a wakizashi that was probably incorrectly stored since long time

[tyrion67]

Hello,

 

Is it valuable to buy this kind of wakizashi in this "poor" condition ?

I guess it's an illusion to make the blade presentable again, unless you're willing to spend a small fortune on it.

But could a simple "clean-up" within the reach of a mere mortal could make things better?

Thanks in advance,

Jo

 

 

[Jon]

Hi jo

restoration of a Nihonto is a very specialist thing, that needs a profundity of knowledge. Basically if a Nihonto is not in Polish it’s not really in a collectible condition ( you cannot see the activity in the steel so cannot study or identify the blade if it’s out of Polish).

 

Polishing costs a lot, if you can find a polisher ( most have waiting lists of 2 years), it’s also going to cost around £400 to get it polished…then you have the issue that the saya will be full of rust and dirt so you need a new shirasaya after it’s polished. You’re basically in for a £700-£800 to restore a blade. 
 

Your problem is it’s only viable if you have a blade worth the effort…no point restoring trash as you will be throwing money away…if the blade costs you £500 then your spending £700-£800 that’s £1300 on a blade that could be really not that valuable and for £1300 you can get a lovely papered blade in Polish that is worth the money….

 

if you just want to keep it..I would suggest you follow the advice for European blades…you don’t ever Polish historic European blades you stabilise and maintain ( Japanese Nihonto should be in perfect polish, it’s a profoundly different paradigm)..if your treating it like a European blade…give it a bath in machine oil ( for a couple of days) keeping the oil off the tang ( never touch the tang of a Japanese sword)..then gently with a lint free cotton cloth give it a good wipe….then simple keep it oiled..as you will turn the rust to back stable rust…

 

Don’t try and Polish it yourself as if it just happened to be a hidden gem you would damage it. 
 

But honestly looking at that blade I would not touch it.

[Rivkin]

Very likely Kambun shinto piece, maaaaybe Kaga school. Usually not profitable to restore without a signature.

[tyrion67]

Thank you for your answers, which I expected.

Indeed, it seems logical that such an investment on a blade in this condition can only be profitable on a potentially valuable signed blade.

 

But I thought I'd ask, you never know.

 

Even so, this set was on sale for around 500€, so even if you like the "European" look of the blades, it's already a not inconsiderable investment.