Alex A

Very nice!

Cheers for the replies guys. Geraint, thats what i was thinking, that maybe someone trimmed the nakago to fit an existing tsuka.

A good sword, im curious as to why someone would allow half the mei to be lost in this particular way, never seen this before. http://www.aoijapan.com/wakizashi-awata ... -tadatsuna

Hey, he might frequent this site under a pseudonym , Wah, are you Steven Seagal by any chance?

Im guessinng folk of the time period would have refered to it as ko-dachi. Obviously this would depend on it being shortened at that time.

I see, something i need reminding about now and again, reading through some of the well known introductory books can get one into the habit of overly categorizing, like some kind of rule cop, "sorry sonny, thats no ko-dachi you have there, your 4cm over the legal limit" haha. There are always allowances and exceptions to these rules, it will sink in one day

Blade length for ko-dachi is 60cm or less (so i just read), this is 63.9cm.

Novice guess..Soshu... Nanbokucho...Hiromitsu

Ridiculous , thanks for sharing Ron.

Noticed this a while ago, may be of interest. If link doesnt work, shop word search shigetaka... http://www.thelanesarmoury.co.uk/shop.php

Hi Terry, don't take comments to heart, I have a feeling that if you keep the hobby up your take on tsuba will change over the next year or so. If you put an item on the forum its wise to expect a wide range of opinions. One or two folk who have been honest in the past i go back to for advice now, i find there no bull critique educational, but amusing at the same time.

Nice write up Gabriel, just looking over the book now, looks like the ultimate printers nightmare. Blade shots vary from a blueish tone to a green tone (suspect they should all be the same), printer may have got an ass kicking over that job . Still, as far as nihonto book printing quality goes, its way above most that i know, looks like they put some thought, effort and expense into the print side. Apologies for straying Curtis, you got me thinking about photo quality in these books, something thats been on my mind.

Most books are black only because it makes publishing a lot cheaper. I have one book, the Encyclopedia of Japanese swords, some great shots in detail. Some black and white and some that appear full colour, but i suspect either a colour filter or a colour tone added, an example below (camera as not caught the detail and the colour in the book ), kind of brings them to life a bit, clever neat trick.

Yep, there making money there alright. Id be happy to forward any Tosogu purchases onto you. Id be a bit wary with the nihonto, especially that rather large nodachi :D

Hi Leroy, check out the Nanako features in this thread. A good Tsuba, and a really good tsuba. viewtopic.php?f=2&t=17413&p=154223&hilit=ALEX+NANAKO#p154223

Worth a look... http://www.bonhams.com/auctions/21637/# ... =list&m0=0

Jay, Frank and Chris. Hope you dont mind me asking, have you paid him any money up front?. As he ever asked for more money with excuses like "is there any chance you could send me $300?, i need new stones to finish your blade". Jay, do as you did before, go with the police. My advice previously was spurred on by the fact i had to deal with a similar situation many many years ago, not nihonto related, but a complete pain in the ass.

No need say sorry pal , im learning too. Picked up a few tips whilst thumbling through this little budget shinsa, the main one being, il now be after the Hizento Hikkei book, more expense i presume.

Jay, if i where you, id go get my sword, take some friends as witnesses.

Hi Brandon, did you read the link above?. Its difficult for folk to flick between images for comparisons, especially when your mei/picture is not as clear/sharp as the example you put on. Much easier for you, as you have the blade in hand. You have been told above that your blade may be a possible Tadakuni 1st (no guarantees), not too sure whats on your mind. Your better off letting an expert see it in hand, as above mentioned, and then take it from there. Only so much can be done from photos.

A bit of a google as lead me to this page, you may find it interesting. http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=ik-E ... nd&f=false

LOL, Brandon, its half the price of a katana. Dont get too excited just yet!, a sword is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. NTHK Shinsa is in the states, you have just missed one. There are folk on here who can help you with Japan shinsa.

Hi Brandon, the styles you read about where likely the Hamon, not the mei. He worked in a wide range throughout his career. Take a look at my Tadakuni wakizashi below, look at the mei and the hamon. The mei has the "JO", that yours has , been a while since ive looked at it. The wak has NBTHK Hozen papers. The papers dont tell you the generation, so im guessing shinsa will still have you pondering. The Aoi art appraisel (well known sword dealer in Tokyo) has it down on the appraisel sheet as Tadakuni 1st, Josaku/wazamono ranking/ designated Harima Daijo at 37 years of age/ worked for Koshiro clan etc. When you buy a sword its natural that you want to know more about it, but as mentioned above, without the experience of seeing many examples, its difficult, a lot of books required. I think ive read somewhere that a later generation also signed Harima daijo, i think it was a Tadakuni thread on here. If your sword does get papered to Tadakuni, then i would be thrilled in any case. Take one step at a time, folk ponder over stuff like this for decades LOL.

Hi, yes there where a few signatures. "JO" in your mei does not match to the examples in Fujishiros. Not sure why?, hopefully someone with more experience will be able to help. See below, could be a good reason for it, maybe just a variation.

Im at work, from memory he signed different. Some just say Harima Daijo Fujiwara Tadakuni, i think there are 3 variants on his signature.... Tadakuni (1640,s), will check tomorrow.