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Gabriel, Nice work! I think a histogram would most illuminating and it would take me under two minutes to do with Interactive Data Language (IDL) if I had access to raw data. I would be glad to do the plot for you if you could PM me or email me at vu.hoanh@gmail.com. Regards, Hoanh

Andy, I see "Bishu Osafune" but don't see "Ju" or "Saku." The remaining kanji don't look like "Sukesada" at all. I don't think the seller gave you the correct mei reading. As far as age goes, more pictures (of the overall shape and of the tip and of the area under the habaki) are needed. Regards, Hoanh

Grev, To my unlearn eyes and pedestrian understanding, the first 4 tsuba are not tosho tsuba by any measure. Regards, Hoanh

Andrew, It's hard judging from the picture due to insufficient lighting, but the nakago appears to be OK. Unless it's absolutely necessary, I would leave the nakago alone. Hoanh

Andrew, "Expensive" is a relative term. To remove a gimei is the cheapest thing to do to a nakago, and it does cost $150. Anything else is uphill from there. Can you post a picture of your nakago to show why it needs to be reworked? EDIT: Yes, Barry is absolutely correct on all counts! Regards, Hoanh

Kyler, Welcome to the forum. The red arrows point to the areas of concern. Compare what is shown below to the actual high-resolution picture on aoijapan and you will see where the kitae ware are. I hope this helps. Regards, Hoanh

Barry, Off topic, but I see a very nice tsuba collection in the background. Regards, Hoanh

Paul, The bottom one says "Bizen Osafune Ju" and the rest of the mei is cut off. Regards, Hoanh

Chris, Yes, I stated the obvious explicitly because Patric said he decided to purchase the sword. I am not sure if he understood what was said in many previous posts. Regards, Hoanh

Patrick, Your sword seems to be gimei to be. My 2 cents. Regards, Hoanh

I would think that when a sword flexes and bends, it acts like a cantilever with the tsuka acting as the stationary anchor point. The habaki probably won't need to flex or distort. In other words, the area of the sword under the habaki feels a great deal of shear stress, but does not experience a great deal of strain. Regards, Hoanh

My first impression is "lightning." Hoanh

I think not. The hi don't go through the nakago. Regards, Hoanh

Absolutely. In general mei follow a specific order: Province, Title, Smith's Name. Of course, Province and Title are not always present, but when present, this order is followed. Regards, Hoanh

Patrick, No. Loosely translated, the mei says "Muneshige, - Lord of Mutsu Province." Regards, Hoanh

Josh: All I can say is "OUCH!" KM: No, the sword was listed as being in the US. Regards, Hoanh

Glenn, The sword is mitsumune (three-sided ridge). In my opinion, it's a very nice sword, well worth the cost of a new professional polish. If it were mine, I would spring the money to get it polished & get new shirasaya. Regards, Hoanh

Perhaps a more palatable term might be "incommensurate" rather than vulgar. I have no dog in this fight, but the term vulgar seems a bit strong to me. It's a case of unintended use of a strong word on the poster's part, and subsequent misinterpretation on the reader's part. As I interpret the flow of the posts, Denis's comment was directed at the OP's sword, not at Franco's sword. May we please shake hands and declare a ceasefire? Regards, Hoanh

Glen, I like the overall shape of the wakizashi. It looks like a nice sword, but the nakago is distinctly non-Soshu. Regards, Hoanh

Thank you Ken. Hoanh

As suggested, Brian Tschernega would be a good choice. John Tirado is another good choice. Pure silver habaki will cost around $500. As for gold, at close to $1000/ounce, a pure gold habaki might cost $1500-$2000. It all depends. Some people don't mind storing a blade in shirasaya. It really is up to the collector's individual choices. Grey's reading suggestion is an excellent place to start. If you decide to do tameshigiri with your sword, the first cut will cost about $3000 - the cost of a polish. Habaki fits by compression. This is what Brian Tschernega told me. Unless your sword was in terrible shape, a polish should not remove that much metal, and a habaki that fits before the polish should still fit after the polish. See item #1 above. See Grey's suggestion for reading. Regards, Hoanh

Chris, I saw the auction, but the risk/reward ratio was too high for me after the 3rd bid. Hoanh

Jock, Dunno...it looks like the mei is made with a dremmel tool. Hoanh

Good luck with shinsa John. Regards, Hoanh

John, I have looked in Fujishiro, Nihon Koza, and Nihonto Zuikan without any luck. You may have to consider shinsa as Andy suggested. Regards, Hoanh