ROKUJURO

JUNICHI, the second and third of your TSUBA probably display a fern sprout design, I think.

Gentlemen, the article about the production background of MANTETSU blades is valuable, but some detail problems arise not only from the obvious difficulties of translation. It says: ......Dr. Kazuharu Kusaka of South Manchuria Railway Central Research Institute did electric steel manufacture of the sponge iron (rich iron ore from a Manchuria), and he succeeded in manufacture of the good steel near malleable iron...... Well, I would like to add that sponge iron is NOT 'rich iron ore'. Obviously, Dr. KUSAKA had a good quality iron ore source there and was able to produce raw steel. As this cannot be forged, they used probably electric energy in a second process to remove the surplus carbon content from the steel to make it malleable. This is generally a modern standard process of steel production, and depending on the purity of the iron results in good quality steel. Our modern steel production differs from that in that we use to add large quantities of scrap steel to the process, resulting in the production of alloyed raw steel with partly unpredictable properties. This material cannot be purified after the process. If I understand the article correctly, the purity and good quality of the base material and the process, designed to produce high quality tool steel, made all of the difference.

I guess these fall in the same range as a Bugatti or a cheap Lamborghini today! Gorgeous! Thanks for letting us participate!

Christophe, I may add that the thin press-molded surfaces (both sides usually the same) of SAN-MAI TSUBA were usually not glued. Some were soldered, if not fixed with a rim as already mentioned.

Alex, how old is old? There are some really fine 'old' iron TOSOGU parts to be seen, and the Japanese craftsmen had no problem to achieve a very fine finish even on iron or steel. Have a look at some HORIMONO or good TSUBA! I did not want my remark to be understood as an evaluation or criticism, but when we talk about pictured KODOGU, a closer look should be allowed. In this FUCHI (I wrote 'special' because I meant the FUCHI here in discussion) you can clearly see that the traces of the tools had not been removed. Lines which could be straight aren't, and as we do not know the intentions of the respective craftsman I expressed the opinion that it was perhaps made to look 'old'.

Good morning! The subject of KAISHO symbols on KODOGU has already been dealt with a year ago (ancient KANJI designs, in TRANSLATIONS, Jan. 30, 2012). This special FUCHI looks somewhat crudely made, maybe to underline an appearance of age? Lance, I don't remember a change of altitude in the SHIN-SHINTO period!

I think I can read ....no KAMI KANEMICHI but I have no books at hand to look the smith up. It is not TAMBA.

Maybe it is my eyes but I read an attribution to KODAI HIGO.

I like that TSUBA, although the surface and the TAGANE marks near the NAKAGO ANA are indeed a little strange. I don't think that it is a cast one but I believe that it once was heavily corroded. What I would like to know is what is meant by the term 'HENKEI iron'. This term was used as 'bent' or 'distorted' in another TSUBA's description. Could someone please give an explanation? Thanks in advance!

It is exactly as you say: you are striving for an airtight fit, so glueing in pieces of wood and fine-tuning the contact zone between HABAKI and wooden inserts with tools is the work to be done. You will want also to respect the angles of the wedge-shaped HABAKI. NEKO GAKKI are indeed made to improve the secure fit of the blade in the renovated SAYA.

Denis, my experience is just the contrary, especially when you use a quality rasp (Japanese tools are usually among the best available). A good new rasp will easily remove a lot of material with little effort, depending on the size of the teeth and their number! Of course this is only the first step in the work, and the surface has to be smoothened afterwards with other tools. Rasps are made in a wide variety from very coarse to quite fine. The mentioned NAMIKAWA rasp is quite slim and very long, it's working part has the cross-section and shape of a blade, and it is made to adapt a used SAYA to another blade with a slightly different SORI and thickness. A KOIGUCHI needs only very fine tuning when you start with thin wood strips. A few sharp knives (small KOGATANA for woodworking) and a good file might do the job then.

Yes, we can! The secret is not only to find thin strips of wood but to rework the glued-in pieces with a rasp and make sure the KOIGUCHI has a tight fit to the HABAKI without causing pressure. As has been said this is a standard service for SAYA in use, and SAYASHI prepare fine pieces of soft wood for that repair. Also, the Japanese have a number of fine woodworking tools for this purpose, e.g. a long SAYA rasp can be obtained from NAMIKAWA HEIBEI, but your local tool dealer might have something less expensive. A coarse file will do, but never use sandpaper! In many cases, old SAYA may also suffer from a broken horn KOIGUCHI, which might get dry and brittle with age. It can be replaced but this will demand some fine work and use of URUSHI. I wish you good success!

