GeorgeLuucas

AI also supports that iron and steel will flake, especially after corrosion. Seems like the most logical conclusion All the best, -Sam

Hi Jeff, thank you for all the photos. I think many of us are a little confused too. I'm inclined to agree with @2devnul on this one. I think it looks real, but really messed with... hard to say. The nakago and hamachi + munemachi are what concerns me too. They have the appearance of being altered by an untrained craftsman (if its not a forgery). If you bought it on eBay, was the seller "komonjo"? He's notorious for selling stuff similar to this. If he's the seller; that would explain a lot. To my novice eye, it looks like an 'untrained someone' moved the hamachi and munemachi up, giving the nakago and it's profile a wrong look. I also suspect the nakago has some artificial patination to look older. Tough one, and sorry for all the bad news... For what it's worth, I think most of us on this board have been burned at least once; I know I have. Just my two cents, and I could be wrong too. All the best, -Sam

Thank Brian! It's no museum level piece, but I am quite fond of it. It's the first Akasaka tsuba in my collection. Great color, thickness, and weight - but there's still quite a bit of red rust scattered around. I couldn't buy a sword for myself this holiday, so I think this is a good compromise (checks wife's expression) . Cheers and hope you're feeling better, -Sam

This is really a killer deal, and I am amazed it has not yet sold. Someone better buy this before my willpower subsides Really nice looking sword, -Sam

After seeing this Tsuba shared in another thread, I knew I had to have it. I consider it a holiday gift to myself Sukakashi Tsuba, Akasaka school with Myoga motif. Unusual “S” shape, that was proposed may be an S hook for a kettle. Anyway, this is a permanent addition to my collection because I like it so much. Sharing just for show-and-tell. Cheers, -Sam

It almost looks designed to sit perfectly on that plastic display stand

It looks like someone took a likely broken sword, and turned it into a "bowie knife", by grinding a new tip and clip-point. I've seen a few nihonto modified in similar ways. Definitely not original, and probably done more recently and outside of Japan. I agree with what's been said above. Best of luck, -Sam

That makes sense, thank you @Tsuku I was thinking it looked penned on, rather than inset. But looking at the nakago ana, now I’m thinking it is inset like you say. At any rate, I’d love to see some more pictures of it All the best, -Sam

You can see the yasurime when you zoom in. It looks like an exterior ink over an otherwise mumei nakago. Kind of like kinpun mei but… Ginpun mei? Interesting! I don’t think the koshirae is any kind of ww2 gunto. Looking forward to others observations. Cheers, -Sam

Hello and welcome to the forum! To answer some of your questions, we’ll definitely need more photos. Especially of the tang (nakago), even if there’s no markings on it. Your wakizashi blade appears to be in poor condition. That being said, everything looks genuine to my eye - pending more photos. Here’s a guide that shows some of the photos we’ll need. Always best against a dark background. Best of luck! -Sam

Haha, you guys crack me up! Usually when an item speaks to me, it’s more subtle than this Im thinking it means a Christmas present for myself I couldn’t ask for a more trustworthy seller. Cheers! -Sam

Hi Dale, Sorry to steer this a bit off topic, but do you know the significance or meaning behind the “S” shape on this tsuba? Im intrigued and interested because the double S is my initials Cheers, -Sam S

Hi Steve, Cool swords! I didn’t see if you answered Dee’s question. Did you weigh the swords with or without their fittings? At any rate, if you’re using a bathroom scale, they have a pretty big margin of error - and sometime aren’t precise within a few pounds of difference. Before drawing any conclusions, I would try using a gram scale and weighing the swords without their fittings, and by themselves. If they still weigh identical - I like John C’s answers best of luck, -Sam

For the love of the KIRI

Posting here for anyone interested. Feel free to move or delete @Brian, if this is redundant info. Free for anyone to use/share/send/save. Cheers, -Sam

Hi Jeff, I am looking forward to more photos. Even if the signature is gimei, the blade still appears to be genuine. Your post inspired me to create this little photo guide. I hope @ROKUJURO approves . I’m open to feedback. Be sure to take photos well lit against a dark background. Ideally centered overhead with the tip north and nakago south. You’ve already covered a couple of these, but here’s my guide that I hope helps. Best of luck, -Sam

Here’s the one that’s been in my collection for a while Cheers, -Sam

Could it be an O-suriage tachi? Early Yamato den tachi can have a shallow sori toward the kissaki, and when suriage they can look pretty straight and slender. Here’s your sword over a couple ko-senjuin blades I found online. Not my photos and I scaled to the best of my ability. I am not saying anything for certain, just proposing an Idea for food for thought. -Sam

Is the blade in question suriage?

My first thought was acid etched

I've got a question for ya'll. Maybe it's been covered before... At what point does Juyo attribution reach critical mass? Will there come a day, someday, when all the "Juyo level and above" swords have been papered? Are we witnessing a decline in awarded Juyo blades, simply because there are fewer out there, of juyo+ quality, after so many Shinsa sessions? Curious if this has been discussed, and what the more knowledgable think. -Sam

What you say to others concerns not only you, but also the people you say those words to. Otherwise, why say anything at all? A little empathy can go a long way. -Sam

Hi @marivo, welcome to the forum. I saw your posts over on Reddit about this item. My guess would also be late muromachi, maybe. Just my novice collector guess though. Don’t be discouraged. This forum has members with the highest of standards. Which is actually a good thing, but it can be disheartening to hear their observations on our beginner and lower end items. We all strive to be connoisseurs, learn, and have the best swords we can manage. For what it’s worth, the age of a sword is generally decided based on its general shape (sugata). So an image of the whole sword profile without any of its fittings helps people roughly date the item. It looks like your sword might have been shortened (suriage) at some point in its life, making the age of it difficult to surmise. One thing you can learn a lot from your swords is how to properly measure, store, and care for them. Also general handling and sword etiquette. Avoid using Uchiko powder for now. https://www.Japanese...ndex.com/measure.htm https://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/faq/question/3-how-to-oil-and-maintain-nihonto/ https://swordsofjapa...ary/nbthk-etiquette/ Always happy to have a constructive conversation about any sword in any condition. Best of luck, -Sam

How about neither? Just kidding really; but with a my small bluecollar budget - I cannot amass a large collection OR collect high quality pieces (like Juyo blades). Instead I have a small rotating collection of medium quality items. I enjoy the high quality pieces at shows and museums. Currently my goal is to add at least one "higher-end" blade to my collection via a restoration project that I have in the works. And I will continue my medium level collecting as long as I still enjoy it. Obviously my levels of "quality" are relative. Good forum topic that has come up a lot recently. The proverbial conundrum for us collectors. Cheers, -Sam

Hello there, Im just speaking from my own experience, because I have a sword with an “ugly” habaki. I am currently having a new habaki made, with shirasaya for this sword. I was told the habaki was hideous (and I agree). Unlike your hypothetical question though, I plan to have this sword polished. I hope to keep the old habaki on the tsunagi with koshirae. That being said, I think the answer to your question lies in the sword itself. If the sword is very nice, it’s only natural that you’d want it to have a nice habaki. For the more experienced, has anyone seen a juyo blade with a plain copper habaki? If so, is that common? Just curious. Cheers and may the force be with you, -Sam