joe2

I can take criticism and I've been around. I bought my first swords over 40 years ago and consulted with Hawley on provenance. This was before his collection got stolen. I've cut opals from all over the world and met the miners. I've bought jade in Myanmar and in China on the Jade River from scavengers. Cutting opal and jade is a lot like shaping and polishing a Japanese sword - thin layers, different characteristics, polish very differently. I've made custom jewelry which is very similar to repairing and making small sword fittings. My first attempt at lacquer was surprisingly successful. I can get the polishing down to a hamon, but I and not satisfied how it looks although I follow Takaiwa's book and vary how far down I take the rust spots I've built weapons from AKs and HKs to M2HBs from parts. I've collected rugs until I got priced out of the market. So I like to do things and try to understand what the original creators did and how they did it. And that requires practice. I always fail the first time but usually catch on. The knowledge and skills learned are just as important as the objects. And yes I have some nice swords that I would not touch. These are my standards to work toward. I find all this craft work satisfying in my retirement because it is so different from what I did for money. Anyone want to buy my $100 dollar Ebay rusty blade for $5000? You could find a National Treasure. What would it cost to find out? Give it a shot. This so reminds me of the time I joined the Concord Minutemen thinking it was a drinking society and found out all they did was research how many paces per minute the original Minutemen marched and how their uniforms were stitched. I did march in Nixon's inaugural parade and it was cold and I was the only one with a flask in my ammo bag. Those guys had no common sense and I quit shortly after. So let's agree to disagree for a while while I see if you have anything to teach me. I'm open to learn. Technology, techniques, styles, history, genealogy, history, language. If you are worried I will ruin a great blade, teach me how to identify it; without gambling my life savings on fees. Enough said on this topic.

So does the fact that a tsuba is cast iron help with dating it? I have a definitely cast iron tsuba which shows air bubbles and the seam from a sand casting process. I used Evapo Rust on it (it was bad) and it sure looks like the cast Iron sand casting projects we made in high school a long time ago.

With all due respect. If I want to buy a $100 rusty blade on eBay and try to reshape and polish it, it is my business. Maybe I will learn I can't do it. Or can't afford it due to the cost of the stones. But claiming no one is allowed to try something is a pretty arrogant position. Do you change your own oil or worry you will ruin your engine? I have done a lot of stuff when I did not know whether I could do it or not. If it interests me and I want to learn to do something, I find trying and practicing after research from knowledgeable sources is the only way. Many things like welding are only learned from practice. if I lose money, it's my money. What else are you going to do with a badly rusted sword?