robinalexander

Yes Bruce @Bruce Pennington I like your idea on this in terms of officer conversion. My 'grey' saya has a definate hint of green in it (attached pic) ....should start counting and documenting them as I reckon there must be over fifty shades of grey so far

Also doesn't necessarily mean "the original owner was a member of that clan" ..... I understand it was not uncommon for Kamon to be 'adopted' by non-clan persons. Could be true, but sounds like a clear sales pitch to me. Nice hamon though!

It's not 4 x 4 although could be AWD. The tyres are radials and by the look of the tread would be good at displacing water. Maybe even snow slush but don't get much of that in OZ....soooo Northern European made and conditions?

It has another 3 x wheels and tyres exactly the same as above.

Sorry I'm late on this thread. Just an observation in regard to the habaki on the originally posted sword (PNSSHOGUN).......correct me if I am wrong (as if I should ask ) but the markings on the habaki go crossways rather than being smooth or possibly length ways. I haven't noticed that before on 95's and if that is not a std 95 habaki then it may add weight to the theory that it was an officers purchase and the habaki was professionally refitted to the blade. Not being a friction fit in this case, the actual exterior dimensions of the habaki would be less important. Rob

For future reference.

Firstly, I cant see anything to prevent you from importing and owning a yari (spear) in NSW Fact Sheet or corresponding legislation........... In general, swords such as a sabre, cutlass, samurai sword, katana, etc fall outside the scope of the Weapons Prohibition Act 1998 and you do not need a licence or permit to own one and there are no specific safe storage requirements. https://www.police.nsw.gov.au › fre... Frequently Asked Questions - Permits - NSW Police Public Site Secondly, similar situation with Federal legislation ...... https://www.abf.gov.au/importing-exporting-and-manufacturing/prohibited-goods/categories Finally, I'm not aware of any impediment, legal or otherwise to importing and owning a Yari in NSW. Further, I haven't read anything that would suggest a Yari is prohibited from import or ownership. If I wanted one I would do it. Rob PS....I am not a lawyer and do not work for Aust. Border Force

Thanks mate....will get back to you.

Clive if you have the legislation link handy, I would be interested to read it.

A distinct possibility Chris. By the way, nice picture work.

Interesting thread Chris @vajo I can't add to what others have said and I think Matt is pretty close to the mark. For interest I will however add a picture of one of mine which has a leather seppa....quite thick but has really compressed on one side thus allowing the fuchi to move/sit slightly off level. I note that many fuchi are not level on early 95's. In regard to your query ('Reason for Extra Spacer'), I also don't know why a first pattern (copper) would have needed an extra thick leather seppa. The only thing I do have a theory about, is in regard to the noticeable compression to the mune side of the leather seppa. I believe that could be due the pressure applied [to the mune side of seppa] that would logically occur through the normal use (maybe extensive use) of the sword itself.

Really bad fake Ed. This particular 'variety' has been circulating for a long time. Rob

What John said ...absolutely correct.

Saw this when it was first posted and thought 'Wow' but quickly turned to 'ohhhh'. But now that a few have chimed in (safety first).... I Ito is wrong koiguchi relief pattern seems incorrect or painted over...and the screws???? sarute doesn't match in design or age leather Tsuka cover looks new Bottom seppa don't seem to fit and don't match top seppa Saya repainted Tsuba looks new If the blade is 'real', what has happened to it? Lida Iida latch looked to be the best part for my money....but I will err with John on that count. I've been wrong before (more than once).... Lida or not and with due respect, I wouldn't buy it on first sight. Rob

Absolutely no idea Simon, but I really like it.

Interesting Brian ... history shows that buying and selling is all about timing and I wouldn't think for a minute that something that's worthless now will be worthless sometime in the future. Similarly, something that's worth a bucket load now could reach a very modest price down the track. In terms of swords, Nihonto was mentioned but I would also like to put a spoke in for the humble 95 and this is just a thought. I haven't seen any decline in their worldwide pricing in the last 5 years. I hear any swords generally are getting harder to get in UK (therefore more expensive?) and I also understand that, for known legal reasons, there are very few, if any, Type 95's in Japan. Accordingly, they should command a relatively high price IF laws are relaxed and there is no flooding of the Japanese market. Just speculation. But I am collecting not investing ... but it would be nice to get my money back when the time comes.

Dan this is exactly what a "Forum" is and does. As far as other coming to someone's "rescue" again it's a forum. Members can agree, disagree or agree to disagree. To be 'rescued' by someone else's comments seems to be pretty subjective to me. It's often going to be the case in Forum situation that many members overwhelmingly disagree with a particular post or viewpoint and, not surprisingly this can also work the other way. I am sure many people enjoy getting 'likes' its human nature and people generally liked to be liked. It just makes you feel good. However, I don't really believe members actively seek out 'likes' or use them as some sort of measure of popularity, knowledge or even success. Although it seems the same cannot be said for those who quote the number of views on a thread. But it can't be denied, 10.9k views is very impressive.

Eds, MASAHIRO Hatori made Low to medium grade Showato and Medium Grade Gendaito (Sloughs) ..but for my money, with a Seki inspection stamp and what I think are darker patches under the harmon peaks (see top of picture) (oil quench), I am going for non-traditional. Rob

Good input. Hopefully the more we look the more we will find and one day we might find out for sure

John maybe he only mounted his leather combat cover when he was on 'field exercises' and when he went home (as it looks from the background) he removed it?

Yes Bruce, I have seen plenty of Roman but never simply 10 x 10 ... probably little doubt there are still assembly numbers to match blade and habaki (?) Rob

Hi Cullen looks like a nice (matched numbers) example. If you can see faint stamps its because the fuchi is iron and probably painted black over the stamps. Sometimes if you get the light just right you can snap a picture. Even if you have to 'roll' the sword over a little to get one stamp at a time. Rob

Funny you should mention that Simon @SRDRowson I recently acquired a Type 98 mumei, possibly gendaito with nice mounts including samegawa saya and on close inspection it has 10 notches on the nakago and 10 on the habaki. The only marks or stamps.

Hamish, your entitled to your opinion and I agree that I wouldn't pay US 5k at the moment either but I also wouldn't knock any collector who can afford it and really wants to secure one. Yes, they are relatively rare and therefore collectable. Would I pay $952 million US for an oil on board 'Mona Lisa' even if I had the money? No .... but again, someone did, and why not. As ridiculous as it may seem, that price is not going to go down. The fact is that not many coppers were made compared to other Type 95 Patterns and who knows how many survived China in the 1930's and then WW2. But like the Mona Lisa or that very special real estate location, if you have something that is quite unique or rare, then it is less affected by market trends and therefore better positioned to hold its value. I believe coppers fall into that category and for military sword collectors, and there are many, their rarity is more reality than perception. If you price your friends copper correctly, I can assure you it will not stay unsold for 6 months Rob