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Thank you gentlemen. I won't waste money sending it to Japan for shinsa, but will venture a little money when shinsa comes to San Francisco again. Many thanks, Hoanh

Greetings, I made a gunto-for-wakizashi trade. I think I have 50/50 chance that it's genuine, and that was enough for me to trade. I would like to get your opinion on this wakizashi. The mei is Bizen no Suke Munetsugu, dated Koka 2, 12th month. Pluses: 1. Munetsugu received his title in Koka 2. The mei is consistent with this time frame. So, no obvious red flag. 2. The yasurime is consistent with this early stage of his career. 3. The nakagojiri is right. 4. The placement of the nakago ana is right. 5. The vibrant choji midare hamon seems right. I have read that some of his works pack plenty of jinie, and this seems consistent with what I see on this wakizashi. Minuses: The first 2 characters seem a bit off from what I have seen of papered examples. This is what has me hedging my bet at the 50/50 mark. Please feel free to comments, as all comments are welcome. Warmest regards, Hoanh

Tim, It's a very nice blade. Can you see a boshi with a return? The angle of your picture makes it difficult to discern the boshi. Hoanh

Thank you Barry. I was trying to decipher the signature, but it was too flowery for me to decipher. Now I have the artist's name. Hoanh

Thank you so much, Ray. It's going up on my office wall. Hoanh

Greetings, I found a nice oshigata print of what looks like an exceptional sword at a garage sale. I could only read "Bizen Osafune Kanenaga." Any help in translating the remainder including the mei and kao) would be much appreciated. Warmest Regards, Hoanh

Yes. Hoanh

Nihonto junk yard! Hoanh

Choji would look like below. Hoanh

1. When a seller says a sword is "sharp," I would stay away. He has nothing else to say besides "sharp." Heck, a kitchen knife is sharp. 2. When a seller mentions "ox hide," I run away - Chinese fake 100% of the times. 3. When the shipping is $199.99 and the sword is sold for $200, I stay away. Just remember that ebay is a place where market value is established almost instantly by a large number of people I always assume to be more knowledgeable than I. If a seemingly great item languishes around at a great price, I stay away. These simple rules have helped me thus far. Hoanh

It even says in the description "This sword does not have value as art swords." Hoanh

Seki stamp? Hoanh

Greetings, Alright, so the sale is a no-go. So, how about a trade, then? I am looking with either a koto (in shirasaya) or gendaito (in gunto mount). Of course, either party has a 3-day inspection period. Please PM me if interested. Hoanh

James, The shirasaya is so-so but will serve its purpose just fine. I can see the hamon and a full boshi, so that's good. On the other hand, the boshi is a bit thin, and I can't see much activity in the ha (or in the ji for that matter). So, over all, in my humble opinion, I would not get too excited. Regards, Hoanh

It says Masamune. Gimei! Hoanh

Dominic, It could be that they have been "cleaned and restored" by people who don't know any better. Often times, the lacquer/paint wears off in the 70+ years of existence. In this case, I think it's probably the former. The fittings look original, not cheap fakes, though. Hoanh

Dominic, No worries. No one is annoyed or offended. We just don't want you to get burned. If and when you are ready to purchase, if I were you, I would post in the "Wanted To Buy" forum, giving parameters of your search (type of mounts, type of blade, condition, etc.) and a price range. This would usually result in very nice, honest deals. Just as a teaser into the world of star-stamped gendaito, here is a sword of mine in excellent Type 44 gunto mounts. The longer you save up, the better your experience will be with your future purchases. Please do not settle for less. Regards, Hoanh

Dominic, If I were you, I would read a bit more before buying. Blades with anchor stamps are stainless steel blades. They don't even have a hardened edge. Blades with star stamps are traditionally made blades, true gendaito. They are hand forged and water-quenched. Occasionally, you will find them offered on NMB at around the $2k mark. Do be patient and save your money so that when good deals are offered here, you are in a position to catch the deals. Hoanh

You are welcome Vladimir. Hoanh

Vladimir, It's Kanenori, dated September 1942. The hamon is not real. It's either acid-etched in or sand-papered in. I would stay away from this one. The kissaki is a dead give away. There is no boshi at all. Hoanh

Vladimir, The mei looks like Kanenori. I don't think it has a hamon, at least not one that I can see. Hoanh

Dominic, To put things in perspective, for the price of the two swords mentioned in the opening post, you can buy a traditionally-made star-stamped sword in good condition and in good gunto mounts. If it were my money, and I had to have a sword NOW, I would go this route. But, I concur with others that one should read first and buy second. Hoanh

The lack of sharpness/definition of the carvings, and the signature. A chiseled signature looks sharp, while the signature on the tsuba on the right looks like impression from a mould. Ditto for the carvings. You can probably see more signs if you look carefully inside the nakago ana. Hoanh

The tsuba on the left looks real but is in very poor condition. The tsuba on the right looks like a cast reproduction. Hoanh

Thank you Greg! Hoanh