The explanation for that phenomenon is rather simple: the forming energy of the hammer blows causes internal friction in the material - just imagine the molecules 'rubbing' onto each other. This can generate as much heat as to ignite a piece of paper. Even if the steel in the video still looked to be black, it might have had a temperature of about 600°C (not easily visible in daylight). In the process of forging an object, the heated steel naturally looses it's temperature, but when intensively worked on, you can see the red heat coming up again a little with heavy hammer-blows. Try this at home, if you have an anvil and a 2 kg hammer, it's a good work-out!

Yes, they call it a HIGONOKAMI. Available in better knife shops, in Germany also at DICK's in Metten. Same type of pocket knives as Mercator, Douk-Douk, Opinel a.s.o., but much better blade quality, usually double layered.

Looking at the TAGANE marks near the NAKAGO ANA I have the impression that they are not smooth and even in their surface. As they are normally made with the polished tip of a tool, they should not be grainy or sandy. Have a close look with a magnifying glass and in case they show a granular texture you can assume that your TSUBA was made by casting. Corrosion produces a different surface texture.

Martin, look for info under KAGAMISHI TSUBA. ......Kagami-shi tsuba and kagami One of the categories of irogane ko-tsuba, (or "old" - that is pre-Edo - soft metal tsuba) are kagami-shi tsuba, which are said to have been produced by mirror makers. Those artisans, the kagami-shi, have manufactured sword guards using techniques applied in the production of their mirrors. They have cast them in bronze........ The TSUBA in question depicts probably DAIKOKU and EBISU, and this subject has indeed been used extensively for this kind of TSUBA. While the old examples were made carefully in a one-by-one technique, late copies could be produced in large numbers. This one looks to me like a very late one.

The first two KANJI may be OKAMOTO - just a guess!

In my understanding, the easiest parts in copying a handmade blade are the signature and the ageing. I am not an expert, but the Chinese fakes I have had in hand did not really look close to Japanese blades and could not have been mistaken for those. However, making intentionally a copy would mean some effort, and I don't believe that even Chinese smiths can forge blades 'the cheap way' if they want them to look so Japanese that they could deceive the experts. So at the end, I cannot imagine a truly nice blade being made in China, and if there was really any question as to the origins of a blade, it could be easily ascertained by spectroscopy or other reliable methods.

You mean MEIJI TSUBA? There is no reason why somebody could not have replaced a nice TSUBA with this one, perhaps before selling the whole. TOSOGU have always been mixed or interchanged, and you can feel lucky in case you find a matching KOSHIRAE together with a good blade. Compared to many EDO SOTEN copies I have seen, this TSUBA is especially crudely made, so it might well be a late tourist piece.

It is difficult to tell from pictures but doesn't it look as if the KINZOGAN had been applied later to an old TSUBA? The steel and it's patina do not seem very young. Perhaps it is worth a closer examination before you use the box for another TSUBA......

Gold or another metal application would - at least in my imagination - not make this a better or nicer TSUBA. I like the shape but the design is somewhat crudely made. Looks as if a christian amateur tried himself on that one, so it may have some historical value.

Gentlemen, before it settles in the minds, it might mention that it is KESHO polish and SASHIKOMI.

Please don't try this yourself! You might damage or even destroy the historical and monetary value even if you were used to handle metal! Even cleaning can be a risk if you use wrong methods. As you are new to the subject, I might add that a signature on a blade is not necessarily correct; it can mean 'in the style of' or could even be made to deceive. So please have an expert (not your knifemaking neighbour) have a look first before taking action.

As far as I know one SHAKU is 30.3 cm, so no sweat! It is a TANTO, and this may be a value related point. If it were 30,4 cm the official classification would then be WAKIZASHI which may make it less desirable for some collectors.

Please bear in mind that any amateurish 'cleaning' or 'restauration' may be or even is a loss of historical value and market value as well, the more as you have no idea of what you are handling! Something really old will not be more beautiful or 'better' with a look of a recently made item. Speak with experts first, then decide to 'clean'!