Munechika

Thanks reinhard for a lovely picture and history as well as insight on the matter. So acid polish or acid etched is rooted around Edo period. Though I must say differenciating which is acid polish and which isn't is difficult to say the least. Based on the picture you provided, acid enhanced is the last thing come to my mind until you said it was. Who would have guess (well beside a professional polisher lol). I guess like Mike said, holding an sword in and evaluate (probably go with the gut instinct). And instinct arise from years of experience. The reason I asked such question simply because acid polish tend to weaken the steel of the blade. It might be a useful insight to know which is acid enhance blade for any important future purchases. Looks like i have lot of searching and reading to do in my spare-time. (Knowing which stones is used on which step resulting in what... might shines some light on the matter) I cant wait until I take Physical Chemistry. Maybe then I'll know why acid weaken the blade (beside microscopic rust and attacking the crystalline structure of the steel...) Again thanks. Nhan

Thanks Mike for some insights :D Nhan Nguyen

Greetings folks, I have been wondering how can you tell acid polish from traditional polish? Would anyone want to elaborate on this subject? From what i understand and read online, acid polish do not bring out the true activity of the hamon and furthermore weaken and damaging to the blade. Is a sign of an acid polish too flashy and often shines the hamon? Not only that, does it not have a natural flow of the grain in the ji connects to the hamon in the temper edge? Is the hamon is just too shiny, the blade shines, grain not clearly visible and activity like sunagashi, kinsuji, and nie-deki (if it has it), is masked by the mirror reflection of the acid polish? Attached is a picture of Ko-Ichimonji Sanetoshi that i download from web (i think it's from Ginza Choshuya Website awhile back) that i use to study. From the polish of this sword, the grain glitters with ji-nie. Chikei (i think) are clearly visible; utsuri appears, and the hamon are so well done that abundant of kinsuji, sunagashi and patches of what i believed to be ko-nie naturally melted, solifified, and settle-down in hamon from the ji, lighten up the blade. If the sword has these type of characteristics, it would show up on the traditional polish and not on the acid one am i right? God I love that blade! From a newbie newbie, Nhan Nguyen