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昭和二十年正月日 – Showa 20th year (1945), January 服部鍛刀所　頼吉謹作 – Hattori forge Yoriyoshi respectfully made.

I'm just a new guy here, but I've had a broad taste for various historical items/collectables over the decades. I always tend to do research on educating myself about a type of item I wish to acquire a couple of years in advance, if not more. That said, when something strikes me and ticks all of my boxes, I will impulse buy. However, that does not mean I don't know exactly what I'm buying. I also tend to buy just one example of an object I want, then move on to something else. In very rare cases, I become an extreme niche collector of a VERY specific form of a thing and over decades will acquire as many as I can of it. Anyway.... Caveat emptor always applies, and most everything has a variation of a compromise, even if slight, unless you have unlimited funds AND patience. I knew about a decade ago that I one day wanted a Sengoku period nihonto. Over time, casually researching, I found myself drawn to a certain style of hamon, and jihada especially. Then via more in-depth research, I found which regions and schools and in what time periods I would narrow my search to. After this, I compiled a list of dealers/websites to monitor. Over time, I noticed trends and browsed posts online about them. All of that to say, I believe a buyer should always do their due diligence (or hire an expert curator to acquire it for them) so that they can identify attributes of an item from all available sources (written, pictorial, documentation, etc.), often contacting a seller to request additional info due to gaps they may perceive in an ad/auction/etc. It's already been said in this thread that simply over time and volume, most sellers will exhibit patterns in their listing details and feedback. In the end, it comes down to the buyer's education and the seller's integrity, should there be an issue. I made a purchase almost 5 weeks ago from Aoi, and thus far, I've found the seller to be extremely responsive, professional, and accommodating. I found the listing details and images in my swords case, to have been comprehensive enough for me to make the purchase without further inquiry. I more or less knew exactly what I was buying (signed, dated, NBTHK, condition, etc.) and anything else was just a bonus. In my case, I found the koshirae (particularly the tsuka and tsuba) to be non-offensive and complimentary. The saya didn't even matter to me at all. When the sword arrives, I expect it will be just as shown, but if there is a problem for any reason, I'm also confident this seller will not "ghost" me if I reach out with one based on our correspondence thus far and having not seen any reports of this occurring to others. Which is good enough for me, what more could you ask of a business? Of course, there are always people who will buy whatever, totally uninformed, simply based on desire in the moment and at face-value of what a listing states (truth, lies, omissions, and all - just trust me bruh). More often than not, those people are totally happy with what they receive and never think twice about it. Mostly because they just don't care or sweat the details like most of us do. At the end of the day, no one is twisting your wrist to buy anything you don't have the warm fuzzies over. If you spot something that feels off, trust your instincts and move on. - But keep in mind, even the most terrible seller could one day come across exactly what you are looking for, then what will you do....

@wakiboy yup!

Its becoming increasingly difficult to obtain replacement blades of suitable quality for the Occam Razor. Gillette Mach 3 may be a suitable option..............

It's about 25cm across, not accounting for the bend in it.

Many thanks Moriyama san and Ray san! You are most kind. The katana is Kogarasu Maru style. The file marks definitely have a Gassan feel. I am grateful for your help gentlemen, and look forward to doing some more research.

This mei is an early one from the Gassan smith Enomoto Sadayoshi (the mukansa). He worked at the Hattori sword factory during the war, and later changed his name to Sadayoshi. Take good care of the sword and please do not do anything to polish on your own. Best regards, Ray

What I notice right away is the nakagojiri shape looking straight, and that it does not extend into the pommel area. Whereas the aluminum and copper variations the nakagojiri is more chestnut shaped and has the large hole for the grommet screw through the pommel. This is not altogether surprising considering the double menuki serving as mekugi situation; but it’s interesting to actually see, and also to see the nakagojiri shape and location. I’ve put a bid on this sword for curiosity sake. I hope nobody outbids me, because I feel I’m one of very few people something like this would appeal to. Wish me luck -Sam

