Alex A

Hello Zac, you might want to read this as a rough idea. A skilled job, best to get the finish right. If your in the UK, I could recommend a few folk who do this kind of work. Ps, as mentioned above, not for antique pieces. Also be aware that if you come to sell your swords in the future, as much as you like it, some folk might not. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_lacquerware

If you contact a printers regarding a low quantity black only run then you will likely get one response....will you go digital?. Printers who specialize in this kind of work buy modern digital machinery specifically for that task. The offset book your looking for will likely be printed on a large offset press that does not usually pump out black only work, usually will be full colour work. Usually they will shy away from black only work because there is better money to be made, OR to make it worth their while, they will hit you with a price that covers the machine time, as if it was a full colour book they where printing. The cost of the paper between a 150 run and a 500 run book is negligible. Its turned into quite a complicated can of worms, Markus a while back in this thread suggested a revised lulu edition (maybe better stock etc, not sure how far you can go with lulu?), that would certainly make the job a lot easier for folk, no money wories, no delivery hassles, less errors etc etc. As Brian pointed out though, seemed id forgot this book idea was based on top quality printing, just cant help thinking there needs to be a compromise somewhere along the lines. I think with enough searching you will find an offset printers that handles individual shipping, hopefully at a reasonable rate, but in my experience, they usually see that as another money maker. I do hope the offset idea comes to light, some offset printers struggle to compete in the modern age of digital

Interesting read Franco, the frosty reception was understandable, especially now im reminded of the priest from Shogun :lol:, the missionaries back then must have had balls of steel.

Fingers please!

One hell of a clunker he has picked out, then again, could be a short guy...

Manners cost nothing, remember that new collectors are a rarity. One day we might want to get back what we have spent, a task which will be made more difficult if there is a dwindling number of new collectors and lower values. A phrase that springs to mind. shoot oneself in the foot 1.(idiomatic) To act against one's own interests; to unintentionally behave self-destructively

Katana Mei looks like "Hiro Yuki". Edit, didnt notice you already had it.

Especially damp stone surfaces

I know a few folk who are doing well on Ebay at the moment, all importing from China, cheap bronze statues etc

Same place as my trousers Stephen

Its surprising at times what folk will buy. Theres probably a wife or girlfriend looking at this tsuba now thinking "my boyfriend will love that, he likes nihonto and rocks from space, perfect," I best warn her, il will tell her the usual slippers will suffice :D

My sentiments exactly Mariusz. For anyone who may be interested, be aware that meteorites need special attention, they can oxidize rapidly. I find the notion of mounting this tsuba ridiculous.

This is a new one, the last one I seen was a bottle opener made from a slice of Brenham Pallasite (stony iron meteorite). If I remember correctly, that one was priced at $16000. Folk make all sorts from meteorites.

Im interested in how you would put a value on a blade such as this?, taking into account that it could have been made by a reputable smith and there are folk who wont be put off if the price is right. On another point, im looking at how the sword was re manufactured. Rather than just reshape it the way it was and hope for the best, wisely they squeeze the hamon to an hardened point, a new mini boshi. A page you have all seen, but a bit on counter shortening at the bottom of the page. http://www.ksky.ne.jp/~sumie99/suriage.html

Looks like its had a recent polish so someone sure thinks quite highly of it, maybe not for an elite collection, but has its place.

Ive just noticed from looking at the picture of the tsuba that the coins are huge, possibly commemorative coins, not sure. (pics have now been removed)

Compare the Chinese coins to these similar Japanese coins from around the late 1600,s to early 1700,s. None of the Chinese coins show much sign of ware. As for patina, difficult to say from looking at the pictures but does look false, id be tempted to give them a miss.

Signed. Hizen Kuni Tadayoshi, if im not mistaken, stating whats obvious to some folk, i may add

Very nice Alan, if im not mistaken, the fuchi looks to be lacquered also.

I take it you guys have never heard of the dragon goose? :D

All the best for 2014!!

Your point of view will hark back to type of collector that you are and your own personal preferences. A great number of folk have a sympathetic approach to what other folk may think of as junk. For example, you only need to look at how many feathers are rustled when someone looks for advice on home polishing a tired old broken blade (im not talking about an hidden gem). Its surprising how many folk seek to preserve, even when theres little to be gained. At the end of the day they are all hand made antiques, no matter the condition or workmanship. For the lower end of the preservation spectrum, the question raised is "would you buy from here?".

I just want to point out that Liverpool is is not the only club in Europe to have ever had an hooligan element. Some will find the comment offensive. Thats all i will say on the matter.

Thanks Paul, the 2nd time something as slipped my mind in this thread, late Koto as you say. Some folk (newbies in particular), will not be aware that some merchants owned blades as well, ive picked up on it once or twice on NMB, but again, its never really sank in, until now hopefully. It is not something you may read about in the usual selection of starter books, but something well worth knowing about. Cheers!

An interesting point, from an art point of view, one may wonder why this would put someone off. On the other hand, from an historical point of view, i can understand why it may dissuade some folk. For folk looking to buy good art pieces (by a good smith) at good prices, then i suppose it makes good sense to buy wakizashi, rather than the far more expensive katana. All the artwork is there, just shorter :D. The down side will be finding buyers in the future that think along the same lines. One question though, i presume Koto wakizashi blades where less likely to have been owned by merchants, would this be right?