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Alex, Once you are sure your saya issue is resolved, it's not expensive to have the scratch touched up be a qualified polisher. Cost will run anywhere from $150-$500 (USD). I had Bob Benson do the work for me, and it was worth it. Regards, Hoanh

Greetings, Please sign all of your posts. It's a rule here on NMB. Your sword is a Japanese Naval Officer's sword, called kaigunto. It's below average in both quality and condition and has a missing part. As for value, its' probably in the range $600-$1000. Regards, Hoanh

Welcome to the board. If I may, I would like to make three comments. 1. Every post needs to be signed by your real name. That's a rule on NMB. 2. When I hear and read "Jap sword," I cringe. It would not be much to type out "Japanese." 3. Pictures, please! Without pictures, no advice can be given. Regards, Hoanh

Bryan, How does it feel to purchase a nice sword from a nice guy with a reasonable price tag, and not get insulted in the process? Feels great, right? Hoanh

Jason, It kind of has the look of this one on Bill Rannow's website. http://www.artswords.com/cowderyrudder.htm Regards, Hoanh

More pics Hoanh Close up pic of the Soshu Yukimitsu: Close up pic of the Rai Kunimitsu: Close up pics of the Nosada: Close up pic of the Muramasa:

Close up pics of the Sa Kunihiro Hoanh

Greetings, I had a chance to visit LACMA today to see both the Armor Exhibit and the Nihonto & Fitting Exhibit. There were a lot of swords and fittings from Mike Y.'s collection as well as other incredible pieces. The armor exhibit was really, really nice too, and I must say it was quite eye-opening for me to see the workmanship and intricate decorations on armors. I am not an armors collector, but I really liked the exhibit. I took lots of pictures, but only some came out decent. It was hard to hold the camera and shoot in manual mode. Auto mode and nihonto just don't mix I did manage to get some decent close up shots. Enjoy! Regards, Hoanh Close up pics of the Soshu Sadamune

Bryan, Congratulations on a fine first nihonto in nice koshirae. Isn't NMB a wonderful place for incredible deals, especially around Christmas/New Year time? Regards, Hoanh

Mickie D? Nice tsuba Kanayama? Hoanh

Axel, Some grooves are meant to go through the nakago, i.e., kaki-toshi (see page 74 of The Connoisseur's Book of Japanese Swords by Kokan Nagayama). Regards, Hoanh

James, The pictures are too small. What you will need is to take pictures with a macro lens, and have the specific features delineated with the red arrows fill up the entire picture frame so we can see what you intend for us to see. Regards, Hoanh

James, Is the sword papered? Since the sword is signed, there isn't much guess work. What you will need to do is dig through your reference library (Nihonto Zuikan, Fujishiro, etc.) to find a reference mei and read up on the workmanship style of your smith. Then, decide if the mei is genuine or gimei, and/or if the workmanship of your sword matches the workmanship described in your reference library. It's fun research, and since you have the sword in hand, it's a great way to learn. If, on the off-chance, you don't have a reference library, then it's time to consider building your reference library. Regards, Hoanh

Jeremy, We need clear, focused pictures to make guesses. But, be that as it may, I will throw my dart at the board: nambokucho jidai, Bizen tradition, Kozori school. Nice sword with great fittings. Congrats! Regards, Hoanh

Thank you Jason. I was very lucky indeed. The sword is with John Tirado now for shirasaya and tsunagi. I had just purchased a nice, mint naval tassel from a member here to complete the sword. Regards, Hoanh

Bryan, I understand your concern, hence my post. It's what I would ask, too, if I were interested in the sword. For what it's worth, it's not such a great deal any way. The price is a too steep for a sword made by a mediocre smith (chu saku), with the seller's attitude to boot. You can do much better. For instance, there was a GREAT sword for sale here, and you missed the opportunity by just a couple of days. Compare the prices, the workmanship of the swords, and desirability of the smiths, etc., and you will see what I mean. viewtopic.php?f=4&t=20556 Do be patient! Between now and year-end, these outstanding deals will come more often. For now, I reiterate my recommendation of staying out of ebay, until you are well versed enough to make judgement calls. Regards, Hoanh

