drac2k

Thank you both for your informative comments! Tensho, your sword handle looks like the twin to mine. Is it in fact a last ditch NCO sword?

I recently picked up this sword for a very modest price, mainly because I wasn't sure about what it exactly was. Actually, it's a wakizashi because it is only 21" long. The blade is in good general condition with an apparent hamon, however it has several small horizontal forging flaws that normally would make this a non-starter for a serious collector. The unsigned tang looks like the hole was punched rather than drilled, so I'm unsure whether this blade pas been polished so many times that the flaws eventually appeared or that this blade was put aside for a last-ditch effort because of the poor result. The tsuba looks to be standard issue, buttressed by metal and leather washers. My concern is the handle; I never seen a cruder one on any blade. I put the wooden dowel pin in, however prior to that it was held in place by a type 95 NCO screw that I have shown, which was a real bear to remove! Should I scrap the handle and find a better one or is this truly the handle that came with the sword and not some G.I.'s work?

Thanks to all.Some really great suggestions. Darkening the handle will be the next step, especially since the partial black scabbard that I have is too long, needs to be cut down, and has missing lacquer; I can either repaint it or sand it down and stain it the same color as the handle that I will darken. Beautiful examples of your handle work DoTanuki yokai; were those removable?If not that was the limitation that I was faced with.

Thanks; several lessons were learned, lol.

Yes, the handle didn't come out like I expected it and I can see that the incorporation of the tsuba was like putting DC-10 wings on a paper glider. I like your idea for a handle. The blade was not rehardened, but as noted the knifemaker commented on how hard the steel was to reshape.

I knew that some people would differ from my choices and I respect that. The handle is a bit bulky and long, however, it was necessary to maintain the tang length and to have it removable. The blade configuration is what I am happiest about and if I find another broken blade without a temper line, unsigned, I'll use the same configuration, with changes to the guard and handle and sharpening to make a workable knife.

Well, I finally picked up my modified knife from the show and here it is; probably more people will disagree with what I did, but I will try to illustrate my line of thinking. My 3 priorities were to keep the temper line, not to shorten the tang or make it inaccessible, and to keep it a weapon in the tradition it was originally constructed for as opposed to a workable knife. I used an old tsuba that I had that someone had over-polished (sanded), which was worthless. The wooden handle is pinned and glued together but can be easily removed by taking out the dow; the tang has not been shortened. The blade hasn't been sharpened so as to insure that the temper line remains intact. On a side note, the knife maker commented that the metal was extremely hard, very tight-grained, and without any flaws in the areas where he removed the metal. He was impressed by the quality of the blade.

Wow, the pressure is on; I hope that I don't disappoint too many people.

I dare not say more, as I don't want to give it away before I post the pictures prior to receiving it in April.

Now that is funny! The answer is watching too many hours of Netflix! Hint, I reconfigured the item as a weapon as it was originally meant to be and not to be used as an everyday knife.

I think many will find the modifications interesting; I operated within the confines of keeping the full tang length, not adding any holes and keeping as much of the temper line as possible. I dare not say more without giving it away before I can unveil it, however I do think it would made a great stabbing weapon for a serial killer, but not in the shape one might imagine.

Update; the blade is with the knifemaker and it will be picked up and posted by the end of April.

Thanks to you both!

I was wondering if I could further impose and get a translation. The entire blade, including the tang is 32.5";the tang alone measures 6.5". Thanks

Thanks John; yes it was disappointing. I have decided to go with one of David's variations, probably the last illustration for the blade. I've been messing around with a couple of ideas for a guard under the habaki in a more Western style, while keeping a traditional handle.

I Just wanted to update everyone on the knife project; unfortunately I got the flu, and I had to give up my 2 tables at the show. I will try to reattempt in January

Thanks to all! The blade measures approx. 28.25" from the tip to the bottom of the habaki and it is a stout blade, heavier than most of my other swords. I also think that it has a nice feel and look to it.

Thank you very much !

I am requesting this translation for my personal request .If some of you pick up some crude sandpaper streaks on the blade, I swear I didn't do it! I know I could make the blade look better, but the one thing that every serious Japanese sword collector has told me and this forum has reinforced is if you don't know what you are doing "LEAVE IT ALONE!" Fixing it makes it worse. Eventually I'll post something on this forum that doesn't have a problem. Thanks

Thanks guys for all of your support and great ideas! I think most of you understand what I'm trying to do and several people have summarized it perfectly. Rokujuro's idea of a seax got me thinking and I like the last picture of David R's diagram. The blade length is 20 cm. I will carry it to a local gun show November 25th and discuss it with the knife maker and advise the forum of my progress after that.

Last point first; the idea of a seax is a great one and certainly worthy of consideration. I would love to keep the Yakiba. I have been going back and forth about keeping its original length, as opposed to shorting it. I think that shortening the tang wouldn't be out of the tradition of Japanese sword makers of which I have several examples of the Nakago being cut ,i.e. a katana made into a wakizashi .

Thanks to all !

I know many of you will shudder when you see this broken blade and ask why I could possibly want to waste anyone's time for a translation, but I have a plan. I am going to go to a knife maker whom I know and I will ask him to repoint it & sharpen the blade; unfortunately I will probable loose the temper line. I will next have him make a handle out of clear plexiglass(in the WW2 Theater Knife Tradition ),to allow the signatures to be seen. This I am doing for myself and not to be sold(the cost of this would probably exceed what I could sell it for),and in a sense a blade could come back to life, which I think the original sword maker would appreciate.

Once again all of the comments are appreciated and while the UTSUBO may have lost most of its value, to me it still retains a great deal of its beauty. In regards, to having it restored, I think you guys have talked me out of it as I would rather apply my resources elsewhere , i.e. swords, armor, etc. I will now put it upstairs in my collection room, and maybe later on pass it to someone who wishes to take on that endeavor.

Thanks guys, that is why I posted it here was to hear the truth. Not everything is a treasure and I should have realized that it wouldn't be so easy as to look up a mon and find the clan and the age of such a thing.