first with some pics posted here. Regards, Quote
chris covington Posted October 17, 2013 Author Report Posted October 17, 2013 Mr. Trotter, Thank you for the advice. The nakago is pretty rusted but I wouldn't consider it rotted. It does have a lot more rust on it though than a gendaito should have. I'm a pretty bad photographer (and all I have is my iPhone) but I'll try to get photos up soon. Cheers! Chris Quote
chris covington Posted October 19, 2013 Author Report Posted October 19, 2013 Hello all, I've taken a few photos for the sword. I would appreciate any thoughts on it. You can't see jigane or hamon because of the rust but you can see the overall sugata. You can also see some chips that are in the middle of the blade and some chips near the kissaki. There are also some bends that you can see in the photos. The mei was difficult to photograph because of the rust but you can make it out. I don't see any stamps on the nakago. I can't figure out how to upload the images or even link the photos into this post. I set up an album at Sword Forum so I have the external links. Sorry for my lack of computer skills. Nakago http://www.swordforum.com/forums/album.php?albumid=159&attachmentid=122406 Mei http://www.swordforum.com/forums/album.php?albumid=159&attachmentid=122407 Larger chips http://www.swordforum.com/forums/album.php?albumid=159&attachmentid=122408 Kissaki and smaller chips http://www.swordforum.com/forums/album.php?albumid=159&attachmentid=122409 Bends http://www.swordforum.com/forums/album.php?albumid=159&attachmentid=122410 Overall http://www.swordforum.com/forums/album.php?albumid=159&attachmentid=122405 Thanks for any thoughts or feedback. Cheers, Chris Quote
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