Dr Fox Posted February 6, 2014 Report Posted February 6, 2014 Nice in the hand, and feels real. Signed Jakushi (unless you say different?) Recently acquired. Will get better photos when Macro lens arrives, decided now to get one. Quote
Kurikata Posted February 6, 2014 Report Posted February 6, 2014 Denis, 100% Jakushi but you should remove the red rust to have it looking beter and to protect it for the future. Quote
Dr Fox Posted February 6, 2014 Author Report Posted February 6, 2014 Nice to know Bruno. In fact the camera has displayed a redness, close exam needed and treated as per your suggestion. Regards Quote
Mantis dude Posted February 6, 2014 Report Posted February 6, 2014 Hi, just thought I would add that looking at a tsuba in sunlight can help spot that very bad red rust or at least that has been my experience. Well I think I remember seeing the sun with all these storms can't remember. Years ago I found a lot of broken ivory on ebay. The piano keys are a great shape to use for rust removal. Good luck. Ken Quote
Ken-Hawaii Posted February 6, 2014 Report Posted February 6, 2014 I have a chunk of antler from an antelope I shot many years ago, & that also works well for red rust removal. Ivory & antler are both the same material, but I'd leave out the piano in the middle. :D Ken Quote
Dr Fox Posted February 7, 2014 Author Report Posted February 7, 2014 Oh yes the sunlight did the trick, what i have is a red appearance on the iron parts of the tsuba. So I don't feel happy rubbing away with a bone of some sort, so is there a form of preservative for this use? Quote
Mantis dude Posted February 7, 2014 Report Posted February 7, 2014 Red rust is active rust and must be eliminated. Bone is softer than the iron but harder than the rust so it will not damage your item. Always be careful along gold or inlays. It does take work though but it is the conservative route. Spraying something on there to remove can be risky since you don't know exactly what the chemicals are going to do. I am sure there are some directions out there on how to clean a tsuba. Perhaps someone can recommend a set to use. Best of Luck. Ken (aka the mantis dude aka Ken on the east coast). Quote
Dr Fox Posted February 7, 2014 Author Report Posted February 7, 2014 Got it Ken. So its a bone or ivory pick, small enough to get close to but not on the pretty bits. Have to see what is commercially available, as nothing in my odds box to suit. thanks. Quote
b.hennick Posted February 7, 2014 Report Posted February 7, 2014 Ivory piano keys work well. You can usually get them used from a piano shop or piano tuner. Once a school I taught at threw out an old piano. I rescued many white keys before the piano went to the landfill. Quote
Dr Fox Posted February 7, 2014 Author Report Posted February 7, 2014 Cheers Barry Just the thing to look out for then. Quote
Grey Doffin Posted February 7, 2014 Report Posted February 7, 2014 Antler works well, elephant ivory is better, but the # 1 implement for tsuba fussing is a piece of mastadon ivory. This stuff is harder and denser than elephant ivory but still less hard than iron. One piece lasts forever or nearly so. A note on cleaning the Jakushi tsuba. Be very careful; the gold is easily lost. Before you try ivory you should try warm water and a soft bristle brush; some of the red should disappear. Next step up would be a fibreglass pen (search NMB for more on this tool), being careful not to touch the gold. Only if red remains after the pen should you consider the denser tools. Grey Quote
Dr Fox Posted February 7, 2014 Author Report Posted February 7, 2014 Grey that goes some way to ease my worry on aggressive methods. A fibre glass pen I have for cleaning electrical contacts. And a pig bristle shaving brush will serve as the first part of your advice. General MacArthur. ("I will return".) Quote
b.hennick Posted February 7, 2014 Report Posted February 7, 2014 A little warning on fiberglass scratch pens. They are not all the same. Some are much harder than others and can easily damage a tsuba. I recommend this one: http://www.ebay.com/itm/181256142811?ss ... 1423.l2649 I have used it successfully. I still think that ivory is a better way to go. Go gentle with the pen. You cannot get back what you remove. Quote
