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Beautiful sword! Nice literature on the Tomonari. I also enjoyed reading about the Kunimune.

Add art theft to the list. One of the so called "hand oil painting" is actually a CG cover art done by Korean artist Kjun for Sonov's game called Shaiya. Definitely not original and definitely copyright protected. James

That's awesome George! I for one would love to own at least one higher quality traditional Japanese lacquer stand with suitable koshirae for display purpose. For multiple swords display or temporary holding, I think the kake you have is the way to go. Now think of it, I can probably 3D print a shorter/less stack version in my studio. It wouldn't be less expensive to do (for me) or be as visually pleasing as the wood, but it would be a fun project and should serve the purpose equally. James

It's quite enjoyable to have a peak at fellow collector's mini museums. The setups are beautiful! James

Wow. Some great looking displays here. I'm so envious Andreas, I think those are great inside a glass display. You are right the swords definitely get all the attention. Alex, I saw that similar stand from a few places. It is more affordable. Decisions decisions. Thanks for sharing. Take care guys! James

Thanks guys! Some of the lacquer work are indeed beautiful. I might be in the market for one soon as my new sword is coming in. Alex, thanks for the warning. Definitely need to be careful these days on things online. James

Hi Jim, thanks! I saw that and contacted Eric about it. It would appear to be gimei unfortunately. The owner will more than likely sell it as it is, unpolished and no paper, but with complete koshirae. Attaching a few pictures of the blade per my previous message. James

Thanks Ian. That make sense. I'm also a collector of various types of wooden Asian antiques, and was just wondering mostly if the wood had anything to do with the higher price tag. James

I was wondering if there was a sword stand culture I'm not aware of. Why are most of the better looking sword stands from Japan cost $1k or more. I'm familiar with certain type of wood used in furniture and decorations in China that are just outrageously priced. Does that have to do with the sword stand at all? Or does it have to do with the maker or time created. I don't remember seeing any artist name being advertised with the sword stands, only a approximate time without any credentials. Anyway, I have been wanted to ask this question. Thanks in advance! James

Thanks again Patrick! Will do some research. If the mei is real, it should be an interesting piece. James

Patrick, Thanks for that correction. You're right, it is badly inscribed where I thought the first character was San. So, is it safe to say this is the smith? http://nihontoclub.com/smiths/NAO182 Thanks, James

Hi Gents, I have a wakizashi I'm looking to find more information on. From what I've translated on the mei it reads: Mino Fujiwara Sanekuni. The last character seems a bit off from the usual Kuni character so please correct me if I'm wrong on the translation. The sword is in need of a polish but I thought it has no fatal damages. The owner wants to identify the smith, school, period, etc before committing to a polish, and perhaps submit to a shinsa later. I thought I had more pictures of the blade, but I will need to go back and gather those. So, for now, if any expert thoughts can be given on the mei, I really appreciate it. Sorry admin, this currently looks like a translation help, but I'll return with some pictures of the actual sword for some help on that. Best Regard, James

Great looking polish and tanto! Congrats! James

Interesting to see how well the auction will do. That word "Sa" sure gets a lot of people jumping, doesn't it? James

And now there are two Norimitsu blades. sigh...why can't these guys use their brains for something constructive instead of ripping people off. Thanks Derek for the link. -James

Hi, Do these look like Aoi Art Oshigata? I know this seller is known to hi-jack Japanese auctions. Maybe they have expanded their operation? http://www.ebay.com/itm/Japanese-SAMURA ... 2ecd32e10c http://www.ebay.com/itm/Japanese-SAMURA ... 2ecd0947b5 -James

Gentlemen, Your frustration is understandable. Being a Chinese American, I must say I am not proud of all the counterfeit activities that goes on in China and spreading across the globe. It is actually even harder for me to hear comments like this because I feel ashamed for my fellow Chinese, and there is no escaping from my heritage nor do I want to. However, I just want to remind everyone that there are good and honest people everywhere, and there are thieves and crooks everywhere also. This being counterfeiters stereotype that is developing for the Chinese is not something people like me want to see. China is undergoing dramatic social and political changes. Good and bad things will happen. Being the largest population country in the world, a large percent of people come from poor and uneducated background. The only thing they can do to make money and to live a better life is to copy. I'm afraid honor is sacrificed when faced with poverty for a lot of people. While new laws and changes are being put into place, changes will take time. As for me, I can only better myself and attempt to influence the people around me. I think that's all I can hope to do. I also wish everyone can see pass the negativeness that may or may not directly affect you, and learn to see the positive even if it seems gloom. One advise, those who get burn the worst are those who are always looking for a deal from people who claims to give the best deals. Know where to look, who to talk to, and most importantly know your stuff. These are crucial in any type of business transaction. That is true in every country. Best Regards, James