Bryan, My personal motto is "ask early, ask often." It never hurts to ask sellers questions. After all, you ask because you are genuinely interested. If they have nothing to hide and want your business, it should be a breeze to knock out the answers quickly. If they don't want to take the time to answer your questions, they don't need/deserve your business. When it comes to ebay, I never trust any seller, unless the seller is also a longtime member of NMB in good standing. I have had lots of "buying from" and "selling to" with NMB membership, and have never had the slightest problem. If you are just starting out and have no experience with judging nihonto, I would recommend staying out of ebay. It's not for the inexperienced. Regards, Hoanh EDIT: Our posts crossed. Personally, the answer "It was made this way, and you should read your books better" is a bit insulting. He could have said "It was made this way" and stop at that. It's your money, and you can decide what to do. But, if I were you, I wouldn't give him my business.

Please sign every post with your name. It's a rule here on NMB. Regarding the sword, the boshi does not necessarily follow the hamon. So, I would not be concerned with this fact. I am very concerned, however, with the fact the the boshi seems to run off the edge of the kissaki. This would be a fatal flaw. It could be the lighting or the angle of the picture. If you were considering this sword, do ask the seller for close up pictures of the boshi, on both sides, and do ask him explicitly if the boshi runs off kissaki and/or any fatal flaw. Don't leave any question unasked. Regards, Hoanh

Steve, Will it polish out? What can be done if it does not polish out? These are question best left to a professionally trained polisher. Have you made an assessment to see if the blade is worth the expenses of restoration and possibly papering? Regards, Hoanh

Stefano, If he already refunded you in full, and you have reported him to ebay, then there is nothing else you can do. Don't bid on his auction next time, but that's about all you can do. Regards, Hoanh EDIT: To echo what Marius said, if I were looking for a sword, I would be saving up money right now. There usually are ridiculously, unbelievably, good deals come Christmas/year-end time here on NMB. Regards, Hoanh

Peter and James, You are most welcome. This has been quite a learning moment for me. In the past month, I have made a leap in understanding and appreciating nihonto. It makes all the effort worthwhile. Regards, Hoanh

Thank you for the compliment. I really enjoy nihonto photography. My set up is functional very simple. The two tripod-mounted LED lights are 100W-equivalent (each). The wood contraption is basically made like a tsuka, but is cut (with a table router) to accept nakago of varying sizes, from tanto-size to large daito-size. The wood "tsuka" is attached to a round, hollow aluminum rod, which itself is mounted outside of a smaller, also hollow, aluminum rod. The outer rod, to which the tsuka is attached, can slide in-out, rotate, and be locked tight at any position with a finger-lockable nut. This inner hollow aluminum rod is affixed to my computer cabinet rack. The inner rod can be moved up-down vertically by simple adjustments on the rack cabinet. So, the net result is that my sword, mounted on the wood "tsuka," can be moved three-dimensionally with ease. Especially helpful is the ability to rotate the wood "tsuka" to catch the lighting just right for the shots. There is no vibration, no free-hand, and the lighting and sword angle is 100% reproducible. If, on any given shot, I have a bit too much light or a bit too little light, I can change the exposure time of the camera and re-shoot the picture. This way, I can precisely control the amount of lighting on a specific feature at a specific location. Equipment-wise, I have a Canon XSi with an IR remote trigger and mounted on tripod. I find that I really do need two lenses: a macro lens Canon EFS 60mm f/2.8 for close up and a Canon EFS 17-85mm for shots that require more depth-of-view than my macros lens can provide. Regards, Hoanh

Jeremy, The nice tsuba and fittings bode well for the blade. Will you be posting pictures of the blade soon? I'm dying of curiosity. Regards, Hoanh

Jeremy, The fittings & menuki look very well made. Itomaki looks good, too! Very, very nice. Regards, Hoanh

Greetings, Would the spots marked in the pictures be correctly called yubashiri, or are they too close to the yakiba to be yubashiri? If they are not yubashiri, what would be the correct terminology for them? Regards, Hoanh