1kinko

Go to a sword show. There's nothing better than holding tosogu and examining it with a magnifying device and talking with the sellers and other buyers.

Marcus Chambers is as close as anyone I'm aware of in terms of skill, but not in terms of teaching or writing. He is an NMB member and is accepting commissions. It's a tough row to hoe, and Ford made most of his income from western jewelry making. The competition is with antique Japanese tosogu prices and the time required to make new pieces.

I've just learned that Ford's teacher has died. Ford, ill as he was went to Japan to visit Kushiro Izumi (last year as I recall). The tosogu world is losing the "old" masters.

OK, so what's the difference in NMB rules that his rubbish can continue, but discussions in Isakaya can get locked because the king says so?

Well, maybe Ford would have gotten involved but as with the other specious thread on cast iron tsuba I suspect he would have simply checked out. He appreciated that the secret to a long life was not arguing with fools.

Obviously, you can construct a tsuba any way your imagination wanders (and despite all informed evidence). But personally I think it's a Republican plot to put god in this thread.

Check out Ford's mei. Certainly way above average.

I finally got my last years purchase from Mokuhankan framed-great deal and great service.

You get the same results when you hit the tagane slowly. It stops at the end of each hammer stroke, whereas if you hit it quickly the metal flows evenly. One gets quicker with practice and confidence.

That's only 1 idiot. Most if the rest are open to knowledge and serious students.

Good eye! Thanks for the tip; I bought it and it arrived in the U.S. on 15 December but USPS sent it back and forth until the 31 December. However, the print seems to be of tsubashi rather than sword making- which fits my interests even better

I guess we've got to side track this into religion or politics to get it closed!

Guess you didn't get the samurai surgeon huh? (John Belushi).

The easiest method is to solder the rim on and use a low carat gold rim or mask the shakudo and guide the rim alone (fire gilding or electroplating).

Personally I could care less what schools exist, but I’ve wondered for quite a while why the tools of basic biological taxonomy aren’t used. If you want to key out (identify) a plant or animal out there is a way of answering consecutive questions beginning with basic questions and after each question is answered, another choice comes up, one after another until you get the answer. AI should make this very easy or tell you that it can only go so far or not at all.