Mantis dude Posted February 7, 2014 Report Posted February 7, 2014 maybe someone has some woolly mammoth hair and you can use that to restore the patina......See what happens when you start breaking out the fossils Quote
rkg Posted February 7, 2014 Report Posted February 7, 2014 You used to be able to get ivory scraps from instrument makers - don't know if you can anymore.. Best, rkg (Richard George) Quote
Jiro49 Posted February 7, 2014 Report Posted February 7, 2014 This thread prompted me to ask a friend who repairs old piano's if he had any scrap ivory keys and I guess next week I will have about 6pcs. Ill part with 4 of them if anybody is interested..? free if you pay shipping. Quote
Dr Fox Posted February 7, 2014 Author Report Posted February 7, 2014 Matt my most dearest friend (flattery) PM me when you are fixed and ill sort the postage thanks a bunch. Quote
Dr Fox Posted February 7, 2014 Author Report Posted February 7, 2014 I hear you Barry, thanks for the warning and the link. Thanks to all who have stepped up here, the tsuba like all items in our hobby, deserve the best we can give. Quote
Geraint Posted February 7, 2014 Report Posted February 7, 2014 Following Matt's offer I have one or two if you would like them Dennis. PM me if so. All the best. Quote
christianmalterre Posted February 7, 2014 Report Posted February 7, 2014 me do like Jakushi Tsuba!-and i think that´s an good exemplaire here... you could equally use deer-horn btw...just keep care in solving the shell before! the white(core) is fitting very well,too! (after mine experiences... do not use any of such abrasive on softmetal! only on forged iron spaces!.... Christian Quote
Dr Fox Posted February 8, 2014 Author Report Posted February 8, 2014 Following Matt's offer I have one or two if you would like them Dennis. PM me if so. All the best. Geraint thanks, yes I will take you up on that. If I have spares then I can help out, as you have both done for me here. Will PM. Quote
Dr Fox Posted February 8, 2014 Author Report Posted February 8, 2014 me do like Jakushi Tsuba!-and i think that´s an good exemplaire here... you could equally use deer-horn btw...just keep care in solving the shell before! the white(core) is fitting very well,too! (after mine experiences... do not use any of such abrasive on softmetal! only on forged iron spaces!.... Christian I see from what you say, its the iron that needs the treatment, keep away from decoration and with this in mind, I would need to turn the materiel into a broad pen or pens of different widths. I have picked up your like for Jakushi work, I have sought out examples on the web, and see what they could look like. At a later date I will repost this tsuba for comparison. Quote
Grey Doffin Posted February 8, 2014 Report Posted February 8, 2014 I had a very nice Jakushi on my site last year, now sold. I don't have small pix of it but here's a link to the tsuba. Grey http://www.japaneseswordbooksandtsuba.c ... -hako-gaki Quote
Dr Fox Posted February 8, 2014 Author Report Posted February 8, 2014 Grey What a nice example to compare too. Checking this one, it also has a carry over of design on the rim. Suddenly I now appreciate the tsuba in hand as an art object. Oh dear its like having one foot in the boat, and the other on the dock. Looks like exploring another dimension on a limited income. Please rest assured, I shall follow all the advice given here as to restoration, and thanks to all who took the time to give it. Quote
Guido Posted February 9, 2014 Report Posted February 9, 2014 FWIW, a huge Jakushi Tsuba that is mounted on one of my Koshirae: Quote
Brian Posted February 9, 2014 Report Posted February 9, 2014 Guido, What size is it, when you say huge? Some would say you can't trust us men when we say "huge" Brian Quote
Guido Posted February 9, 2014 Report Posted February 9, 2014 What size is it, when you say huge?Some would say you can't trust us men when we say "huge" Well, you can trust *me* :D : 8.6 x 8.1 cm! Quote
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