Jimmy R

So, I posted a box of extra parts, seppa, Habaki, saya, shirasaya etc on eBay. I know Booooooo Booooo Hiss. Well I told the guy I would look in my storage unit and throw in whatever I found. Well he got upset after 6 days (even though I was giving him a bunch of free parts) and I said okay, I can give you your money back at which point he replied “I have a bunch of projects” and sent me the picture I added. So I immediately told him nothing I had would fit his “projects” and killed the deal. What struck me was that it looks like something Eric Rousch would have done. AND the address is inland from his last known. Does anyone here who has been ripped off by him know his aliases? You never know, one of these could be yours. And does anyone know Doug Royal?

In Japan prices are not negotiated. Even at flea markets I have a hard time getting a discount of only a few percentage points. If you need a Japanese address for shipping I will help for a flat fee and will ship deregistered swords very fast. I do this all the time for service members from the 4 nearby bases that want to go home with a sword. Jim

Kongo Rikishi Nio arm wrestling? I have never seen them arm wrestling like that. I have seen Them flexing their muscles in front of many an altar here especially in the north. Very unusual. If you ever want to sell it contact me

These show up in what is the Japanese equivalent of a thrift store from time to time. Most are aluminum and some are plated. I have a few. I used to always buy them when I saw them.

Can someone please tell me what this stamp represents?

This is the new generation of Chinese copies of nihonto. These come from a guy advertising "Soshu kitae" for sale on eBay. I have a search saved for the term Soshu and his swords always pop up.

Hilarious, Arihira; "his works are few because mainly he worked with his father".

Best display/room I have seen is In Weisbaden at Toms jewelry shop in the basement. Amazing space. I could stay there all day.

When describing the intangible, it is best to wax poetic. People can always say what they like, but why do you like Pink Floyd? Or Rachmaninoff? Uh oh. I am getting going again. I really like the Naoe Shizu in Jeans collection. I could tell you why, but I will keep it at that.

Sue Aoe swords I have been lucky enough to see are my favorite. With their tight Ko-Itame turning to areas of Mokume, it always reminds me of a deep powerful river where eddies rise and swirl above unknown features in its depths. On the obverse, blades with hamon that look like horses teeth seem to evoke revulsion in me. All stamping hooves and slathering gnashing teeth. There is a word for this sort of attraction and revulsion combined. It slips my mind.

This thread raises many questions. Reducing art to a mere practice in technicality will always obscure the work itself. I completely agree with Ford in this. I would also posit, as an artist that works in a field of severe technical restraint, that beauty and function are not just craft. Utility is a secondary function when talking about tosogu. My favorite tsuba depicts an ape man looking wistfully up at the Milky Way. Is it high art? No but to me it is the best tsuba ever made.

Maybe look up the word generalization. Then get back to me.

It is hard to understand the older Japanese people. I will ask her what it is and post what she says. It could be that she was saying it was for cooking???

Those sorts of generalizations are very misleading. First you posit that good habaki is indicative of a good sword, now you say the same thing about koshirae? For any beginning collector reading this thread, do not EVER pay attention to such generalizations. Each aspect of Nihonto and its various accoutrement should be taken on their own.