Mark S.

Good (well… bad) pictures and discussion of use/misuse of uchiko here: https://blog.yuhindo.com/uchiko-considered-harmful/

Some of this conversation reminds me of the back and forth between Hannibal Lecter and Clarice in “Silence of the Lambs” (changed a bit to make relevant… and less creepy): HL: First principles… simplicity… read Marcus Aurelius, “Of each particular thing, ask what is it in itself… what is it’s nature?” What does he do? This man you seek? C: He collects nihonto HL: NO!!! That is incidental. What is the first and principal thing he does? What NEEDS does he serve by collecting? C: Anger?… ummm… social acceptance… HL: NO!!! He COVETS! THAT is his nature. And how do we begin to covet? Do we seek out things to covet? Make an effort to answer now. C: No… we just… HL: No… we begin by coveting what we see every day. Don’t your eyes seek out the things YOU want? C: All right, yes…

Not questioning your decision or saying if you should or shouldn’t buy it because it is your money and YOU are the only one who has to be happy with it… But just some general questions with regard to collecting that we all ask ourselves about any purchase. Why this blade? Why do you like it? Does it speak to you? Have you studied Jumyo and you find this particular smith or time period or school interesting? Does it ‘fit’ into your collection? What will you learn from it? Have you compared it to like/similar blades?

Also an excellent resource: https://markussesko.files.wordpress.com/2015/04/nihontocompendium-e1.pdf

JP, Sometimes it is easier for us to offer grace, peace, and kindness to others as opposed to giving it to ourselves. We carry things around… our burdens, and the burdens of others. We are not good at asking others to help with our burdens though. Please know that this group is here for you and I am sure there are others. As your burdens lighten, come back as you can… there are open arms waiting for you.

Try a read of Darcy’s explanation of daisho to see if that helps. https://blog.yuhindo.com/daisho-and-daishoisnt/

Damn it Jim, I’m a doctor… not @Ford Hallam…

Supporting the ‘local economy’

As always… thank you for the informative and thoughtful response.

Hi Ed, Quick question (and please excuse my ignorance) that has always confused me and steered me away from the boiling process. Many of the ‘processes’ I have read about putting patina on a tsuba (let’s say on a new one) includes a process to cause red rust and then boiling to transform red rust (bad) into black rust (good). Please don’t ask me to explain the chemistry. Anyway… does boiling damage the rust/‘stuff’ inside of sukashi that is supposed to be left alone? Also, what is your view on mitigating red rust inside sukashi? If it is active, won’t it someday eat away the thin sukashi? I know we don’t clean nakago, but some of the views about oiling them are discussed. Thanks, Mark S.

Thanks. I only bid it as a mumei mounted yari, so I figured I would get out bid. Not broken up about it. Just figured I would ask.

I find when I apply oil, no matter how thin a coat I think I put on (usually apply it, even it out, and then wipe it a second time with a new, dry tissue) that I still have to check it the next day and wipe the blade again with a new tissue. The oil seems to ‘bead up’ and needs another wipe to even it out again.

So wondering how bad I screwed up by not bidding high enough??? Yari on local auction site. Naotane??? Gimei or Shoshin? How high would you have bid based on pics? Going rate for a real Naotane yari?

Not sure what it is? I was in a resale shop today and for $3 I felt I should save it! It’s real lacquer but the ravages of time and/or abuse make it probably worth only the $3… but I felt sorry for it and it followed me home. Probably just a touristy piece. Thoughts?

All, I asked Brian to upload an article titled “Swords of the Tea Masters” in pdf format. It was in a periodical called “Chanoyu Quarterly” which is now out of print. While not in-depth Nihonto info and written more for a tea ceremony practitioner audience, some might still enjoy the read. You will find it in the ‘download’ section. Hope you will find it interesting. Mark S.

I didn’t want to state the obvious so as not to come across as talking down to the OP, but now that it has been mentioned… you usually (unless very loose) DO need to hold the button down when trying to remove the blade. It may be the reason the tsuba is loose and you hear the rattling noise, but blade is not coming out?

A long time ago I heard about ‘face oil’ used on iron tsuba which I have used with some success. I do the same for nakago each time before putting a blade away. I give a quick wipe of my fingers across forehead and on either side of nose and gently rub on nakago. Seems to work nicely. People’s body chemistry varies, so your mileage may vary.

Woody Hall (student of Mr Benson) is in Vegas if that helps.

Interesting habaki. Shakudo? Seems like copper with patina worn away, but also some gold?

And usually if you find a blade under-priced, it usually requires polish, shirasaya, Shinsa, etc. that push the price to, or beyond, market value. Even ‘under-priced’ items should be something you like. Luckily I keep what I buy, so I buy what I like, and if some additional costs push it beyond its market value… well at least I am enjoying the $$$ I spent on myself for my enjoyment.

Mike Virgadamo is another option.

Been better last night and today or so.

You might want to reach out to Woody for his opinion. If you’re going to get it polished anyway, then catching the rust early may be better than waiting. Mailing it with a heavy coat of oil should get it to him in good condition. He can give the best recommendation on how you should send it. And if I was worried about early rust causing more permanent damage, I would rather have it in the hands of the polisher who knows how to keep the blade stable until polish. All just my humble opinion.

I usually access the NMB on my iPhone. For about the last week or so, NMB has been extremely slow and sometimes just freezes and won’t go any further. It has been very hit or miss. Anyone else having issues?

If you have a price in mind, you can try to sell it in the ‘for sale’ section of this site. Good pictures are a must. If you are asking ‘what price?’, I will have to let others answer that. Also, if you do sell it and are unsure of the best way to package it for mailing, PLEASE ask here. Blades which are not packaged properly can be damaged in transit, or worse, injure someone.