Seppa shapes and design

[OceanoNox]

Hello all

 

I have been mulling over the possible designs of seppa. I know of the "scales" like design, and the crenelation like design, but I have been wondering if there are sources or collection showing the different types of seppa. Incidentally, I was also wondering if seppa were made to fit a specific koshirae, or if they were made in bulk and adjusted as necessary. So far, I haven't been able to find much about the topic, despite the fact that they are a very important part of the koshirae.

[Geraint]

Dear Arnaud,

 

You might find this interesting, 

 

 

 

 

All the best.

[Hokke]

I’m really happy that Fords videos are still up and available for people to see. To be a highly regarded craftsman in your field is one thing, having the patience and vocabulary to teach your craft in a meaningful way is something else entirely.  

[Scogg]

Brian Tschernega did a demonstration on seppa at the last Vegas sword show. He demonstrated a few different styles. He went into depth explaining how important the fit of the seppa is to the blade, and that it needs to sit tight under the habaki without falling down from gravity. 
 

I asked if seppa need to adhere to hi groves on blades where the hi extends through the nakago, and he said yes.  
 

It was quite an impressive demonstration, and the precision that goes into fitting the seppa was eye opening. 
 

This leads me to speculate that seppa are made for specific koshirae at least on the nicer pieces. 
 

Obligatory disclaimer: This is from memory of his demonstration, and I am not a Tosogu expert or craftsmen.

 

His demonstration may have been filmed, I wonder if there’s a copy of it anywhere.

[OceanoNox]

Thank you folks, that's helpful. 

I had seen some seppa that had seemed to follow the bohi, but I did not know it was supposed to be like that. Most of what I had seen was probably mass produced.

[Hokke]

11 hours ago, Scogg said:

Brian Tschernega did a demonstration on seppa at the last Vegas sword show. He demonstrated a few different styles. He went into depth explaining how important the fit of the seppa is to the blade, and that it needs to sit tight under the habaki without falling down from gravity. 
 

I asked if seppa need to adhere to hi groves on blades where the hi extends through the nakago, and he said yes.  
 

It was quite an impressive demonstration, and the precision that goes into fitting the seppa was eye opening. 
 

This leads me to speculate that seppa are made for specific koshirae at least on the nicer pieces. 
 

Obligatory disclaimer: This is from memory of his demonstration, and I am not a Tosogu expert or craftsmen.

 

His demonstration may have been filmed, I wonder if there’s a copy of it anywhere.

Hey Sam, when you asked Brian that question, what did you mean by adhere? Were you asking if the sepia needed to be shaped to where they would extend into the hi? 

[Scogg]

38 minutes ago, Hokke said:

Were you asking if the sepia needed to be shaped to where they would extend into the hi? 

Good question. Apologies, adhere probably wasn't the best word here .

To answer your question: yes, that's how I understood it. In the scenario where bohi extends through the nakago, the nakago-ana on the seppa needed to mimic that profile, including the bohi. 

What spurred my question, was watching the amount of precision and effort it took for him to get it to fit "just right", and I imagined a bo-hi in that area would only make it more challenging. 

Hope that makes more sense,
All the best,
-Sam
 

[Hokke]

30 minutes ago, Scogg said:

What spurred my question, was watching the amount of precision and effort it took for him to get it to fit "just right", and I imagined a bo-hi in that area would only make it more challenging. 

 

That is what I assumed just wanted to clarify because it piques my interest as well. As someone who has made seppa in the past, I am now super curious as to the method by which this is done. Although I have never done a specific search for this type of seppa, it is certainly not common so far as I have seen. So glad you thought to ask him that question, it’s given me a new project to explore. 
 

[Stephen]

What I always appreciated in finding in the sword the sepa size to fit the front and the back of the tsuba.

 

That is to say both would on the tsuba next to saya

But one would not slide all the way up the nakago to tsuba.

 

Usually a sign that they were made for the sword and tsuba

[Scogg]

I searched around and could not find an image example to share of a seppa with profile for a bohi. So it must not be super common. I already pester Brian enough and he's super busy, otherwise I'd ask him 

I think most seppa that I've encountered "in the wild" are generic ones too; but as @Stephen points out, a properly fitted seppa should be snug, therefore one should fit slightly higher then the other. 

Some more speculation: During WW2, we know that seppa were sometimes numbered on outfitted swords - presumably to keep the individual fitted parts together and not to mix them up during production and outfitting. BUT, WW2 also brought a lot of mass production and standardization; It would not surprise me if they pumped out seppa blanks to then be machined for individual swords. Furthermore, it would not surprise me if many of those seppa blanks worked "good enough" as is, especially later in the war or for civilian gunto. 

Sorry for all the speculation, but hey, seppa info is hard to find .

If I get the opportunity, and if I remember, I’ll ask and maybe get a photo of a “bohi seppa” at the SF show in a couple weeks. 
-Sam

 

[Hokke]

46 minutes ago, Scogg said:

If I get the opportunity, and if I remember, I’ll ask and maybe get a photo of a “bohi seppa” at the SF show in a couple weeks. 
-Sam

 

That would be fantastic is you find one. I would be very interested to see the depth of the seppa into the hi. Presumable it would not need to bottom out in order to serve its purpose. 

[Hokke]

1 hour ago, Scogg said:

I already pester Brian enough and he's super busy, otherwise I'd ask him 
 

Hey Sam, one more quick thought if you ever have the chance to ask Brian in the future. Your original question to him regarded bohi, but what about blades with sohi? I’m curious if both grooves are cut, is that actually for utility or more to demonstrate the skill of the artist. Presumably fitting the seppa to one groove would be more than adequate to service its purpose, but that very much is a presumption on my part. 

[Scogg]

If I get the opportunity, I’ll try to pick his brain about the topic at the upcoming show. 
 

I’ll make a note of it, because now I’m curious too