Matt D

This year, I plan to attend my first sword show and I was wondering how attendees typically get any purchases of blades home, if they fly to the show. Personally, I’d be reluctant to transport a sword in a checked case. But is this a common practice. Or, are blades often shipped to the purchaser?

I appreciate the input. I do wish the photos of the blades were better.

On this board I’ll see an occasional mention of AOI-Art. But has anyone had any experiences with e-sword.jp?

I see it on Grey Doffin’s site: https://www.japaneseswordbooksandtsuba.com/store/Books

Does anyone know what revisions were made in the 2013 edition of the book “Modern Japanese Swords and Swordsmiths: 1868 to the Present”? I have the first edition, but I was wondering if any corrections were made. Also, why wasn’t Keith Austin included in the lineages? The book mentions him, but I did not see him in the lineage with his master.

One thing that catches my eye is the Addendum on Blade Stamps. Critical Amazon reviews of the book "Modern Japanese Swords: The beginning of the Gendaito era", co-written by Leon Kapp, take issue with the authors' assertions that star stamped blades are all non-traditional. One critic claims that several star stamped blades have passed NBTHK shinsa. Does anyone have an opinion or other information on Mr. Kapp's statements about star stamped blades?

Thank you Bruce!

Bruce mentioned an errata sheet for the Gregory and Fuller book. Does anyone have a link to that errata sheet or an article that lists the errors in that book?

There seems to be two viewpoints on this issue. Some would say that there's nothing wrong with using a recent and somewhat plain Nihonto for iaido practice. Others would argue that every Nihonto is irreplaceable work of art and thus should be preserved. After further thought, I don't think I'd want to subject any Nihonto to the wear and tear and potential damage from iaido practice. Matt D.

Ken, For about a year I studied a Koryu art, but I'd rather not mention the name because there was an unfortunate split in the organization. More recently, we've been studying Toyama and Nakamura Ryu. I'm open to studying a more traditional iaido, but there are limited choices in the states.

Thank you everyone for the information. And thank you for letting me know about the Ohmura site. I'll definitely check it out. Bruce, I don't think I'm ready to purchase anything at this time, but I enjoyed the post.

Thank you everyone for your responses. And sorry for the typo in Subject line. I did mean to say shinsakuto. Regarding Ken's comment, I am a relatively new student and will be practicing with an iaito for quite some time. When the time comes for shinken, I don't plan to use a real Nihonto to practice Tameshigiri. Nevertheless, I hope to one day own one, even if it's not considered an art sword (yet). Other than E-Sword, are there any other trusted sources you would recommend if I want to just look for now? Thank you again for your help.

I'm a new member of this site and a student of iaido. One day I'd like to purchase a Nihonto, but commissioning a new sword may be too costly. I also don't want to use an antique, even a relatively inexpensive one. But I figure there might be some value in preowned modern swords made fairly recently. Is there a decent market out there for preowned Nihonto made during the last 30 years or so? Where would you recommend that I look? Thank you in advance for any information and advice. Matt D.

Hello Everyone. I'm relatively new to Japanese swords and a new member to this message board. While studying Kenjutsu and Nihonto, I've also developed an interest in Type 98 Shin Gunto. The books that I've seen include two by Fuller and Gregory, and another book by Dawson. Both appear to be out of print and can be a little pricey. But if I could only purchase one book on the subject, which would you recommend? Are any other online resources, besides this one, that you would recommend? Also, where would you recommend that I look to purchase a Type 98 Shin Gunto? I'm not looking for anything that's particularly collectible. It also doesn't necessarily have to be traditionally made or an ancestral blade. But I would like a relatively clean blade with fittings in decent condition. Thank you for your help and advice. Matt D.