Ken-Hawaii

I had a wakizashi with a nasty stain on the tsuka. After staring at it for a yer, I used my wife's jewelry steam cleaner to slowly & carefully remove it. When it dried, there was no sign of the stain, & no damage, either.

I disagree. we'll always have new member joining, & kasane is one of those terms that isn't perfectly clear, even to experienced members. So bringing it up to clarify is a perfectly good reason.

No. I prefer to swing the real thing!

E-mail sent, Jimi-san on items 16, 19, & 43. Great sale!

One last comment on Mike & Komonjo. The three blades I sent to shinsa were the best I bought, & that I was sure were shoshin. I have several other blades I've bought from him that were simply interesting & priced accordingly As several of you have pointed out, buy blades that YOU have evaluated via kantei, not what the seller may claim. If you don't know how to kantei, STOP! Go learn those basics before you spend your money. NMB's own Markus Sesko has an incredibly-useful kantei course, that's free at https://markussesko.com/kantei/

I have yet to buy a blade from Mike that isn't genuine! The three I sent to shinsa all passed. Making sweeping negative statements about a seller isn't a wise thing. I know Mike personally, & I know how he goes about finding his blades in Japan. Totally legit & aboveboard. Flame if you want, but I'll stand by a friend.

Even I had to look up "urumigokoro"! Yeah, we can get pretty darn obscure.

That makes much more sense, Kirill, thanks! I was ready to call Bob & ask him how he read it.

I think John is right, the remains of spider rust. If it polishes out, you'll have your answer.

How the heck did I miss this thread when you posted it, Piers? It's too bad that we couldn't attend, but excellent that they let you take so many great photos! Incredible workmanship! Arigatoh for posting! Ken

Welcome aboard, Brian. The depth of information on NMB is encyclopedic, & you can almost always drill down to get more clarity on a topic. Seems there's always some member who has done whatever you're looking for. Don't forget to check out the Izakaya - right now, cats are a big topic, & there are always bad jokes, when you need a laugh.

Not sure if this is real.

Nice oshigata, Seth. Working on two, myself. Local frameshop I've worked with for many years. Out here, the rain can dump 5 inches an hour, but an hour later, the streets are bone-dry. Lived here for more than 30 years, & still don't understand the physics of how that works! I actually timed the drying after the big storm last week. My weather gauge showed 4.92 inches of rain, & I punched my stopwatch as soon as it stopped. The highway in front of our house went from a fast-flowing river, to dry, in 51 minutes. I used to work in New Orleans, so I know how different it is in the deep South.

Jean is correct, Noah. Authentic jitte are very basic, & made for hard use.

NMB is indeed a special place, & Brian is both the glue & the lubricant! One of my New Year resolutions is finding more ways to support him. Mele Kalikimaka!

Welcome aboard, David! You'll find us to be a friendly bunch, so feel free to ask questions. And share your collection with us, too.

Jeremy, the best use of your money is an investment in quality books to study.

Yeah, that's a blade I would take to battle! Very nice!

Very nice nioi-guchi! Can't really see enough of the nakago to tell if the blade is ubu. Nice blade, & should sell quickly.

Can you post which of these are in English, pleasea?

Sounds very promising. One thing to check is cataracts. Most Retinologists tend to ignore them, so be sure to let your Ophthalmologist know you have quiescent Dry AMD, & ask if cataract surgery is in your ner future.

Ed, white gloves won't give the collector any real information on key features like hada & hamon, & even the sugata would be hard to determine if vision loss is severe. My father's AMD got so severe, that I set him up with a scanner, & a wide-screen TV, that he used for reading, & studying his knife collection. It was still quite a hassle, but the best I could do 25 years ago. Today there are treatments, but I have no experience with how they will affect Nihonto collection & appreciation. The Amsler grid is an excellent idea, & I have them posted all over the house. If you see ANY distortion, or "holes," get back to your Retinologist immediately! This is one time when hours may count, if your retina or macula is tearing loose.

That should be a separate thread, as your question takes this one off-topic.

Drew, I've had Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) for more than five years, & I have no trouble studying my blades. If your Retinologist hasn't already gotten you started, go buy some Ocuvite! The Lutein & Zeaxanthin will greatly slow your dry AMD, & there are some promising treatments down the road. I'm following them, & will let you know when they are available, at least in a clinical trial. Keep the faith!

Welcome aboard, Jack. I suggest browsing to https://www.lulu.com/shop/greville-cooke/the-birmingham-museum-art-gallery-tsuba-collection-v2/ebook/product-1vjjygq9.html?page=1&pageSize=4 & buying a good reference book. This one was written by a fellow NMB member, & I'm sure that Grev can answer questions. For fuchi & kashira, you can start at https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/13286-the-fuchikashira-orphanage/. Not everyone is selling their orphans, but you can always ask.