eBay is slipping big time. My beef is more and more deadbeat buyers and there is basically nothing you can do about it. Can't even leave a negative feedback. I just encountered a message during listing today saying something like "do not use negative messages in your description such as 'you must follow my policy, etc' to discourage buyers from using eBay....blah blah blah." I have sold the same item 4 times now, every time none paying buyers, and I can't even say 'serious buyers only?' eBay treats sellers like crap and sellers are the ones keeping it going (13% commission and up on every sell). However, now I see international buyers are getting screwed too. I had no idea you guys have to pay so much fees afterwards. I admit I used Global Shipping Programs and it seemed very convenient because I just have to ship the package to an US location and not worry about the rest. I can even print out shipping labels at home and have the packages picked up for free. I guess there is another side to the story. Now I will offer the additional Int. shipping option where actual shipping is charged. May be more trouble for me to calculate the exact shipping but at least Int. buyers aren't throwing their money away, and I know someone is getting filthy rich from this. Maybe it's time for a new online auction company all together. Monopolizing is never good. James

Hmmm...Fuji5005. James

Thanks for the explanation Eric. The termination before it's over thing is understandable. Multiple auctions on different auction sites is a bit tricky. This unfortunately allow people to host the item elsewhere when it is not even theirs. I think that subject has been discussed on the forum before. So, I don't want to readdress it. So, this explains why I see the same stuff over and over again. Anyway, that Kagemitsu Juyo sold well for the buyer, or is it sold??? http://page11.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/a ... n124108879 -James

Hi All, So, I have been checking out all the links offered by NMB, and have some questions particularly about the Japanese Auctions link in the top menu. So this takes you to a site called Winners Japanese Sword (WJS) page. I'm guessing this site is a tool created to gather more popular auctions on Japanese auction sites to make life easier for us. However, I noticed the auctions, in large numbers, are from one seller, fuji_5005. At lease for the sword auctions. While at the same time, a lot of the more popular auctions have been filtered out? For example, there is a Juyo token sword on Yahoo Japan right now with lot more hits and bidders. I'm not saying it has to have auctions like this posted here, but just wondering how this works. Another question or rather concern is I have read fuji_5005 is not a so trustworthy seller. I have never dealt with this seller before so I'm not passing judgement. But something I've noticed raised my curiosity. This auction for koshirae along with a few others was listed and ended in WJS a few days ago (http://winners-auction.jp/productDetail/22707), now I see it still going on Yahoo Japan Auctions (http://page8.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/h181790760). I've also noticed some fitting that were supposedly sold and then appear in this seller's inventory with much higher starting price. I don't really care enough to put a "tracker" on this seller, they are free to do whatever they want obviously, and if the buyers did their homework and exercised their better judgement to bid, that's their business. my question still comes down to how WJS is filtered and being a tool to aid collectors, can it be made "safer" for shoppers. I'm not going to lie, when I first visited WJS, I thought it was very cool to have all the nihonto related auctions in one place and categorized, in English nonetheless. Then I was like wait a minute... Thanks in advance. -James

Thanks guys! I've briefly went through all the links from the commercial pages. A lot of them are worth keep an eye on and have been bookmarked. A lot of great swords for sale and very tempting when browsing. If anything, I'm getting a better sense of pricing. -James

Thanks for the info Simon and Chan! I have been to aoijapan's website. They have a great looking inventory. It's good to know they are good to deal with as well. James

Hi Denis, On eBay, the thing that usually triggers an alarm for me is extremely high price tag with no proof of authentication and very little descriptions. No history, no lineage, no artist or location of origin. Sometimes just measurements of the item. I think whoever treasures the antique item they are selling should know a lot about it, would like to pass on that info to the next owner. Of course papered items can also take you for a ride. But usually, they are listed at even higher prices. Which will force you to do some homework to see what's the real value. Another trick is to see what other items that the seller have for sale. Usually these sellers have a lot of auctions going on at the same time. Most of them are "Buy It Now" with "Best Offers" because they are afraid of starting the auction with a low bid and risking eating dirt on other auction sites. After looking at the items for sale by the seller, you should generally get a feel that things are way too overpriced and something is off. Oh also, if you do see an actual auction style listing for that seller that starts at a low bid and bids have been placed, 99% chance the bidders are privately listed where you can't see their user id. Stay away from these too. The seller is boosting. As for stuff on Yahoo Japan Auctions, you can actually use a logistic/intermediate company to help you with a purchase for a charge. Since I'm not nearly confident in my knowledge in nihonto and Japanese, I tend not to spend too much time there. But from what I've seen, items with proper certificates/appraisals sells pretty much close to what it would go for on eBay. So, no deal plus you have to pay intermediate company's charges. I guess, if you are an expert, you can find some treasures that are cheaper priced and from honest individuals. But for me it's mostly window shopping. That's my 2cents -James

Thanks Mariusz! I hear you are a pretty good seller yourself