nihon

https://www.ebay.com/itm/365553295008?itmmeta=01JSKGVFSYMWSCN4BRWH1ZEHXZ&hash=item551cac9ea0:g:NY4AAOSwd4hoBjcw I saw this Japanese sword seller on ebay. The review are little but compared to majority of Japanese sellers on ebay, this one provides information on the swordsmith. The guy does not seem to be one of those resellers. This sword has gotten my attention and would be a good piece from around the onin war period but I has old certification and I am a bit concerned if it is a gimei. Jed.

https://eirakudo.shop/089484 Muromachi period tanto. The pattern are quite odd. Any ideas as to what type of hada this is? Jed

I have been looking Kamakura period swords for a while, since a year or two ago. I want my first piece to be remarkable for me. Kamakura blades are always hit or miss for me. The ones that do hit for me are often gone with a week, month or even less. Now I'm am look at a kunimune sword but theres a 50/50 chance it's not available anymore. If so then I'll continue wait.

https://www.aoijapan.com/tachi-norinari-ko-ichimonji69th-nbthk-juyo-token/ Recently listed ko-ichimonji sword. Looks really healthy and recent juyo papers too. Sadly have to pass since I have already decided on getting a kunimune sword. Though I share it. Jed

Naminohira is a decent school. Lots of blades from that school usually has suguha hamon. They aren't very sought after by collectors though. Still ko-naminohira is a good starting point for Kamakura blades in my opinion.

I recommend starting with a o suriage sword. There are many to choose from and won't command high prices than that of the current type of sword your looking for (unless the o suriage is a juyo+) but don't expect the sword to be very healthy, more decent. Not too healthy not to tired

Honestly, I think 1.5 mil won't be enough for a blade your looking. And besides, the type your looking for can be found but they are a bit uncommon for what I have seen. It's best to save up and wait for one to come to the Market. https://eirakudo.shop/318452 This has the sori your looking for but it is shorter and not as healthy as you would like it to be Jed

Jedediah - it's your money and your decision of course. A friend who is also a member of this forum and an avid collector Bizen Den searched for a blade from this smith for several years before he got one that was worth it Study Saburo Kunimune thoroughly and learn what you don't want on a blade from him Spending money is the easiest thing in the world - the market offers thousands of ways to do it. However, when it comes time to sell, you will have a very hard time selling such a blade to collectors because: 1. the number of people who can spend that amount on a blade is limited 2. these people usually know and understand what they are looking for This is just friendly advice Don't rush I agree, right now I'm scouting the current market to see what's available, what has been sold and some model examples by kunimune. So far I have found 3 for sale and dozen other examples by him. One seems to fit the standard I'm looking(though very few pictures of the blade)for but I'll wait to see if anymore better comes to the market. https://www.nihonto.us/BIZEN SABURO KUNIMUNE.htm This is the one I'm currently looking at. Not to sure about the seller though

I think I have decided against getting the Rai kuniyuki and instead focusing on getting a blade by bizen saburo kunimune as I have found more information and blades on/by him then kuniyuki

I would do it but unfortunately I'm quite busy this year

I have seen this blade before while a excellent piece from the early edo, the swords I'm currently looking for are high quality Kamakura blades. -https://eirakudo.shop/312656 Probably above the current price point, another that fits my taste though Im not to well verse with bizan saburo kunimune. I do know that he was one of the smiths that layed the foundations of the soshu den tradition

I was wondering why one part of the sword looks more active whilst the rest looks bland. Only guessed it had been polished a few times form the habaki area as theres a slight dip in the blade there

https://eirakudo.shop/touken/tachi/949282/ This is a nice piece by rai kuniyuki I'm looking to potentially get some time in the near future. Feels very elegant whilst not being to flashy. It still having the signature is a another upside. The tachi koshirae is very daimyo like, lots of gold. Though only tokubetsu hozon, It still out price many of the juyo swords the shop list. Overall a great piece by the founder of the prestigious Rai school in my eyes. But I'm looking for opinions from more experienced members to determine if getting this sword in the current time (considering the economy because of the tariffs) viable. Jed

Excellent article, quite a insight to the works of kashu sanekage and tametsugu. I am fortunate enough to own a high quality work by sanekage myself.

It's been a while but aoi has just sent me the picture of the nbthk certificate