New waki bought on local auction in Sweden

[PatrikD]

Hi guys, just bought an waki at an local auction.

the blade is kind of "tierd", but i like it whit the diffrent "groves"/hi on it sides, on one side it has two of them, and on the other side it has one, it also look that the blade has been pollished at a time, (if i look just after the habaki it has that look the edge is kind of smaller).Some stupid man had glued the Tsuka to it an laquerd all of the Tsuka, and ofcourse he tried to get of the rust on the tang before he glued it.....I dont think the Tsuba is for the waki, and ofcourse the same thing there, someone sand the rust/patina away, but i really like the shape of that Tsuba, really clean in the lines,you can still see the old patina "inside" the holes of it.What do you think about the age of the blade and the Tsuba?

 

Best Regards

 

Patrik

[PatrikD]

And here is the Tsuba that was on it.

[Mark Green]

Wow, What a shame they felt they had to remove all the patina from everything.

That's a great looking hamon on the sword.

 

 

I would say the sword looks late shinto. That is a powerful looking wak.

I have a Bungo shigeyuki that could be it's brother.

Except for the patina mess, great find. You could repatina that tsuba easy enough.

I would.

Mark G

[Basho12]

It is a shame. I'd have loved to have seen it before they took the sandpaper to it.

 

Not to get too far off the subject, but could someone take a moment to explain why this blade would be considered "tired"? I mean, I know it's when the blade has been polished so many times that core steel and any hidden ware start to become visible, but this one looks "meaty" enough to take a polish, or at least does to me, so I must be missing something.

[Mark Green]

That sword isn't tired at all, to my eyes.

It just hurts to look at that nakago

 

Could we get some measurements?

[loui]

Nice sword, lots of potential, like Mark said not tired at all. The tsuba and nakago can be repatinated easily, lots of potential there in my opinion.

 

Regards,

 

Louis

[SwordGuyJoe]

I agree that this isn't at all tired and from the pictures (and having no idea what you paid for it), worth the investment in polish and re-patination.

[PatrikD]

Thanks for the fast answers, the blade is 21 inch or 54 centimeters, and total is 26 inch or 67 centimeters,good to see that you dont think the blade is "tired" , that was just my amature thinking of it,it was a copuple of years ago since i dealed whit Japanese Swords.

You guys have any good ides how to repatinate the Tsuba, i really "fell in love" of the shape of the Tsuba :-).

Well it was a really cheap sword, i paid 120$ for it...

[Mark]

the tsuba looks familiar. i have (or had) a matching tsuba. What size is your tsuba? If they would make a daisho i would sell you mine or buy yours, it would be nice to have them together

[Gabriel L]

I'm going to take a different stance on the sword. My first impression was that the blade was actually very healthy looking despite the horrible surface treatment. But it also looks like a large percentage of the edge may have been "sharpened" away, which would raise serious warning flags. See the fourth and fifth photo links—somehow that doesn't look like ordinary fumbari to me.

 

Perhaps it could be used as a practice blade by a (reputable) student polisher?

[PatrikD]

The diameter of the Tsuba is 3,2 inch , or 8,4 centimeters.

 

Regards

 

Patrik

[Tsugio Kawakami]

Send it out for a repolish and repatinate, IMHO. Though it does look like the edge has been ground, the rest of it seems to be in fairly good shape and there is plenty of hamon left. While it looks like the whole ji has been disturbed, it still seems to have plenty of material.

 

My biggest concern by looking at this is whether or not the blade has been "washboarded" by someone and their grinder, especially seeing as the damage begins forward of the machi...not including the cleaned nakago. Lord, what a shame...but at least that's somewhat fixable.

[george trotter]

Hi Patrik,

I love the hamon. I don't collect pre-Meiji swords any more, but that hamon I would not be able to resist...superb IMHO. I would treat the blade with respect...not wishing to disrespect any other members, but I would not give it to a student polisher or re-patinate the tang myself...I think you should inspect it carefully for fatal flaws such as yakikuzure (break in the hamon)...if OK, it is beautiful enough that it be sent for a proper polish (insist on sashikomi polish) and professional repatination and shirasaya and shinsa in Japan. You will then have a beautiful sword and an attribution...if he was "nobody" who cares, it is a very nice sword. You can re-patinate the tsuba and make up a set of mounts...fantastic. You got the sword for nothing really...spend its true cost on doing it up and enjoying it forever...or sell it to me so I can do it...will $150 be alright?

Regards,

George.

[jason_mazzy]

that hamon is gonna glow with a polish. Amazing! $120? nice find.

[Brian]

Yep...you can now spend around $3000 on a professional polish and a professional repatination, and a shirasaya. The hamon is acid washed and you can't make any judgement just yet. Can't even see any flaws yet. After all of that, you will have spent upwards of $3K. Or you could buy an in-polish sword without the ruined nakago and hamon for the same price.

Not saying it wasn't a decent deal, but hate to see ppl looking to always buy the ruined sub-$200 blades and considering them a bargain. You have no idea what problems this one has. It is neither amazing nor a steal just yet. After it has been polished, and you can see the hataraki and actual condition..then make a judgement.

There is potential there..especially if you are a polisher :D

Otherwise, it is just a cheap shot in the dark.

 

Brian

[Grey Doffin]

Show it to a properly trained polisher; ask his opinion. Then you'll know what makes sense.

Grey

[george trotter]

I didn't realise this sword hamon has been washed in acid. What do you mean Brian? Is it a false hamon?

Regards,

George.

[Brian]

George,

I think it is a real and decent hamon, but acid treated to show clearly. Some of the pics...the hamon is way too prominent and dark, which makes me think it had the lemon juice, acid or ferric chloride treatment to bring it up. Probably more on one side of the blade than the other from the pics. Never a good thing, it opens the hada and leads to more material needing to be removed in polishing.

 

Brian

[george trotter]

Oh I see Brian...doesn't sound good for the blade I agree.

Well, what to do, what to do...it's back to you Patrik. Maybe Grey's advice...a reputable polisher for an assessment... he should be able to tell you if the metal/hamon are acid affected. A pity if it is ruined.

regards,

george.

[PatrikD]

Thanks for all the answer from you, i aggre with Brian that its not worth the money to get it fully polished,i gonna talk whit a polisher to hear what he says.

 

Best Regards

 

Patrik

[Jamie]

Send it to a Proper polisher. They will give you the best opinion you can get on this blade.