Sporkkaji

Read through this thread before you put too much stock in his 'honest reputation'. viewtopic.php?f=1&t=7871

....Well I tried. He emailed me back with a status update on my own project but no mention whatsoever about my question concerning public contact information to give to others who could use his services.

I just asked him, will let you know what he says.

He's currently doing some saya work for me now and recently made this nice silver habaki. (Someone accidentally gave me the secret email that goes straight to his cell phone, so I'm not at liberty to share it)

Thanks for the reply. So just to clarify, assuming a tsuba is unsigned, has both types of holes, and is more or less identical on both sides, then the first picture would be more appropriate than the second one?

Wondering if there is a correct way for the tsuba to face when mounted on a blade? If standing with the sword pointing away from you and the cutting edge downward, would the kogai (3 arcs) hole be on the left and the kozuka (oval) on the right - or should it be the other way around? I've looked all over for a definitive answer and sites like Aoi-Art seem to show examples of mounted tsuba facing both ways.

Ordered mine today. The "German Edition" in the description is probably making a lot of potential customers pass it up.

Why not simply label it "Original Artwork", which is technically true. Seems that would prevent any weapon related issues.

I'm wondering if anyone knows how the army went about issuing swords to officers. Did they have to be purchased or were they simply handed out along with all the other necessary uniforms and equipment? I know that some officers chose to take a family blade to war or to have a custom blade commissioned, but how did they distribute all the arsenal produced swords? Also, with the differences in quality from sword to sword, how was it determined who would get the common gunto and who would get the superior blades such as the ones produced in the RJT program?

He sure sells a lot of stuffed critters.

I think a special punishment of some sort would be in order for the perpetrator. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... 0817291342

Not sure if I missed something, but I think it was translated for you. Made by Yoshitada in March '45.

Because if you put in an early max bid, you give other bidders a chance to jack up the price as they competitively try in increments. Hypothetically say the most you're willing to pay for a certain item is $1,000 and there are at least two bidders who are serious about buying it. If you put in your max bid of $1,000 an hour before the end of the auction, that other guy can come along and bid $750 (Darn!) then $775 (Darn!) then $800 (Darn!).....etc. Before you know it he has driven up the price and you've won, but for the full $1,000. In that same situation if you wait until the absolute last moment, there's no chance for anyone to come behind you. Let that other guy bid his $750 first (Yay, I'm the high bidder). A second before the end, bid your $1,000 and you've just won it for $775.

We've all seen the movies where after a duel, the Samurai victor gives his blade one or two wipes on his sash and then puts it away in the saya. In reality, after a sword battle the blade would be covered with blood, and blood is very corrosive to steel if not removed promptly. I would think that if it were not thoroughly cleaned before inserting it into the saya, the blood would soak into the core wood and contaminate it so that a blade could no longer be kept in it for any length of time. Were the sayas of the time basically considered disposable?

This 1945 dated Gendaito I picked up on Ebay was in very rough type-3 mounts with iron fittings, simulated rayskin wrap, and a painted metal saya. I'm told though that the blade is high quality. viewtopic.php?f=15&t=9168&p=76120

Mr. Tirado is currently doing some work for me, but I think only because I got lucky. When I was asking around about someone who does quality koshirae work, I was accidentally given the secret email address that goes straight to his Blackberry.

Not exactly Edo, but it's a really pretty air defense medal. Feels and rings like real silver, and seems to be a unique design since I haven't seen another one like it with the buildings and searchlights.

I had an automatic search for Navy tassels which would notify me whenever one was listed on Ebay. From time to time this same seller would put six or so up at once and they didn't seem to sell, then they would all be relisted again at some point. Looked fishy so I stopped considering his items.

Just buy some little things like paperback books, earplugs, fish food, or replacement blades for your razor. Your feedback will increase to a respectable level in no time.

A while back I bought a tsuba from Yumi on an impulse because I wanted one with an abalone theme. It's currently in the hands of an expert who's fitting it to a blade by enlarging the hole slightly. He tells me it's an authentic piece, but it's not of the highest quality and that the color/patina is 'off' somehow. Didn't pay that much though, so I'm happy with it.

Heh heh, and they ALWAYS get a standing ovation

Hoping someone can help me out with translating this. There are a million old photos of Japanese officers posing with their swords, but this one caught my eye and I bought it because of the unusual banner. Polydor used to be a big record label with major artists in the US, and still is in the UK http://www.polydor.co.uk/. I can only guess that these might be company employees/executives proudly going off to war?? Thanks!

Thanks! I'll need to pick up copies of these if I can manage to find affordable ones somewhere.

Any suggestions on where to find more information on Kanehisa? I'm assuming he's an Army RJT smith because of the star stamp, wouldn't that mean there would be existing researchable documentation somewhere? Will be sending this in to have a shirasaya made next week. Very nice blade, but the late war koshirae has seen much better days.

Hoping someone can help me out with this one. I've actually got half of it, since the signature perfectly matches "Kanehisa 2" on this page http://home.earthlink.net/~ttstein/index.htm but help with the date info on the other side of the nakago would be appreciated (sorry for the poor picture). Also, would anyone happen to have any information about Kanehisa himself?? Thanks!