Question about auction

[Don]

Long time lurker first time poster and need an opinion. What do you think about this auction/blade?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... :IT&ih=003

I wasnt sure and should have asked here first but it has a 7 day return policy on it. Mumei and he says Shinshinto or newer but the pics werent that great. Hoping for some insight although I havent received the blade yet.

Thanks in advance

Don

PS...Yes that was us that bought that bizarre china made wakizashi mentioned in another thread..I told my gf it wasnt Japanese but she thought it looked cool and wanted it for herself. *sigh*...whaddya gonna do..?

 

Don G.

[Brian]

Hi Don (can we get a name and initial please, makes it easier to know who is who, thanks)

 

Very little I can tell from the pics. I think it is probably real, and probably a showa era WW2 oil quenched sword, but you will have to wait for it to arrive to give us better pics. Without being able to see the kissaki and nakago properly, and any hada and hamon, not much we can say about it yet.

 

Brian

[Don]

Thanks Brian

Well, he said Shinshinto or later and handforged so Im keeping my fingers crossed.

Don G.

[Stephen]

his completed items youll see he took the sword apart....bastard if you ask me....id never given him a cent.

 

http://search-completed.ebay.com/search ... p=1&fsoo=1

[Don]

Wow. Sure looks like he did. Do you think the quality of the fittings or the length of the blade bode well for the type of blade Ill be getting? Id heard that pierced Tsuba were generally found on better quality blades or is that a fallacy...?

Like I said...it states 7 day return option. He didnt offer insurance on the auction but Ive written him twice saying I have no problem paying for insurance and wont spend $400 on a package (especially during the holiday madness) that isnt insured.

Don G

[Don]

I might add that he has responded to neither of my emails regarding getting the parcel insured. Hmmm....

 

Don G

[Joseph P.]

The blade seems to be real. In one of the pictures, it looks like there are marks on the blade, as if somebody took a grinder to it, it might just be me.

It looks to be an okay blade, we will not know until you get the blade.

 

A seller who doesn't respond to emails? Doesn't offer insurance?

 

Shady...

 

I was looking at some of this seller's auctions too.

[Don]

Well, the seller has so far ignored my requests for an insurance amount. I may just blow this auction off. Granted I won it but if he is not going to respond to my emails to finish the deal then Im not going to waste my time with him as he seems sketchy already.

[Don]

Okey Dokey

I received teh blade today and as some thought from th epics it has been 'buffed'. You can tell that this blade had a lot of rust on it and somebody tried to buff it off. They also attempted to clean the nakago. I can barely make out a hamon but it does appear to be there. This is mumei, no stamps. I think I may see if Jim Hutchinson can do a hybrid polish as there is no way Im forking out big money for this until I see whats under the buff. Blade nagasa is right at 24" and unshortened.

Might make for a nice training balde ...we shall see.

[Brian]

Don,

 

The best advice is the find a traditional polisher to open a window and see what lies under there. A window shouldn't be too exppensive and you will get an opinion on whether it is worth further work. Try the links page under restoration for some possible guys.

 

Good luck.

 

Brian

[Don]

Actually Im going to send it to Brian Tschernega to have a look at. Ive been friends with Brian since he was 17 and he always gets upset when I buy stuff without checking with him first (lol).