Birdman

So could the wakizashi I got from Mark Green, which is ubu mumei but has a 21-3/8" nagasa simply be an uchigatana made for a smaller bushi? Or is it just a rather long wakizashi?

So, would a blade from the mid-1500's, worn edge-up, with a one-handed grip, but rather long for a wakizashi/too short for a katana (21-23 inch nagasa), and made that size rather than being suriage, likely be a wakizashi or an uchigatana?

So it's more a matter of how it's worn, then?

Can anybody please tell me what, exactly, is the definition of "uchigatana"? Is it a matter of age, blade length, koshirae, or something else? One source I have read says that the uchigatana was the predecessor of the katana. I have seen long wakizashi for sale being described as uchigatana. So what exactly is it?

Nobody? That second kanji IS a bit odd... Be nice to know who made it, where, and when.

I tried to make a rendition of the mei in my "paint" program. Don't know if it helps or not:

I posted this in the tosogu forum; Jean said try posting it here. At first, I thought it might have been "Masashige", but then I realized that I had been reading the "shige" kanji upside-down. The other kanji MIGHT be "kuni". Here is the best enhancement I've been able to come up with of the mei (please excuse the wierd colors...): Here are photos of the entire tsuba: Thanks!

Looking at the kanji pages, I may have been reading it upside-down. Could the second kanji be "kuni"? I'm 99% certain the top one is "shige", though.

Yes, there are a few traces of lacquer on it. As for gilding, the small flecks of gold-colored metal on it might be gilding, or they might be small inlays like on another tsuba I have; I can't really tell for certain. The lacquer is heaviest on the rim and in the mei. I will try to play with my photo editor and see if I can get the mei to come out more clearly. Edit: Well, this was the the best I could do with the editor I have (Picassa). Please excuse the wierd colors, but it did seem to make the mei a bit more readable...

DUH Forgot I already had photos on my computer: Yes, I'm aware that it's not what you guys would call "art quality". It was an Ebay purchase, and my first antique tsuba. I'm just interested in knowing exactly who made it, where, and when.

I have a small, oval tanto tsuba with a mei that reads "Masashige". It has one hitsu-ana, and rather simple (as in not coveriing a lot of space) floral carvings that wrap around the edge to the other side of the tsuba. Can't take photos right now - I left my camera at my parents' place last time I was there. But I was wondering: were there many tsubashi named Masashige, and where can I find photos with examples of their work, so that maybe I can compare styles?

I hear you there, Justin! That's one reason I'd have to think about it before deciding to buy and use it: I'm allergic to poison ivy, and the active ingredient in urushi lacquer is the same thing that makes poison ivy itch - only more concentrated. I'd have to wear nitrile gloves, at the very least... I just got done talking to Randy Black a little while ago, and he says he even has problems when refinishing older saya, just in removing the old urushi, since the dust from sanded urushi makes him break out and causes sinus problems if it gets past his dust mask.

Nice blade! So a lot of it is proportion, then? If you hadn't told me the nagasa length, I would have taken it for a larger blade. Maybe not a katana, but a larger wakizashi. Interesting!

Is there a definitive way to tell whether a particular shoto is a "boy's sword" rather than a small wakizashi or a large tanto? I have heard of boy's swords, but have never seen photos of them, and no way to compare them to other shoto.

I dunno... sounds kinda KINK-y to me! Seriously, I did miss the link. Thanks! I also managed to contact A.J. Bryant, who has the http://www.sengokudaimyo.com website. Good site, with information on the construction of Japanese armor (and other info as well). He says that dome-headed rivets are perfectly acceptable on a hara-ate.

Arigato gozaimasu! Eric, it looks like the rivets are visible on the dou in the first photo. Could you possibly post a photo with close-ups of those, please? Hyper-cafe is one of the places I checked, but last time I checked them they were out of EVERYTHING in the lacquer department. Guess I will just have to keep checking in every week (or every few days) until they restock.

??? WHERE DID YOU FIND IT ??? I've been looking all over the internet, and all the places I checked said "out of stock" on both urushi and kashu. Various articles I found on the subject said that urushi was banned from import due to its toxicity, and kashu was just banned from export from Japan last fall by Japanese regulations. Heck, if I can get real black and red urushi, that would be great! How much area will a tube cover, anyway? I'll need some for my rawhide jingasa, as well, when I make it...

I want to try to make a replica of a hara-ate dou. Figured on using 18 gauge CRS for the plates, and rivetting it together. However, I am wondering if any were made with protruding rivets, as on some okegawa dou I have seen, or if they were all flush-rivetted. I am trying to make it as authentic-looking as possible, with regards to available materials (obviously, I can't use urushi or kashu lacquer, as both are banned from import into the USA, and hand-hammered and forged plates would be seriously cost-prohibitive). Eventually, I want a complete set of ashigaru armor that can be worn as well as displayed (I wouldn't want to wear antique armor - I'd be afraid of accidentally chipping the lacquer against something, besides being sized for the average Japanese...). Can any of you who are familiar with armor please help me out with this?

Thanks! Looks like I already have a sizeable chunk of the "beginner's books", then (I also have the one about samurai). Some of the more advanced books are quite pricey - I may have to wait until my next tax return before getting them...

Ok, everyone has been telling me (and the other newbies) to do more research before buying nihonto. Is there a "recommended/must-read" list of books? So far, I have the following: The Connoisseur's Book of Japanese Swords Japanese Swords: A Comprehensive Guide Samurai Swords: A Handbook (Yumoto) Craft of the Japanese Sword And the following Hawley books: Introduction to Japanese Swords Lamination Techniques in Japanese Swords The Mino School of Swordsmiths Are there any others that should be on my list, but aren't? Are any of the ones I DO have essentially useless? Thanks!

Interesting! And the same basic kamon, too (minus the circle, or "maruni"). That one looks like a piece for a higher-ranking official rather than a lowly ashigaru. I showed the pics on the Toraba collectors forum. The forum admin, who also collects and sells antique gusoku, said that mine is very late Edo (post 1800), as this style did not come out until then.

...and if so, under what circumstances? For example, would a tanto of this type, with a healthy blade, but of unknown maker or school, be worth buying? Would it also depend on the price? Or would other factors come into play? I have seen a few of them for sale every now and then, some on evilbay, some on other websites, some cheap, some expensive, but I never knew if they were worth the asking price, since they were supposedly made from broken sword blades.

Really? May I ask which family? I've found that this mon is the third most commonly used mon in all of Japan, and that several families use it.

Yeah, for some reason not very many people are interested in the ashigaru equipment, so despite the fact that it was churned out in vast quantities, not as much seems to have been preserved. Me, I want to eventually assemble a complete ashigaru armor, with the jingasa, lightly armored kote, and hara-ate dou. Adding a teppo to that would be icing on the cake!

What about stabilization, to prevent any further deterioration?