Ken-Hawaii

Looks great, Brian. Glad you're always thinking of ways to make us happier!

Aloha, Ron: I've been hoping that our sword club can meey again, at least virtually, but the current officers haven't made a move. JSSH members almost always have some blades for sale, but not if there's no meeting. You might also message Brad Adams (badams12@hawaii.rr.com), & ask him what he's selling. He ran a pawn shop for many years, & almost always has blades for sale. Feel free to use my name. He & Bob Benson are the only "dealers" that I'm aware of. Enjoy your trip. Ken

Thanks for identifying Gary as GDME, Bob. I've bought several of his Heianjo tsuba, & they've all been high quality.

Yes, this type of crap happens all the time, Glen. Eventually, though, lies catch up to the seller, & he'll disappear - only to reappear using anotheer name. There's been discussion of a liar list, but Brian doesn't want to go that route.

I don't know why this mei is being discussed, when thee is no kantei of the blade's features! The mei is the last thing that should be considered.

Henri, there has obviously been a lot of modifications to your blade, over the years, & it's not really possible to say much about its original shape. Nice detective work, which will help you enjoy more "unmodified + ubu" blades.

As Geraint points out, Roy, there is a lot of "imprecision" when it comes to matching dates & what you're holding. In most cases, if I can identify my blade to within 100 years, I'm happy. Also, in most cases, I assume any mei is gimei, until I have kanteisho in hand, but your blade contains so much information, that I can't see someone spending that much time, just to fake a mei. It adds no value if he's selling it, because it's not associated with a big name. Yes, definitely shinsa. And I have to compliment you on the detective work, so far.

Lovely. I don't know why more people don't collect naginata.

Welcome aboard, Allen. Feel free to ask questions, as there's a lot to learn.

Adam, glad you spent the time to research, rather than buying the first blade you saw. Good workmanship.

Harry, do you see any origami (papers)? If those blades wouldn't pass even Hozon, it would make them unmarketable at current prices.

Museums aren't known for their "loving care" of Nihonto, & I can't recall seeing a museum exhibition in the U.S. that impressed me.

Ciro, you need to understand how a blade is evaluated, which starts with the sugata (overall shape). Your first image should show the entire bare blade, not tiny bits & pieces, & an off-axis nakago.

Are you asking about your katana's Shinto sugata, Johan, or how it evolved?

Seth, a good rule of thumb is to totally ignore the mai, if any. The blade will identify itself through its other characteristics. Markus Sesko, our most-prolific member, has posted a university-level series of articles, https://markussesko.com/kantei/, which can be used to teach yourself the correct way to evaluate (kantei) Nihonto. Welcome, & enjoy the journey.

Welcome aboard, Ken. You can learn a lot by asking questions, & we welcome them.

I had to search by your full name on Amazon, Yurie, but I found your book, bought it, & am reading it on my Kindle. Looks great, although I want to change the font size. Congratulations! I'll buy the e-book when it's available, too.

Juan, letting this drag out with the dealer doesn't help your case. I would send him a certified letter, that requires a signature, that specifically addresses what you want to happen. Then follow up, every day, if needed.

That nioiguchi has teeth! Quite a blade.

Lulu.com probably cr eates PDFs based on orders, so it's not surprising that not everything is available at once. I do my best to only order electronic files, these days, so I suggest being patient, as it's unlikely any of his books will be "out of print."

You may be getting your wires crossed. Markus publishes both "Swordsmiths of Japan" & "Index of Japanese Swordsmiths" as PDF files.

Jon, I know you've already pulled the trigger, but are you aware that Shinto blades, & later, have nothing to do with actual warfare? Doesn't matter to some, but other collectors prefer to know that their blade has (likely) been used in battle.

Seems like a short nakago for a katana. Handachi, perhaps? Probably Muromachi, in any case. Decent first purchase, Larry, but it would be more impressive if you knew enough about your blade to describe it. Grab http://www.militaria.co.za/articles/Kantei_Sheet.pdf & start figuring out exactly what you have.

I have all of Markus' books loaded onto my Samsung Android tablet in PDF format. It's like carrying an entire library! I reference them so often, that I can't figure out which would be "the book." Sorry, Jason, but any of Sesko's books will be a worthy investment in your knowledgebase.