Curgan

This is a Fig Ivy Fuchikashira I recently bought in order to mount with my first Nihonto. The signature is Hishashi Akira or Hitoshi Masa, but I can't read it. Anyway, I thought it would be interesting to post some pics for those who are interested. My apologies for posting the seller's pics, but I will amend posting pictures of the whole project as soon as it is finished. height: 3.3/3.8cm width: 1.8/2.1cm Thickness: 0.9/1.4cm Weight: 15/28g

Many thanks! May more translations be posted!

As new in nihonto collecting, I feel the need to compliment on such an initiative and thank beforehand those who will put labour to it. What I would like to see in a word is the basic information and refferences for further study. Nobody was born all knowing. Some are lucky to have somebody knowledgable to ask in person. Those who are not that lucky to have a personal mentor, seek forum help. Only the self taught can fully understand the difficulty of such an effort. Hopefuly the newbies of today will someday become knowledgable enough to help others. In that frame the faq IMHO should provide the fundamental knowledge and intrugue someone to study. This means refferences to good books, links to websites and more elaborate articles. Questions will inevitably rise even then, but ideally they be more advanced than those tiresome and a lot of times answered.

Ford, who is the top western tsuba maker IMHO, is unaffordable (at least by me), while Patrick, the second best, has a huge backlog...

Do you know if he makes tsuba proffesionaly?

I will. His works seems very nice

Do you know if he makes other fittings as well (tsuba, kojiri menuki etc)?

I think it will take place in London 2011. See http://ryujinswords.com/index.htm

I don't know what more experienced members think, but shouldn't the yokote on such an old sword (that has surely been polished in the past) been more distinct?

Aren't the nembutsu being hanged on wooden stands?

It looks like a pendant of some kind with something written on it... maybe a kamon, a name or even nothing?

You 've got a point there and I couldn't say I totaly disagree. As for my use of the term nihonto; I use it contrary to gendai, shinsakuto or other terms in order to point out the fact that it reffers to an antique sword. Theoretically the Aphrodite of Melos -or any other art object- can be reconstructed today, whole and without the wear of time. Will the modern recontruction be of the same value with the copy? It might be more beautiful, but not more valuable. I think it is time -and what time brings along- that give value to an antique item.

I would avoid a cheap polish too, but in a "decent" condition sword. This one is a 100$ piece of metal that was once a sword. Whoever get's it won't spent much on it's restoration, since there are blades in better condition and cheaper to choose from. As far as a new nihonto you are right, but the antique items can not be made anew. They are a piece of the world cultural heritage and a great many deal of them is already destroyed. If this -or any other item regardless it's condition- survives in any way, it's a success.

No, I don't like it, but I 'd like to see it (and all nihonto in bad shape) restored somehow... Even if a nihonto is virtually worthless and without any significant artistic value, you can't have a new one today. Luckily you can have a "similar" by modern smiths. Maybe better in all aspects but not nihonto

A cheap polish will cost 10-15$ per inch, but I don't know about retempering. The blade has (at least) one fatal flaw and many other and it is not a national treasure. However,it would be nice if it survived anyhow. At the bottom line it costs less than a family dinner. Enough nihonto are lost already...

I was wondering whether a retempering and new polish would bring it back to an acceptable condition for the buck. They would sure ruin it's collectible value, but maybe it could come cheaper than a newly made wakizashi.

My point, but didn't wanna write much...

If only it didn't have so many dents.. but on the other thand it's only 100$...

You are not alone. There are some filming you on the ice flow (see, over there at the broken iceberg's tip :D ) Please don't drop the thread. It is very educational and fun.

Well, it seems that there are still to be found diamonds in the mud...

Me neither, but what would they need the tanto for? They went full spead and explosives to crash to a steel ship. And even if they got one, how did it survive the crash? :lol:

Surprisingly someone paid almost 500$ for this... didn't they research things a bit before bidding?

Thanks, for your help. It seems to me that a nihonto needs the "standard" traditional sword care that is used in every sword applied reguraliry and with high quality products. No innovations there.

Well, after a lot of reading and research I got my first 2 nihonto and I am expecting them in a month (after the paperwork is done). Although I am quite experienced with modern blades -european and Japanese styled- I am very anxious with the nihonto. There are no sword clubs or nihonto enthusiasts, where I live to seek counsel. I have learned a lot from books, but now I have found no book to help me. What I would like to find out is how to take proper care of a nihonto, by using the example of more experienced forumites. It is hard to explain in detail but it could translate to two vast chapters; storage (where? in a bag and closet, in a zerust gun case -this is my method- or maybe in a display case? keep the blade in shirasaya, koshirae or bare? is there an ideal temperature and humidity?) and maintenance (is there any special treatment or special product I should use? how should I protect tsuka and saya from wrapping if laid bare, for example I use rice as a humidity remover, what about dust? or ito? or samekawa? can nuguigami replaced with silk or cotton cloth or even a quality tissue? what if a minor rust spot appears?) and many other issues -specific for nihonto I might be unaware, like dangers from uchiko, reaction to specific oils or products, eg RenWax/Silicone spray and polishing). I thought that it would be a very interesting and educational subject that would attract much attention -especially from the more experienced- and I didn't find any older theads on this. Maybe I am still unfamiliar with the search engine, but I 'd bet this topic is not discussed in specific. Anyway, my apologies if I started an already discussed topic...

Thanks John. I am familiar with NBTHK guide, what I lack is experience exchange and applied theory. I have added in the search engine sword+care and got no results. I added care/maintenance and got a lot of irrelevant. What am I doing wrong?