My first Tachi Kake

[Jimmy R]

I just wanted to share some pictures of the first Tachi-Kake I made. I used some Black Walnut I had. It turned out to be marbled with some very nice blond streaks of grain. It comes from a species here in Germany that thrives in wetter climate hence the incredible color variation. I shaped it to bring this out and inlaid it with a shakudo and solid gold Mon set into a piece of antler. The final touch was 8 coats of Tung oil (which dries"harder than the hubs of hell" as my dad always said). I also just finished my second third and fouth rack out of the same wood. I Join the various pieces using only maple dowels and wood glue. It was a lot of fun and I am looking for more wood now.

Thanks for lookin!

Jim

[estcrh]

I just wanted to share some pictures of the first Tachi-Kake I made. I used some Black Walnut I had. It turned out to be marbled with some very nice blond streaks of grain. It comes from a species here in Germany that thrives in wetter climate hence the incredible color variation. I shaped it to bring this out and inlaid it with a shakudo and solid gold Mon set into a piece of antler. The final touch was 8 coats of Tung oil (which dries"harder than the hubs of hell" as my dad always said). I also just finished my second third and fouth rack out of the same wood. I Join the various pieces using only maple dowels and wood glue. It was a lot of fun and I am looking for more wood now.

Thanks for lookin!

Jim

Looks real nice!!!...but your going to get frowns for having your sword point down.

[Marius]

Nice stand, well done BTW, when you have a real sword, place it in the stand with the tip up: http://www.iidakoendo.com/info/item/b005.htm

[sanjuro]

Actually he is I think correct in standing the sword point down. A katana is correctly displayed this way on a tachi kake. Only a tachi is placed point up on a tachi kake. In the same way if a tachi is displayed on a katana kake it is racked edge down, and the katana is racked edge up.

[Jimmy R]

It is shown with just a Koshirae. No blade.

Jim

[Kronos]

Actually he is I think correct in standing the sword point down. A katana is correctly displayed this way on a tachi kake. Only a tachi is placed point up on a tachi kake. In the same way if a tachi is displayed on a katana kake it is racked edge down, and the katana is racked edge up.

 

I was under the impression you should always point it tip up no matter if it's Katana or Tachi to stop the oil pooling in the bottom.

[sanjuro]

From the point of view of a modern collector that is true. When swords were in use they did not spend days and months resting on various sword racks and the rules were a little different. Even so, a tachi held a special level of respect and was traditionally kept fully mounted on a tachi kake. Since there was often long periods between battles for which the tachi would be called upon, then it was displayed point up for the reasons you mentioned.

In real terms a sword in koshirae should not be kept heavily oiled, certainly not to the point where the oil would run off the blade into the saya. Thats why shirasaya were used. There is an oil gutter in the tip of a shirasaya to collect excess oil.

Generally speaking, a katana should never be displayed on a tachi kake at all. What I cited was a general sort of philosophy applicable during the days when swords were used on a daily basis and when no other rack but a tachi kake was available to stand a katana upon. Considering the Japanese sense of propriety, it would at best have been a very temporary arrangement.