Bruce Pennington

I would like to hear from Windy as to whether he's open to the idea of pulling the tsuka off for a view of the nakago. The gap on the handle and fuchi might be due to a bent nakago. I have one on a ver 3 side-latch that is so bent I'm amazed it fits in the handle (pic attached). Windy?

It sort of has the look of an old family blade militarized for service in the war, where many of the fittings are original and just enough is added, menugi, saya, to militarize it.

*I several posts above happened as I typed this, Thanks Stegel for the strikingly similar example I admit the shape of the kissaki-end of the bo-hi is not the normal shape of a Tokyo Arsenal blade. It is rounded, which is often a tell-tale sign of a fake, however, I have a Nagoya ver 3 (side-latch) with a rounded bo-hi, so I don't know what to think about that. I agree the serial number font is odd. Also, the tsuka-side seppa is unevenly shaped. The Kokura cannon balls are a bit thin, but the contractor stamp is legit looking. Windy, can you get a good look at the dimpling in the diamond-shapes and tell if they are raised bumps, or are they indented? Indented dimples are another error the reproductions have. Also, Windy, if you are willing, it often tells us a lot to see the nakago (tang). Some guys don't like to take NCO gunto apart because they sometimes have a little wiggle when you put them back together. I take all mine apart and have a 50/50 experience with the wiggle, but it's worth it to me to see the nakago. One thing I have found studying these - there are ALWAYS exceptions and variations to the norm!!!

It is most likely the polisher, but no way to really know. You can read the full discussion your inscription here: http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/21519-name-on-nakago-mune/

Interesting! That one is dated on the mune.

From SteveM on the Translations forum: Members 659 posts LocationTokyo, Japan Posted Today, 12:43 AM 和田護 Wada Mamoru ↑ My best guess. The Wada is obvious. The bottom name, not so much due to the balance being wrong for 護. Still, its the closest I could find without digging into the really obscure kanji. George - Thanks! I keep forgetting about that dating method. Do you think there is significance when this method is used, like the blade is made special by it? Or was it just the popular method of dating leading up to the war, then as the production demands increased, it became quicker to use the Showa dating?

Thanks Steve! Ever seen a name on the mune before? Think it's the actual smith's name?

I think it is a name on the nakago mune! I've posted it on the "Translation help" forum and will update as soon as I get word.

Hope someone can tell us what this says! It's on the nakago mune of a Kanemichi gunto. The rest of the sword can be found here: http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/topic/21514-rough-but-beautiful/

How interesting!

Matt, the scabbard (saya) is absolutely correct! This one has some collector interest, to me, because of the black painted diamonds, if original. You can decipher the fuchi stamps, yourself, here: http://ohmura-study.net/794.html

Peter, The small stamp at the top of the nakago is the "Showa" stamp, put on military blades made during the war in the non-traditional manner. The painted kanji are numbers - 5701 - and like you said, were used to keep parts together, since almost all officer gunto were of varying sizes and shapes. So once parts were fitted to each other, they were able to keep them together even if seperated, like for final polishing. I can normally read date kanji, but this one has me stumped! Nice find. the complete leather set is fairly rare!

Chris, See this Ohmura page,http://ohmura-study.net/714.html, this gunto has "silver" fittings. Also, there are many gunto with aluminum seppa, if that's what you mean.

Chris, Unusual arrangment, but not unheard-of. Can you give us details and pics of the blade? By the looks of the Kabu, sarute, and seppa, it looks to be a high-quality set-up. I'm betting the blade is old and/or family because of the tsuba. Unless someone has seen this ito type before, I'd say it is something done after the war. Do you have any history on the gunto?

Thanks Dave! All real Japanese parts, but as you say, no way to know WHO put them together.

Dave, love to see the pics! Ogling other people's swords' here, is the next best thing to ogling them in-hand!

Yes, those are strangely too perfect and not a recognized font.

This looks good from a distance, but up close the details reveal the fake. The biggest giveaway are the stamps. They are getting better with the Kokura cannonballs, but this one - the lines are to thin, the balls too big. Then the horror is the "Ko" stamp! WAY too big, wrong place and the square imprint around it. The seppa is a clear fake, and like everyone else said, the bo-hi starts too far down the blade and the tip is round (like a Nagoya).

Greg, After seeing the comment from Brian (Admin) on another thread, we might not get any actual Chinese collectors to respond: "I agree with Wah. There are a number of collectors from there that visit, and the stats show quite a lot of traffic from there. But seeing as it is basically illegal in China, and they do it under threat of prosecution, no wonder they are a bit wary about participating. Like in Russia, where there is a large underground collecting fraternity in bayonets etc, which are also illegal. Everywhere in the world you get this. For some, it is an added thrill to collecting. For others (such as some of the wealthy Chinese) it is somewhere to put excess funds, and considered a form of art. Used to by the Arab countries..then Russia, and now China."

I bet Stegel would know! My only one is 211,894 seki. StuW shows a pic of one that is 206,027.

I have the Kapps' first book and there are things in it, as well, that are tell-tale signs of folks writing about things without thorough knowledge of what they are saying. I don't have the book in hand, at the moment, but they make a statement about the number of swords that were made during the war and seem to lump both officer and NCO numbers together as if they don't realize that NCO are not officers. That aside, they put out some useful information not included in my other reference books. Just goes to show - you have to become the expert in everything because the "experts" are human and need to be checked and verified (trust but verify, eh!).

Wah, makes sense that the Chinese would develop an interest in collecting. What this means, though, is it will make Fake spotting more complex. Up to now, anytime I see an eBay offer coming from China, I disregard it automatically. But if there is a real collector population growing there, one should take a real look at an offer coming from there for it might be legit.

Wayne, Interesting point. I once read that the city of Nagoya had 17 sword factories surrounding it. I know the Seki operation had many more than that. So, in once sense, it's surprising that there isn't more variation in the font than there is. But I guess it depends upon where, and by whom, the stamping was done.

This is a discussion that should be on another thread. And David, I'd be happy to toss that around with you if you care to start the thread.

As far as I know, Nagoya was the only one making them with the side latch. That is definitely the highest serial number I've seen on an aluminum handled gunto.