John C

If you're collecting stats, I would be interested to know the total number by age range. For example 3 ranges, 10-30 years old, 31-50 years old, 51+. John C.

Nicholas: I'm in agreement with Leen above. A couple of issues sparking the debate are: 1) the terminology is somewhat misleading. The word gendaito just means new sword, however we use it to describe a traditionally made sword and not a mass-produced one. 2) In terms of "traditionally made" is where it gets sticky. Some swords are hand forged and water quenched but use modern steel rather than tamahagane. But some swords use tamahagane, are water quenched, and star stamped. Are they both gendaito? 3) many RJT smiths made both traditionally made and non-traditionally made swords (machine forged, hand finished) so are those gendaito because of the smith? 4) There are also traditionally made swords prior to the RJT program (non-star stamped). These are harder to identify (water quenched but unsure of the steel used). In some ways, it's personal preference. RJT star stamped tamahagane sword or any hand forged, water quenched blade. John C.

Mark: I was thinking stylized bamboo leaves like these. John C.

David: Could be a long shot, however do you know if anyone has used a dry swab and test kit for traces of lead in the cavity? John C.

I may be one of the latest starters. After a rather dire medical diagnosis just a couple of years ago, I made a bucket list. As many are here, I've been a martial artist since the age of 13 and have always wanted a "real" samurai sword. So at the ripe old age of 61 I bought my first nihonto - a papered Nobuyoshi (2nd gen) from Grey. .... 9 more items to go... John C.

Here are some previously posted snippets of info on that company: John C.

Programmes can be read here, including #37 and #81: https://to-ken.uk/re...ihonto-magazine.html John C.

I wonder how many of these are movie props, particularly those from Japan. John C.

Ken: Any pics of the nakago? John C.

Does look like a nice zohei-to. From Ohmura's site: John C.

The earliest versions were made with copper metal handles. These carry a premium because of their limited numbers. There are threads here about them. John C.

Yes. Not sure it's mismatched; just the serial number is missing. In pristine condition, I would expect it to be in the 1100 to 1500 range and even more for copper handle. John C.

Assuming the blade is in good condition, I've seen them on Ebay in the last two years in the 800-1000 dollar range. John C.

The one on the right looks like a Tokyo 1st inspection mark. Not sure about the left. John C.

It's possible the saya was replaced at some point due to damage. This was common during the war. John C.

David: I'm not a translator, however to get you started the blade is older than ww2. The symbol on the top is a kikumon. John C.

@Bruce Pennington Bruce: Do you have this hot stamp recorded? John C.

Certainly the officer who purchased the sword would have spent more for it than most others. He probably came from a wealthier family. John C.

I thought these were nice - but way above my pay grade. https://www.ebay.com/itm/273621882781? John C.

George: This may answer a question I have had for a while - how the ordering process for swords was carried out. So were blades produced THEN sold through shops with the customers ordering the various koshirae types or was the entire sword ordered, blade and hamon type, then produced? John C.

A translation of the above: "Hello everyone, I'm new to the forum and I need your help to identify and date my very first Wakizashi. I don't have much information about it, other than that it is o-suriage, has no signature, measures about 57 cm (22 inches) and dates, according to the seller, to the end of the Muromachi period. I also think that before it was shortened, the sword must have been a katana because of its length, but this remains a hypothesis on my part and I am not an expert. Thank you in advance for your answers." John C.

Below is a pic of clay being applied. You can see how the ashi are formed with the edge of the stick or pallet knife. And yes, mine is also star stamped dated 1944. John C.

Fujiwara would be the clan name the smith wants to associated with. Minamoto is another popular one you will often see. John C.

Gareth: Below is the reference for your mon. I don't know the name, however the mon is associated with "Ya" (arrow). Also, the numbers in kanji on the end of the tsuka match the stamped numbers on the other fittings. John C.

I believe Matt from Sohei swords is in VA. John C.