Ledheadforlife

Ok, I ordered both of these and they're expected to be delivered tomorrow, does it matter which one I read first?

Yeah but I believe he's in Oceania, so the more than fair price he's asking plus shipping is gonna be more than Amazon, and it would take me 2 to 3 weeks to get it as opposed to 2 or 3 days from Amazon.

Thanks so much for the info, I've been reading a ton about nihonto and am already a little familiar with these things of which you speak. Basically it's this simple, I bought a gunto a month ago on a whim, then decided the only thing cooler than a WW2 samurai sword would be a sword forged while Musashi was alive. So for my first nihonto, I just want something 16th or 17th century, decent to kinda nice condition, preferably hozon or better, in koshirae. I don't really care who the smith was, how famous he was, or even how good he was at his job, just as long as it's FOR SURE as old as it's being represented as. I'm sure these NBTHK cats know their stuff, but for a noob like me it's difficult to imagine a guy being able to look at a sword and say with any degree of certainty that it was made by this guy, who was this generation, from this school, in this province, during this era/period. I just don't get it. Guess I need to do me some book learnin, and I'ma gonna! As far as shirasaya, not gonna lie, if I only spend a few thousand on a sword, am I gonna worry about putting him in his pajamas? Probably not lol(sorry purists)

Well the cheapest copy I've found of the Kokan Nagayama book is $200, which is pretty pricey for a book, but I guess it must be commanding that kind of price for a reason. Checked today and of course my local Half Price Books and Barnes and Noble didn't have a copy so I guess Amazon it is.

Ha, too late, I already impulse bought a gunto before I literally knew anything about these swords(definitely should've joined this forum first), and from what I can gather I paid about twice what it's worth lol. At the risk of sounding like a douchebag, money isn't an issue, the question is whether I should buy one sweet juyo or a dozen hozen with varied koshirae and from different eras and smiths, etc, cause I just watched Kill Bill again the other day and Hanzo's attic with the racks full of samurai swords looked pretty appealing. Thanks for the book recommendations, I'm gonna get right on that!

So which book(s) would be a good jumping off point for a noob? I'm not averse to spending $450 on books but $45 would be a lot cooler.

So, basically it's not the deal of the century. Ok, one of the other members told me he's gonna have a table at a sword show not too far from me in a couple weeks, maybe I'll wait til then, go check out the scene, and read up a little before I pull the trigger. Thanks again guys.

Ok, so this looks like it may be right up my alley, correct me if I'm wrong, but it's signed, papered, made around 1603, comes with koshirae and shirasaya, and is under 3k. Is that right? Looks like buying it is gonna be a pain in the ass cause it's in Japan, but they're acting like shipping and insurance is included in that price, seems like a good deal to a noob like me, am I missing something? https://www.samuraishokai.jp/sword/22145.html

I don't think I noticed, to be honest I'm a bit overwhelmed, there are WAY more websites selling these swords than I would have guessed. I've looked at so many swords over the last couple weeks trying to find the "one" that my brain is a bit fried.

Yeah, I've actually been eyeing that one for a couple weeks now, thanks.

And I really appreciate it guys, ya'll have been super cool and helpful.

Oh yeah, that's very nice, thanks for the heads up!

Very nice, but my french is a little rusty so all I could discern was the period and the price.

When Karate Kid came out I was about 12 yrs old, and just like every other kid on the planet I started taking karate. At some point my dojo held a raffle for a sword, but when I looked at it I thought "This is the dumbest sword ever, no hilt, plain unstained wooden handle and sheath, who the hell would want that?"

A beautiful blade, but since this may be my one and only I've really got my little heart set on a katana or tachi.

Thanks man, yeah I've been looking at those sites but it seems the ones with the best deals are completely in Japanese which makes it hard for a gringo like me because the only thing I can really discern on the page is the price.

Ok, well ya don't know if ya don't ask right? Thanks for the feedback guys.

Why you tryina crush my dreams homie? :D

I'd like to keep it below 3k, dunno yet if my fascination with nihonto is gonna last or just be a one time thing for a man cave decoration so I figure I shouldn't get too crazy just yet. This is just about exactly what I'm looking for, it's killin me that I missed out on this.

Preferably signed, papered, in polish, in excellent condition koshirae, and made before 1800. Not too concerned about the fine details of the hamon, etc because I'm brand new to the game and won't know what I'm looking at anyway, just as long as it's in good to excellent shape. Shirasaya and bag would be a nice bonus, provenance connecting the blade to Wolverine, Highlander, or Miyamoto whats his name would be even better. Thanks in advance gents!

Thanks so much for the help, you guys have all been great, and thanks for the video, that's exactly what I needed to see.

Thank you so much for the feedback, you've been a great help! It was an auction and I ended up passing on it, but thanks again.

So, I'm thinking about buying this sword but of course since I'm a noob I don't know if it's legit. It's being advertised as katana but looks more wakazashi to me. I'd be grateful for any input as to legitimacy, age, value, etc. It appears to be signed but the signature is impossible(for me) to figure out. Thanks in advance!

Ok, so I've got the sword in hand, I'm not too keen on taking it apart cause I've literally never done it before, but the tsuba is loose and rattles a little, is this normal and is there anything I can do about it?