rematron

This is one of many aspects of Nihonto that I look forward to seeing in hand eventually when I go to a show. I admit that with my limitation of "internet keyboard Nihonto" my preference of sashikomi polish definitely isn't fully educated. But there is something about the hadori polish 'tracing' around the 'water quench line' aspect of the hamon with white mist that bothers me. The fact that the polisher chooses how that looks (sometimes even crossing the water line) seems arbitrary. Superficial or not, I do enjoy the water quench line and don't like to see it hindered. I enjoy the blade having a uniform polish all over it and then me needing to turn it in the light in order to reveal its secrets. I wonder if that will change.

Ever notice that birds of prey of different species in movies tend to scream like red tailed hawks? The vultures circling Conan while crucified on the Tree of Wo (Conan the Barbarian ca. 1982) even sounded like red tailed hawks. Producers like the sound of red tailed hawks and they think that’s what the audience wants to hear. Reality is much different. Vultures hiss for the most part.

Here’s a good thread in NMB that displays the varying opinions of members.

From my understanding, sashikomi does not equal “foundation polish”. It is a type of polish achieved after the foundation polish. So, once there is a foundation polish, the next step is either sashikomi polish or hadori polish. Which one is “higher quality” depends completely on who you ask. I highly recommend reading the long thread. However, to answer your question, yes, I have read that a foundation polish is as far as it is advised to go for iai, because an art polish will be ruined by wear and tear.

Yes, could it have been used with the obi at one time? Perhaps it was useful to use it to tie to your armor if you were going into battle but not so much when you were walking around town in peaceful Edo times and needing to pull your katana out of your obi in order to sit and whatnot. And perhaps it was even useful in Edo times depending on what you were doing. If you were horseback riding you might want a little extra security other than shoving the saya through your obi.

I agree Bruce. I like it (watched it 3 times so far) but it does seem to be produced and edited to attract viewers and what some producers and editors think might captivate an audience is actually quite distracting to some of us. I also try to take the history aspect with a little bit of a grain of salt too. At least until I’ve read other sources.

What I’ve gotten from reading threads in NMB is that there two types of polishes: sashikomi and hadori. Hadori seems to be the more popular type of polish currently but both are considered art polishes (I thought) and both start with a foundation polish. Is that right? I was under the impression that both styles of polish are roughly the same price but that it can be a little more difficult to find a polisher willing to do sashikomi. Am I missing something? There are a couple of highly opinionated and heated yet very educational threads in NMB that are easy to find. All you have to do is search ‘sakshikomi versus hadori’.

Hi Alex, It’s still on Netflix, so at least you are able to see it now if not then! Also, an FYI, the plural of SAMURAI is just SAMURAI. No ‘S’ is added. In Japanese, the context of the sentence implies the number.

I like the pine needle motif a lot but I have yet to add the theme to my collection. This is a quote from here on NMB. I’ve seen the same explanation other places but I don’t remember where. It’s quite a a beautiful and romantic notion.

The following is more of an FYI than anything for anyone interested in the software mechanics. I've since noticed after this embarrassing post that my activity page will never show more than 10 consecutive reactions made by me. As I add reactions, it will delete the history of the earliest ones and always total 10. So, if I ever really wanted to know how many reactions I've made in any given 24-hour period, I'd have to count them as I post them. And with that I will shut up about it.

My full set arrived yesterday and I'm very happy with them. I share Sam's sentiments. These are a great tool for anyone who is striving to be self-sufficient in the world of nihonto.

It was a mess whatever it was...

This post got me thinking about how people perceived Hachiman and I tried to learn a little more about him. Both of there are excepts from Wikipedia articles. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hachiman https://en.m.wikiped.../wiki/Tutelary_deity

Very cool. Am I right in assuming the mei flashcards would be useful for tosugu as well? (This seems like a stupid question...)

I was able just now to post 4 reactions and then it cut me off again.

I've used ten reactions (all yesterday) over the last 3 days and I was unable to post any new reactions after that. This morning I still cannot post reactions. Yet, I'm a gold member. So. I'm assuming there is something wrong?

Dale, you found one! But of course you did! Interesting. And that one appears to be made of iron as opposed to my kinko example.

Ding ding ding! We have a winner! Nice job, @Toryu2020.

Maybe a display for a presentation arrowhead?

Yup, I've used Buyee's Air Service a lot and it's been great. But, @Stephen that's the fastest I've seen from them. Wow! The quickest delivery I had from them was 6 days after the purchase.

Doesn't look like a tanto handle because where is the mekugi? Japanese don't just glue blades into a handle. My gut tells me it's not Japanese although the habaki, general blade shape and guard say that it's trying to be. But it's not trying nearly hard enough. Chinese fake or some other kind of blade from another country other than Japan or China. Will see what others say.

I like this. Fire seems to be an uncommon rendering unless it's shown in conjunction with a deity or mythical beast such as a kirin.

I've noticed that a lot of the dog types portrayed on tosugu seems to be those with short hair (not including the tail, necessarily) and floppy ears like a Beagle or Staffordshire Terrier. I wonder why we don't see more Shiba Inu and Akita Inu type dogs with ears more akin to a wolf? Shiba Inu (or at least dogs similar in appearance) have been in Japan for thousands of years. Perhaps the ears were used as a tool of art depictions to definitively tell the viewer that it's a dog and not a wolf? Or perhaps the floppy eared dog was en vogue when these tosugu were made? BTW, great topic @Spartancrest. I look forward to viewing more of this thread.

@Ford Hallam, do you have a published compilation of photos of all your completed work? If not, I hope you or an associate or biographer organizes one in the future. It would be a great book.

But both holes are at the bottom of the netsuke, making the top likely to hang below the suspending cords...