Hi folks, More fine books have been arriving, including among others Toso Kodogu Meiji Taikei and Nihonto Swords of Japan A Visual Glossary. Find these at the top of the book section on my site. I'd like, however, to offer a deal that won't be listed to my site. I have picked up a copy in excellent condition of the three volumes of Robert Haynes' Index of Japanese Sword Fittings and Associated Artists, with their plexiglass stand, accompanied by both of the Addenda & Corollary to the Index (both in like new condition). One of the Addenda is inscribed by Mr. Haynes to an important former owner. These books are already listed on my site, offered by a consignor. Rather than compete with him on the site I am listing them here at a discount. On the site the Index is $185 and the Addend are $40 each plus post. You can have this copy of The Index and two Addenda for $225 plus post Here is a link to the books on my site: https://japaneseswordbooksandtsuba.com/store/book/fittings-books/b760-the-index-of-Japanese-sword-fittings-and-associated-artists-by-robert-haynes/ If you are interested in the deal please contact me by email - gdoffin at gmail.com - not by personal message here (I need your emails to keep track of business). Tell me you'd like the discounted set. Thanks, Grey

I agree with @uwe. Ref. 日本刀販売専門店　銀座長州屋　鍔　鐔　販売品　阿弥陀鑢桜透鍔（鐔）　銘　戸田彦左衛門, 鍔, 尾張鐔工

Couple of things: 1. Concur with the point about not using the foam with adhesive. I don't know that it will damage the patina, but it may. Better safe than sorry. 2. Leather will work, but keep in mind that most leather used for leather goods has been tanned with strong chemicals such as chromium salts. These are harmful to metal over time, whether guns or your sword fittings. I wouldn't use anything you are not absolutely sure about. If you use leather be sure you buy "vegetable tanned leather", a much safer alternative. There are numerous places which sale vegetable tanned leather and most sell "scraps" pretty cheap. You could buy some of this and get plenty for what you are wanting to do. Try Tandy Leather, or Weaver Leather or google it as there are others.

Oh nice, a turtle Fuchi :D

James: Wow. You have some really nice pieces! I don't know enough to give you a specific valuation (something we avoid doing anyway), however I can say that I have seen similar pieces sold on ebay for hundreds of dollars EACH. Individually, you may have some even nicer than that. I think it would be worth your time to seek out an expert - someone who deals with this kind of stuff regularly - or find a Token society meeting near where you live. But PLEASE take you time with this. I think you may be surprised at the overall value of what you have. John C.

Not late 1945. This is January, 1945. Shogatsu.

Yep, I’d buy that suggestion. Occam’s razor in action. 🙂

No, I don't think the holes were for the chopsticks after three individuals have finished their meal, eating from one bowl. When comparing this to a MOKKO GATA TSUBA with INOME in the "corners", I think the holes could well have been simply decorative and not functional.

As a wild guess, I would suggest “戸田彦左衛門” (Toda Hikozaemon)…

Thank you Dale I’m not a fittings person but I can certainly appreciate the quality and detail, your Tsuba are a good example on the same subject.. Ian

Another common one is putting blades into shirasaya with legit sayagaki (using a file rasp to ensure the sayagaki fits the new occupant). Regarding mukansa blades - Ono Yoshimitsu swords can easily sell for the price of a Juyo, and there's no shortage of cheap-ish gendaito and shinsakuto with Bizen-style hamon that one could pass off as his work to the unwary.

Those are pretty egregious examples. The second one is comical. One also needs to be very careful with papers. A couple of years ago there were 2 'Juyo' blades by Go Yoshihiro and Awataguchi Kuniyasu with altered nakago and hamon to match the NBTHK oshigata from stolen papers. More recently this fake Sadamune. It's a minefield out there.

My birthday was last month, I'll send you my address

Slightly off-topic, but a friend has a signed Sadamune which they sent off to the NBTHK for shinsa. It was sent back 'horyu' because allegedly the panel had never seen a legitimate Mei to compare it with, and thus felt unable to authenticate it. Subsequently this friend had the Sadamune Mei erased, and then sent it off again for shinsa. This time it came back attributed to, yes, 'Sadamune'. By now they had found an old meikan entry with a photo of the same blade, with Mei, but as they had by then registered the sword as unsigned, they ended up in some kind of a Catch 22 bind. (Any factual errors in the story above will be from my failing hearing and lack of ability to follow high-speed explantions in Japanese! ) PS I know very little about Soshu and look forward to reading the articles linked by the OP (Brett) above. Thank you.