Zantetsuken

Thanks for the link to this product. The liquid seems to strip off quite a bit. Personally I prefer a cleaned only look. My tsuba is about 400+ years old and I don’t know the chemical composition, so definitely a mechanical only cleaning. Shakudo patina seems to be incredibly thin and prone to chemical reactions (sweat, sulphur, acids, sebum etc.). After using chemicals, i‘d need a full repolish and repatination with rokusho. Still not sure this is economically wise. This will probably cost more than the tsuba is valued at. I also discovered the „silver balls“ to be of lead and not silver. Not sure how lead reacts. To many variables for me to use something like this.

Thanks, Piers! I will post further progress here and also tools I‘ll use. I have pretty much experience in restoring wood and iron antiques, but not so much on soft metals yet. the verdigris must urgently be addressed. It looks like the wax trapped some moisture and it got worse. The longer it sits, the more scaring and pitting occurs. I‘ll store it especially dry while working on it. I‘m always happy for further advice to refine my procedure.

First two hours of work done. Lightning condition is slightly different, very hard to make reliable before and after pictures. It definitely looks better now. I attacked many areas moderately and didn’t focus to perfectly remove zone after zone. In some places the corrosion compromised the underlying metals and caused light scaring / pitting. stuff used: - binocular microscope 20x magnification -fresh bamboo toothpicks and carved pieces from fresh bamboo chopsticks (those are softer and have a lower mohs hardness compared to older, long dried and higher quality bamboo) -new baby tooth brush and neutral soap (only with medical quality distilled water to prevent lime build-up). This removes the residue composed of verdigris and abraded bamboo particles -99,9% ethanol for rinsing -Mineral spirits for a final bath to remove further traces of wax particles that were loosened while cleaning. Still a lot of work to do, probably 10-15 hours.

Hi everyone, I got a new Tsuba. In hand I recognized old wax on the surface. I gently removed it with mineral spirits. Now the full extent of verdigris is visible. Immediately after laying it in a jar with mineral spirits, the wax, some dirt and verdigris particles were removed and the liquid turned grey-greenish. The wax wasn’t coloured, but still camouflaged the now fully visible extent of verdigris. I already have experience with removing verdigris under the microscope with horn/bamboo tools, but it’s very time consuming. In this case, there will still be patina problems / abraded areas after removing the verdigris. Is professional repatination economically wise or should I just remove some / all of the verdigris and rewax it with renaissance wax? Thanks a lot, Simon

He‘s definitely an honest guy and a knowledgeable person. He’s also known here ( Patrice Sabbah) and still sure it’s legit. He will show the Tsuba to Hataya san in Utrecht. I‘m also convinced it’s cast. The copy on ebay doesn’t have a single deviation in the motif. Every mark and texture of the animals are exact the same. Practically impossible with hand carving. Here my Tatsunao Tsuba (first one) and another one (possibly different artist) from a different collector, both forged with differences you expect with handmade forging / carving / sawing

Thanks a lot to all for your help and explanations. The sad thing is, that I read before about casted tsubas and looked for the typical signs. Now with all the explanations , it becomes clear. The seller is sure about its authenticity , but will take it back. I‘ll definetely return it, so at least not a very expensive lesson. All the best, Simon

I found a copy of it: https://www.ebay.com/itm/326424119551 The signature is legible here, Hagi Ju Tomonobu.

Yes, that’s the one

Hi everyone, I got this tsuba from a reputable person. It was sold as a 18th piece. On facebook the authenticity is questioned, so I want to hear your opinions, too. thanks a lot, Simon

Thanks a lot for your extensive answer. Sounds logical to me. I‘ll definitely keep it as is, Shinsa would cost more than I paid for it (280$ plus shipping). I bought it to admire the hamon, knowing it could be gimei. Even as a beginner I recognized the quality, especially compared to my fully hardened standard kogatana, which is part of my wakizashi koshirae.

Hi everyone, I got a nice little kogatana in shirasaya with kind of kikusui hamon. I also read that most kogatana are gimei or a homage to a famous smith. Is this also the case with mine or is Yoshimichi of Tanba known for making kogatana? Thanks a lot, Simon

If it would be financially/ economically not a loosing game, I‘d definitely consider it. As far as I read polishing is about 100$+ per inch, so at least 1700$ (plus shipping, habaki and shirasaya).

Some better hamon pics, thanks to Oli’s advices:) blade seems out of polish, but still nice to view.

Thanks a lot for the input! Shiga-Seki seems to be a branch of mino and there seem to be different generations of Kanenobu. I will research further. Here some additional photos of the hamon

Nakago and in koshirae:

Hi everyone, I recently bought my first nihonto, a wakizashi in koshirae. Mumei nagasa: 43cm weight: 380g Sugata looks like kanbun era, right? Also not sure about the school, maybe Mino? Thanks a lot, Simon

Thanks a lot. I found a lot information about the school in this thread.

Hi everyone, I‘m new to nihonto and tosogu. I recently got my first menuki. Sadly single, but I really like the subject and treatment. It’s signed on the back, maybe someone knows the artist or can translate it. Thanks a lot, Simon

Hi everyone, I‘m from germany and new in the field of nihonto and tosogu. This forum is a treasure trove to learn more about these. I have a small collection of mainly western and some Japanese antiques, which I open up to new subject areas from time to time. kind regards, Simon