huntershooter

Nice effort Niclas.

Wow. Nice NCO sword... The second hamon/blade shot shows some great activity. Hope we get to see it in polish at some point. Lucky you and well done Brian!

Interesting blade Joe. I like the abundant ara-nie. From photos it (the blade) looks to have some hira niku. Nice find.

How about additional photos Joe?

Yes it does Bruno.

Bruno; From what I can understand the blade is one piece construction; mill steel or the like, not kobuse/laminated construction. I THINK they say the blade is oil tempered, though there is mention of water tempering as well. At any rate, this class of blades would not be considered Nihonto.

Good question. I also live in the midwest (USA) and humidity variance is extreme; 70+% in summer to 10% in winter. Common for sayas/tsukas to split with those extremes. I've installed a commercial grade dehumidifier in my home and out building (where the gunsafes are located). Maintaing a constant 20-30% humidity has helped a great deal.

I'll bite. Visiting my daughter in Independence Oregon a few years ago I walked "downtown" and visited some junk/"antique" shops. I found a dilapidated shirasaya and it held a wakazashi. Obtaining permission to remove the tsuka I found suriage nakago, edigu kiku, signed Omi no Kami Minamoto Hisamichi. Although it had been polished to death with little hamachi remaining I felt it was worth the $150.00 I paid for it. It's provided several hrs. of study and appreciation.

Keith I would be interested in how one can stabilize rust as well, particularly on nakago. I have several Gendai blades that have active (moderate to severe) rust on nakago as they were wartime blades (and although nagasa was obviously maintained, the nakago appears to have been neglected).

Mei appears to be "Seki (something) Kanemitsu". Additional help will be here shortly...

Hoping for some opinions/insight on a Wakazashi (Ko Dachi?) signed "Nagamitsu saku", there is no nengi. Blade is graceful with deep sori. Hada is Itame/Mokume with ji nie. Hamon appears to be suguha-however it is so thin from repeated polishes it is difficult for me to be certain. The last polisher has added a "cosmetic hamon" which makes it more difficult to ascertain what is present. Nie and sunagashi are evident however. Blade was obtained from a Japanese dealer and came from Japan (hence Japanese polish). The nakago appears ubu. There is a single mekugi ana, no evidence of muni machi having been moved. Nagasa: 21.30" 54.1 CM Nakago: 5.38" 13.67 CM Sori: .78" 19.7 MM Motohaba: 1.05" 27.3 MM Sakihaba: .22" 5.63 MM Motagasane: .155" 3.94 MM Sakigasane: .73" 18.5 MM

Faced with two choices, I would confess to being an "accumulator". I am new enough to Nihonto (3 years) my usual M.O. is to purchase what I like, without regard to era and sometimes smith. My enjoyment at this stage is acquiring a blade which I can find as much information as possible about the maker. I've found Gendaito fulfilling as there is a great deal written on the subject and a few on this forum with a lot of knowledge which has been shared quite selflessly.

That is pretty wonderful Roy. Thank you for the photos.

I can relate a highlight that isn't sword related: Met Paul Martin at the show with the purpose of having him sign a copy of "Facts and Fundementals..." as a gift for a friend. Contacted Paul Fri. pm and set up a meet for 10 am Sat. My expectation was for Paul to sign the book, two minutes of small talk and end of meeting. We spoke for close to an hour over an ice tea. Our backgrounds were not too dissimilar, made for a most enjoyable "side trip" at the show. I was most impressed with Paul and wish him success! I was late picking up my blade from the shinsa team Sat. evening. They called and left two messages on my cell (which wasn't with me). I retrieved the messages but the shinsa guys had left no number to call back. Now I know there is some way to find the number for missed calls on my phone, but I'll be damned if I know how to do it. (It is at this point that you techno types are having difficulty understanding this apparent ineptitude.) Mike Yamaguchi and I were blissfully site seeing in SF, unaware I was holding up the folks that were working the shinsa. My apologies (again) to that hard working crew. It was nice to put faces with some I've spoken to, or communicated with. All told, a grand experience I can recommend without reservation.

For those that may be interested...

Very interesting Ed. I haven't seen a Kyu Gunto with same saya before. Have you detail photos of blade; hada/hamon?

Congratulations. Have you photos of nakago, is there a mei? Enjoy your blade.

Reasonable assumption that it has been shortened. I have no idea as to value. Nice find!

Good stuff Ron. I am a fan of carved bronze. Thank you.

Finished "Facts and Fundamentals..." last night. I really enjoyed it. I agree with Andreas on the "other than mainstream opinions", yet the message of "a good blade is a good blade" is on the mark. The section on polishing made me smile as it reminded me of some on this board (you'll know who you are). I was in agreement with the opinion stated. Certainly I know substantially less than many (possibly most) here. ANY knowledge I've obtained on the subject of Nihonto has been through reading or the internet. I've yet to attend a sword show or meet/speak with another person that has knowledge of this subject. I can't think of another book I would recommend before this one to anyone in a similar position. The book absolutely cleared up some questions I've had. Thank you for your effort Paul.

FWIw; I've a Kanehide gendaito, star stamped with tiny Seki stamp on nakago mune.

Any photos of the blade Klaus?

Received the book yesterday and am half finished. I will read again. I cannot recommend this too highly. It belongs in every Nihonto library.

Paul Martin's translation of "Facts and Fundamentals..." is also a great help. I'm finding it as, if not more helpful to my "education" than "Connoisseurs..".

Lovely blade, a lot of activity to admire...