jezah81

Just as a note, when i do receive my sword, Ill be giving to Kam Appleford here in QLD Australia who runs Jigoku Studios not far from me. He has done many restorations on swords and Im sure he'll be able to help out. Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop

Thanks guys. That is exactly what i thought too. One thing is for certain though, I will never purchase from ricecracker.com again, after this displeasing experience. Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop

Hi guys, This is a picture of the tsuka blank that Mike Yamasaki and John Kurata provided me with the purchase of a blade from them. I was told by them that all i would have to do is send the blank to Japan and get it finished off. After contacting several tsukamakishi in Japan, all of them declined the work after seeing the picture of the blank and named it "amateur". What do you guys think of this? To be honest, i dont know too much about the art of tsuka making, but this does seem a little odd. How can any tsukamakishi finish this blank off without having the blade in hand also? Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop

It seems that the image was bigger than is allowed on this forum. Anyways, its no big deal. Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop

Thank you once again for participating in this discussion. I have attached another photo of the habaki. If you look carefully, you can see that the blade near the habaki is also a dull greyish colour as though its seen only the first stage of the polishing process. The hamon isnt all that visible unless you look really closely. BTW, I am just over 6 foot tall, that is why i needed a monster of a blade! :D Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop[/code]

The nakago is signed "kunisada". I have no idea why it has been referred to as mumei. Even if the both of you are correct about the shiny spots on the nakago, it wont be hard to make the tsuba fit tight again. I also know of many tameshigiri practitioners in Japan who buy shinsakuto that are a dull greyish sort of colour, and no real hamon. Only put through the first stage of the polish such as you described. That is another reason why i wanted to purchase this blade, because i wont be damaging an art polish. The length of this blade also attacted me to it. Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop

Thanks to everyone on this forum for taking their time to put in their input. I got in contact with Mike Yamasaki about this blade just yesterday. I inquired about the scratches on the blade, and if they were made by someone applying sand paper. He replied by saying Also I did ask John Kurata BEFORE i bought the blade, if this blade was suitable for cutting hard targets such as bamboo. This was the reply I got: After hearing that response, i went on and purchased the blade, as this was my main reason for buying it in the first place. Once again, I wish to thank all the members of nihontomessageboard for their time and patience with me. Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop

I actually bought it from Mike Yamasaki and John Kurata. They told me that it would be good for a cutting blade. It is signed "Kunisada" . So, your'e saying it is a damaged blade?? Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop

Hi Guys, I recently bought a shinshinto bakumatsu katana from ricecracker.com. I just wanted to see other peoples opinions on the sword. I bought it for $6000 U.S, including a new handle blank made for it, which isnt in the photos. Does it appear to be in its original old polish from the 1800's? Does it appear to be full in hiraniku, and most importantly is it worth the money? This is going to be my cutting sword from now on, so any opinions would be appreciated. Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop

Hi guys, Anyone know where i can send a new tsuka blank to get tsukamaki done in Japan? I have all the old fittings, and all i need is to send the blank to a craftsmen and get it finished. Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop

Has anyone ever bought anything from this company? Im interested in buying one of their swords, but i havent received an email back from them as yet. Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop

Is it possible to use the koma nagura stone to touch up the edge of a shinsakuto without having to polish the whole blade? If anyone can give some basic instructions, that would be awesome. Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop

Hi Richard, I own a sword made by Kimura san from Kumamoto. I had it custom made and took 5 months to have it completed. He does forge really good swords for iai. Hes not a mukansa though. Just a run of the mill swordsmith. He and his father Kanetsugu forged it for me as a gassaku (joint effort). 2-5-0 length, choji hamon, itame hada, nioi-deki, similar to bizen style forging. If theres anything else you want to know about this smith, just ask. Kind regards, Jeremy Hagop

Thanks for the replies. So, in that case, a hiraniku sukunai blade isnt possible to forge?? Or does this just mean that a blade doesnt have much niku? And how can you tell if the blade has enough hiraniku for cutting hard targets? Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop

Thanks Mark. Thats exactly the type of information i wanted to know. By the way, i used my credit card to test it out on my blade, and it did rock back and forth a little, so it seems that my blade might have some niku afterall! Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop

Hi guys, How can one tell if a blade has ample hiraniku just by looking at the blade? Kind Regards and Happy New year. Jeremy Hagop

After just recently cutting a few bamboo poles, i just checked the edge of my shinsakuto under the light, and i can see some really really small chips along the edge in the monouchi part. Surprisingly, it still cuts through paper like a razor, and feels sharp as hell when you touch it. So, is it anything i should worry about, can i keep cutting with the blade?? Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop

Hi Guys, Something I always hear about and have read about got me thinking. Do shinsakuto blunt faster than the older swords such as the shinto and shinshinto blades? Also, when a nihonto gets blunt is the only way to get it sharp again by sending it to a polisher and get it repolished again or is there a more simple way such as a sharpening stone that anyone can use to sharpen the blade? Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop

Hi guys, I was talking to my friend the other day and he brought up something that was interesting to me. His sensei once told him that mekugi shouldnt be in too "tight" or loose either. Has anyone else heard of this?? How can you tell if its too tight?? Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop

Hi Brian, Thanks for your reply. That is what i first thought it was but wanted to make sure. By the way, have you heard of this swordsmith?? Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop

Hi guys, When I was cleaning my shinsakuto the other day, i notice little black holes, the size of pin heads on the mune of my blade. I cant find them anywhere else but on the mune. Does anyone know what these might be?? Anything serious?? Inferior steel?? The blade is a Gassaku by Kanetsugu/ and his son Mitsuhiro. Any ideas?? Kind Regards, Jeremy Hagop