Bugyotsuji

Well, this is their site, but I can't see the wakibiki here. If I can get some time this weekend I'll go round to my friend's place and photo the pamphlet if you like. http://www.kinokuniya.tv/en/

Not sure where to put this little nugget. Something I heard years ago, but suddenly thought it should be written down for posterity. Maybe Barry's post yesterday triggered the thought. When removing the Mae-date from its fixture in front of the helmet, never 'wiggle' it off from side to side. This is said to be a big no-no. Always go straight up, firmly and gently.

Oddly enough two versions of the Wakibiki just appeared in Kinokuniya's sales pamphlet this week.

According to the link you have posted this lock was used more in army swords (than Navy) and was called "Chu-ha-dome", as opposed to "Habaki-dome" and "Botan-dome".

Well, if you put it like that then I will have to agree with you, Barry! Very good thought. General thanks all round to everyone who makes this such an interesting and valuable resource.

Many thanks. I enjoyed those. Was Japan created from a Yari, or from a Hoko? :?

兼立 can be read Kenritsu in general. How this smith wanted it to be read... ?

Eric K, yes, I agree with your observation as to the similarities between the two types of box. Carpenters' boxes are even today traditionally made with that kind of distinctive lid. One end slides under one of the two upper overhanging slats to help lock it in place. Many thanks for the pics. As to the yari mekugi, a good observation. Malcolm's theory makes sense. I wonder if there is more to this, apart from balance and aesthetics? Even a small bamboo pin, especially if made of susu-dake, can be almost as hard as iron, and firmly within the confines of a Kashi yari shaft, with the tip of the nakago resting against the interior back surface, nigh-on impossible to snap.

What a wonderful suit, Eric. And Ian, you seem to live in a world where few can enter! Nothing to do with anything really but I was at a sword study meeting last Sunday at Tatsuno Jo. (A lovely little hidden-away castle well worth a visit if anyone is in the area). The swords were laid out and we were ready to go when a young chap turned up late and unwrapped a large Katana in Shirasaya and placed it on the end of the line. As I picked it up to admire it, a voice nearby whispered, 'It's gendai.' Every aspect of this katana was perfect. The hamon was beautiful. They removed the tsuka and the Mei was Myochin. The young fellow it turned out was the 53rd Myochin himself in this particular line of Myochin. He is probably the first in his line to make swords; his father is well-known for making Hibashi (iron 'ohashi' for the hibachi). "Wow", I thought, brushing shoulders, "I get to touch a real living Myochin!"

Well, there were 脇楯 wakidate, or waidate, and 脇引wakibiki. I am wondering if they were relics from O-yoroi times, which gradually faded out at some time. Meeting someone more knowledgable this evening...

My suitcase to Portugal was 23 kg, the gun case was 12 kg and my back pack with the San-gu in it must have been another 8kg. I wore as much as I could onto the plane and carried only a minimum of a normal change of clothes. I had no gunpowder or bullets and I left my Horagai Triton shell behind. My sword Koshirae contained only a light wooden Tsunagi. So you must be looking at 35-40 kg before food/water.

Nice quote. :lol: Actually I think he was expected not to complain. If I have done 70~100 matchlock demonstrations in full armour in all types of weather, then I have heard from the J public gallery 1,000 times, 'That must be heavy!" or "How much does that weigh altogether?"... And when they ask to hold one of the long guns, a pause as they get a grip on it and then suddenly: "It's heavy!"

Hmmm... interesting find. I wonder just how common they were. My own experience tells me that there is already too much tied by strings around the neck. The addition of these wakibiki could well have been too much clobber for most people, increasing the time and effort needed to get your armour on. I already dislike the strings for the Kote, and HATE the string for the Nodowa. The cord for the bandolier and the cord for the holster add to the confusion. Sometimes a giant wooden Buddhist rosary necklace goes on top. The two Gyoyo get caught up in the mix. I just cannot imagine adding wakibiki to that lot... :lol: Oh, and the Do is already hard enough to get on and off without asking for help...

Some of the best and most unusual examples have found their way into collections abroad. Wonderful to see these, Carlo.

How is it explained, Carlo?

Quote: I see a square-eyed, broad nosed face in that intertwined mass. But would it not be 'upside down', Peter?

Carlo, that's my daughter's bedroom.

The packing case had been there for 100 years, I am guessing! :lol: (Unless you are saying 'we' in the Royal sense! ... but still the Yari would have had a tempered edge, right? Here are some pics of the box. I am tempted to use it as a work bench.

Eric, I have posted it before, but despite a search couldn't find it. (May be on the old site.) PS Just found it on this page in the Edo Period corner. Fuzzy shots and the explanation Kanji have gone strange. This part of the thread must have come from the old site and the Kanji were lost. It could be so-so 'Yari nest', 鎗蔵　(?) or Morita San suggested possibly a name, Yorizo? viewtopic.php?f=9&t=2554&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=150 It's larger than it looks there. Will get some better shots this evening.

Whoever placed a Kikuchi blade on the end of a bamboo pole and tipped the balance in battle may just have started a trend. The point of a spear, I was told, was to thrust up for the enemies' eyes. From bamboo to wood, and from Tanto, to Yoroidoushi, to dedicated steel spear blade may then have been a logical progression, diverging from Naginata/Nagamaki. Since the handles of Naginata/Nagamaki were oval in cross-section, the idea of a round pole must have been new and outside the box. On a lathe, round cross-section may indeed have been easier to fashion. Wood would have caused fewer splinters than bamboo, but could be made just as slippery for sliding thrusts. As with Kazu-uchi-mono for swords, it must have been easy for smiths to mass produce short spear blades. The straighter they are, the easier they will fit into a box too. In fact I have just such a box at home, with the 'proper' (?) character for Yari written on it, and I can imagine it padded with straw and being gradually filled by smiths roundabout the forge. Most of the above is the product of a modicum of input plus a fertile mind and not much more.

Well, you have convinced me. In juxtaposition with your chappie there, then I would say almost certainly yes...

Alan, thanks for the reply. I ask because I had a repair done to the iron/steel firing pan of a matchlock. Maybe it was a type of arc welding. (?) It's a good job and very solid, but it looks silver and different, and it refuses to take patination. Please ignore as necessary. In the meantime I'll try and recall what process they called it in Japanese.

Nothing to do with the price of fish really, but one so-called knowledgable person, a long-time Japanese collector assured me that looseness was deliberate and to be desired as it was one of the mechanisms absorbing the shock of contact with hard objects. The design of the tsuba, particularly sukashi, was another method of recoil absorption, he was saying.

A repaired Tsuka should provide good reinforcement to a cracked Nakago. Can silver solder really be repatinated?

Please show us what it looks like!