Shortening the saya the right way

[sokkon]

Hello, I purchased a Wakizashi with a koshirae several years ago. Apparently, it wasn’t made for my sword. It’s slightly loose and a bit too long. I’ve attached a photo. I assume it’s from the Edo period. The looseness isn’t a problem for me, but I’d like to shorten the saya by 6 cm. In my opinion, the kojiri could also be moved easily because the difference in diameter at the point where it would be cut is about 3.5 mm larger than the diameter at the end of the saya where the kojiri is currently mounted. Do you think it makes sense to do this? I don’t want to damage the antique in any way. Do you have any idea what kind of adhesive should be used, and is there a specialist in Europe who could do this, or would a good local carpenter be able to handle it? Thanks in advance to everyone!

[Geraint]

Dear Teodor.

 

It is not uncommon to find a shorter wakizashi blade in a rather longer saya.  I am unable to tell from your photogrh whether the saya is an original, in which case I would strongly suggest leaving it as it is, or whether it is a modern replacement.  Japanese sworeds are always more subtle than you think and thouigh the fact that the saya is larger were you feel the kojiri might fit is an advantage I think rather the reverse.  To make a good job of this that difference would mean correcting the shape of the saya over its entire length, destroying the lacquer in the process.  

 

As you can probably tell my feelings are strongly against attempting this.  Even if the saya is a mismatched antique then best to leave it alone in my opinion.  It is very easy to think that one can improve a sword by doing various small things to it, in practice this almost aways works to the detriment of the sword unless you are prepared to find Japanese trained craftsmen and pay the going rate.

 

All the best.

 

 

[Matsunoki]

Excellent advice from Geraint. It’s so easy to make things far worse and then wish you had never started.

[ROKUJURO]

1 hour ago, sokkon said:

 ....The looseness isn’t a problem for me,....

While the slightly longer SAYA can even be original to a sword, for me, the looseness would be a more serious issue.

[sokkon]

Dear Geraint,

Thank you for your reply. I’m starting to think that the benefits of shortening it aren’t worth the risk of damaging an antique, nor would they justify the cost.

[John C]

Teodor:

Geraint brings up the best reason not to do it - the woodworking involved is minimal and quite simple, HOWEVER the urushi would crack and split during the process and would be a nightmare to make look nice again.

 

John C.