GMS

Hello, I've been lurking around here for a few months since I came into possession of the sword my grandfather brought back after WWII, trying to learn about it. I'm an amateur, self taught blade smith, so I've been interested in such things for a long time, but my background is much more european centric. I'm not likely to get into collecting Japanese blades, but I'd like to keep the one I have in as good of shape as I can, with the idea to over time replace the ratty bits and get it into as good a shape as I can. Reading through this forum has been extremely helpful and fascinating, so thanks to you all for doing your part in keeping this knowledge alive and sharing it. Gabriel

Thanks for your help, gentlemen! It sounds like it's decent but nothing special. It's all a bit ratty and unkempt, so at some point I might like to refresh everything, but not anytime particularly soon I think. What are your recommendations for storing it? It's been sitting in the top of my grandfathers closet for the past 50 odd years, and I know he didn't oil it regularly. The one time he showed it to me, 10-15 years ago, he did know not to touch the blade, but more than that I don't know, as he didn't like talking about his part in the war. I put a little oil on it when it came into my hands, but past that I'm unsure of how best I can keep it in its current state. Gabriel

Jean, thanks for your thoughts, from my reading and looking at pictures on this forum I had an extremely uneducated guess that it was in that sort of time frame. Yeah, my first preference would be to ask someone about it in person, but due to 2020 that hasn't been an option, now I have a better idea who to go to though. I'd also love to see in person more examples of these swords, this is an area of knowledge where pictures just do not suffice. Thanks Grey, bookmarked for reading and re-reading. I've tried searching through the forum for this question, but came up empty, but on the spine of the blade right near the kissaki there is a very clear demarcation line. Is that due to the way it was polished? And if so, is there a reason to do so?

Good day, all, I came into possession of a sword my grandfather brought back from WWII, and I'm trying to get as much information on it as I can. He was an MP in Osaka after the war, and was allowed to pick a long blade and a knife to take home. I have no intention of selling it, but want to be able to appreciate it more if it is something special. I've tried to take pictures of all the relevant parts, but can take more if that would help. There is no inscription on the tang, but some light scratches under the two piece habaki that were difficult to photograph. It was retrofitted to have a push button lock at some point, which cut through some writing on the inside of the fuchi. The blade, tip to habaki is 26" long with 1/2" of sori. I'm a definite newcomer into the Japanese sword arena, so I'm trying to learn all the do's and don'ts. Thanks for your time, Gabriel