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SAS

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Everything posted by SAS

  1. SAS
    Woody, who was Bob Benson's deshi for many years, is in Las Vegas now; maybe reach out to him and ask his opinion?
  2. SAS
    Brian Tschernaga seems highly recommended.
  3. SAS
    Aloha Alton, glad you posted, funny i was recently wondering how you were! If Covid is not a major worry, and you want to get together, let me know....I have been back in Honolulu since January. Blades that are not in good polish probably gain little from shirasaya, as long as they are getting regular maintenance. I am not aware of anyone in Hawaii doing shirasaya, I have done some for my own in years past, and have gotten better over time, but it is a deceptively complex endeavor.
  4. SAS
    Old dried oil?
  5. SAS
    i seem to remember reading something some years back that was a discussion of the origin of sword smithing in Japan in connection with the Ainu. I can't quote a source, but I seem to recall that some early big names were theorized as being of Ainu descent. Anyone remember something like this? Thanks for sharing, Peter
  6. SAS
    A jewelers loupe or good magnifier will help clarify matters, but i have not seen rust damage mimic cracked steel. Unfortunately, it only takes seeing a few hagire in one's own work for recognition to occur. A polisher can use uchigumori hato finger stones to eliminate a scratch; hagire will remain.
  7. SAS
    Polishing is a method of carefully removing metal in microscopic amounts to reveal structure; defects that penetrate into the body of the sword sometimes can be improved, but can also get worse. In my opinion, your sword can be improved, but the defects near the tip are not likely to be made better by polishing. It seems likely someone had started the process and found that to be the case.
  8. SAS
    I would call it hagire and ask for a refund.
  9. SAS
    Hey, at least the scratches are all parallel!
  10. SAS
    Hard to judge from photos,
  11. SAS
    The mei seems a lot brighter than the patina on the nakago and seems to have been added much later.
  12. SAS
    Looks like a nice package, must have been a beast in original length.
  13. SAS
    You will get a variety of opinions from photos, but definitive answers are best obtained by in hand inspection by qualified people.
  14. SAS
    I think I can see some faint kanji on the nakago also, but can't read them from the photo; the active rust should be stopped, and maybe something more might be visible then. Looks to have some age to it and worth investigating further.
  15. SAS

    Sword returned to shrine

    SAS replied to BIG's topic in Nihonto

    Interesting that the sword mentioned was restored (polished) by a swordsmith not usually engaged in restoring rusty swords
  16. SAS
    Nice looking sword....the last photos posted show a possibility of a hagire in the hamon (crack in the hardened portion of the blade.) This may be a photo artifact, my imagination, or something real which is considered a fatal flaw. The sword should be inspected by someone competent to evaluate the sword in hand.
  17. SAS

    opinion on tanto

    SAS replied to hobnails's topic in Nihonto

    Hi Chris, how is life under the long white cloud? As i am far away from all of my references, all i can say is merely an uninformed opinion that the mei is not executed with confidence , without having compared it to known authentic examples. Wish i could be more help.......
  18. SAS
    very nice!
  19. SAS
    As to the hamon running into the nakago; the appearance seems to show that the blade is machi okuri, based on the location of the nakagoana , and the coloration of the top of the nakago. This would account for the hamon running into the nakago. Appears to be late koto or early shinto, can't say much more due to condition.
  20. SAS
    Your projected cost of $800 for polishing your sword is about 1/3 the cost that a competent polisher would charge; therefore i am thinking that you should skip the cheapo polish and sell the sword for your cost, and move on. Otherwise, the chance of your sword being ruined by an unqualified polisher is too high, as you generally will get what you pay for, and it is easy to ruin a sword if one does not know any better.
  21. SAS
    Plot twist: it's a koto iaitojk
  22. SAS
    No, only what other minerals are present.
  23. SAS
    I do not recall the specifics, but gold was said to have been incorporated in the forging of some special blades.
  24. SAS
    Hey, he's Japanese, what could go wrong? (sarcasm on) I agree, better to let him rot in obscurity
  25. SAS

    Any guesses?

    SAS replied to Brian's topic in Nihonto

    Nice koshirae and decent blade, shinshinto feel, the hamon reminds me of someone, but my books are far away. i would go for the trade.
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