Ed

John is right. I wouldn't worry sending it state to state, but over the border into Canada probably isn't a good idea. Why don't you come to the San Francisco Token Kai in August and pick it up there :D .

Deron, Jim Gilberts site has good info on cleaning iron tsuba. Link: http://home.earthlink.net/%7Ejggilbert/Cleaning.htm I have some pieces of ivory. If you want one write and I'll send you one for nothing.

Saw this post and if you look you will see it was marked down quite a bit from the owners original asking price, which is still shown on the "consignment" page of my site. The F/K is high quality craftsmanship without a doubt. I know that it came from the estate of an long term antique dealer whom had lived in Japan post war. These were the items he had chosen to keep for himself. Most of the fittings and the Noh Masks on the "consignment" pages are from this estate. Is the mei good ?? Is it worth the asking price ?? If papered to this smith then, yes I think it would be considered a good buy. However, all of our opinions and $2.00 will get you a cup of coffee almost anywhere. The ONLY way to be relatively sure is to submit it to shinsa . Along the lines of what Grey said, it is worth what someone will pay for it. I never get involved with what a person wants to list a consignment item for. My thought is, "The market will dictate the price".

John, In the US seller pays 3% domestic, 4% international.

I was truly saddened to see that Sensei Furuya had passed away. He was a kind and generous man whom I was honored to know. He had a vast knowledge of many things including Nihonto, Kodogu and the Japanese History and Culture. Knowledge which he was always willing to share. It is regrettable that he was unable to see the completion of the book he was writing, a book on one of his passions, Yagyu Tsuba. He will be missed by those who knew him. As time moves forward, the body withers and dies. The spirit lives on.

Jean, I would not wait on the 2nd volume. It has been in the works for at least ten years.

Hope e-bay nails this guy.

Looks like a done deal. Good news, eh.

I agree, that doesn't seem like the behavior of someone on the up and up.

Stephen, Just to let you know, I have sold (not on e-bay) and shipped 3-4 swords to China and Taiwan without difficulty. There are collectors in China. Whether the specific guy who wrote you is legit or not who knows. If he is registered on e-bay and makes the winning bid, he is just another buyer. (of course you know, but for others, you have the option to block or cancel bids by this or any bidder if it doesn't feel right, as well as refuse countries as a whole) * Just as a side note to anyone considering selling internationally. These are a few things I have learned doing this on a commercial level: Require that international buyers bear full responsibility for understanding and compliance with import laws and regulations of the country of import. For international payments you should insist on a bank wire transfers. Ship only after payment has cleared. If international buyers want their item fast, wire transfer is the only way to go. Typically international wire transfer's require 3-7 business days for processing, making them fast and secure. Most buyers and sellers do not realize that other forms of international payment such as Check, MO, Paypal, depending on country of origination can take up to thirty days to clear. When accepting payment through methods other than wire transfers, such as MO, Checks etc. Always place a "Hold for collection" on them at your bank. If you have overdraft protection on your account, the payments will at times show cleared before the funds are actually collected. Remember, if you ship and it turns out the payment is no good and the buyer is a thief, guess who eats it, that's right you. With the "Hold for collection", it is not shown as cleared until the funds have actually been collected. Then and only then is it safe to ship to anyone, anywhere. Paypal causes some problems with international payments (aside from fees being high) due to the fact that a buyer while confirmed in his or her own country, may not be confirmed in the US. This causes buyers understandable aggravation. Again, wire transfers eliminate this and are cheaper. The key IMHO to preventing problems whether domestic or international is to be absolutely clear on your expectations and requirements.

Pete, I am not arguing with what you are saying, as you are right on cue as to how it works. I just don't think it should be that way. I personally believe this attitude is detrimental to the show as a whole and may contribute to a decrease of attendance at the shows. Suppose an unknown potential buyer flies in for the show. Suppose he is searching for a rare and valuable sword, which happens to be hidden under your table. He goes home empty handed and you miss a sale. Suppose he reads later on a sword forum that many swords are not put out on display, but kept hidden away, only for those in the right clique. Do you think he will waste his money to come again ?? It seems unfair to the public who spend their money and come from all over the world or at least the country to "see" swords. If it was a private collectors show I could understand, but these shows are open to the public. Personally I feel if it's for sale then put it out where buyers can see it. It is after all a sword "show" not a sword "hide and seek". If a seller is paranoid regarding the handling of his items, then put them in a glass case. At the very least put out a visible sign of available items. This is merely my own personal opinion.

Martin, From what I can see on a quick look, it appears the nidai was the only one of the Hizen Yukihiro who signed that way. 1st & 3rd signed, Ichi dewa no kami Yukihiro. 2nd signed, Ichi Hizen dewa no kami Yukihiro. Note they all signed other ways as well, these examples only represent their mei where "Ichi" was used. Hope this helps. Ed

Stephen, I directed a couple of gendai buyers to your sword. Hope one of them will jump on it as it is quite nice. Ed

Ichi, Thanks a lot for that site. After looking at the map, I realized I have been in that area, but never seen that place. Kyoto has so many things to see, you could spend weeks there trying to see it all. I love wandering around there nibbling on Nama Yatsuhashi. Thanks again. Ed

Ludolf, Thank you very much for the information. Ed

Sorry guys, my bad. I wrote that while thinking of the last samurai reference in the post. "Shinsengumi" with Mifune was what I meant to say.

I had heard Saigo was chosen as the leader of the rebellion because he had a lot of balls. :lol: Sorry, I could not help myself. The testicle thing was just too funny. The photos and info were very good. I was actually just watching, "The Last Samurai", with Toshiro Mifune. Where in Kyoto is the Inn located ? Do you have any information on it? I will be in Kyoto in April and would like to see it.

Sorry, I meant to include that on the first post.

Hi guys, I have been looking at a tsuba. The thing is I can find nothing on the maker. I would like to know how he is rated, period worked, or any pertinent information which you may can help me with. The tsubako's name is Nanzan Hokushi. He is the younger brother of Yurakusai Sekibun. Thanks.

Yes, I agree. Perhaps I should clarify as well, as we were dicussing an alleged sale from Choshuya, that was my meaning as well.

Brian, No problem, there will be no argument. I won't be drawn into one. My only concern was that the originator of the post, "Raygun" was not mislead or misinformed. I am man enough to admit a possible mistake on my part. I may have jumped to the conclusion that the "Masahiro" of which he spoke was the one on the Choshuya web site. However, I did not misread it (It's in English). Nonetheless, I will never believe you will buy a sword of that caliber for $4000 USD. Darcy's post only confirms what I already knew, that you are not going to buy a full polish, no flaws, tokubetsu papered 1st or 2nd generation Hizen Masahiro for $4000 USD. Raygun: I apologize to you for your thread turning into free for all. BTW: The Yoshimichi is sold.

Apparently not. Perhaps you should have taken time to have read my post before becoming defensive. The original post by "Raygun" was a request for a sword in the 500,00yen (Approx $4,000 USD) range. You directed him to a Hizen Masahiro: I was pointing out that the Hizen Masahiro on Choshuya which you referred to is priced at 2,300,000yen (approx. $19,000 USD), which is not within rayguns requested 500,000yen range. http://world.choshuya.co.jp/sale/sword/masahiro/masahiro1.htm My statement was quite clear, "I bet you can't find a comparable (condition, brand new polish, papers, etc.) "Tanba no Kami Yoshimichi" for a better price." I was not comparing the Yoshimichi to the Masahiro nor implying the Yoshimichi was better or more desirable than the Masahiro. That is left to personal preference. What I am implying is that the Yoshimichi is within "Raygun's" desired price range and is very well priced for a Tanba no Kami Yoshimichi, ie; comparable to other Yoshimichi wakizashi's.

I think you better go and recalculate your Yen. The Hizen Masahiro on Choshuya is 2,300,000 JY. That's almost $19,000 USD. Want a good deal. I bet you can't find a comparable (condition, brand new polish, papers, etc.) "Tanba no Kami Yoshimichi" for a better price. http://yakiba.com/wak_yoshimichi.htm

Jon, Hawley's lists a number on "Kanemitsu", as you know. Unfortunately there is not a lot of information beyond the first two generations. There is not much information to gather from the photos of the blade itself, as they are not clear enough. The shirasaya states, Noshu seki ju kanemitsu, but really is not a reliable source of info. Looking only at the mei it is definitely not the shodai's "kane" and is styled after the Nidai. However, there are several points which give me cause for concern. Basically the entire "kane" character looks wrong. The first point is placement of the mei. Comparing it to oshigata of the first two generations, the placement does not look right. Next are the strokes of the "Kane" kanji. The top stroke looks weak but could be due to deterioration. The two dots beside this stroke on yours are at 9 o'clock, whereas the nidai cut these at 7-8 O'clock. The box on yours is to square and neither of the first two cut the far left vertical stroke on the box as your displays. The small "legs" at the bottom on yours are pointed down, whereas on the known good example they are pointed up. Please note I am not implying that yours is gimei, simply that it doesn't look to be either of the first two generations of Kanemitsu (I hope I am wrong). Also, it may well be a good example of a later Kanemitsu. Only submission to shinsa will give you a reliable opinion. My opinion is merely based on my own observations, and is likely worth about as much as I am charging for it.

Stephen, it looks like a fake to me, crying shame some poor guy is fixing to get zapped hard. It is up to $1525 now.