More images of hada/jigane

[paulb]

The following images are the last results from my experimenting and trying to capture magnified images of very tight hada and activity. The previous expamples were of Nashiji, Rai (Enju) and a late copy of Konuka hada. This is the last of the group and shows chirimen hada from the Bitchu Aoe school. This example is a Chu-Aoe blade so lacks the larger patches of sumetetsu seen in ko Aoe but retains the profuse ko-nie which largely dissappears in Sue Aoe work of the Nambokucho.

Chirimen hada is created by a number of features. A combination of ko-itame and ko-mokume hada, jifu utsuri, ji-nie and chickei. Spmething of interest in this blade is the incredible amount of nie which runs throughout the hamon. Also the very clear kinsuji, inazuma and sunagashi. I hope you can pick up most of these features in the attached images.

Far from perfect but I think I am making slow progress in being able to identify features and thus differences between some of these iconic terms used for old steel.

[hxv]

Dear Paul,

 

Very nice pictures! I especially like your lighting, which seems to be spot-on without reflections. Did you work with the RAW files using Photoshop to post-process the pictures at all? It would be instructional if you could post the same pictures, but with the features to which you referred marked up in some way.

 

Regards,

Hoanh

[Adrian]

Great photos, very educative If you want to take it a step forward, you could use a photo editing software to mark with little circles the various features opf the blade that you want to highlight.

 

Regardless of this little suggestions, thanks a lot, good photos are always useful

[Jacques]

Hi,

 

Be careful not confusing tight and small.

[paulb]

Jacques,

I dont think I am confusing the two but thank you for pointing out the possibility of confusion. All the examples I have shown exhbit "small" patterned hada. In addition they are also very tight in as much as the weld lines are very compact without any looseness or opening. As I think you are suggesting it is possible to have "tight" hada which is a larger pattern itame and nagare but that is not shown here. I think the images I posted in the thread about Shikkake hada illustrate this quite well.

 

Hoanh,

When taking pictures such as this I try and do as little as possible in software. This is for two reasons firstly I am not very good at it but secondly and more importantly I think that if you over manipulate the image you can create something very misleading. Because of this the only things I do is minor adjustment to the brihtness if required. What I find helps a lot is converting the image to greyscale. This eliminates some of the glare and stops the eye being distracted by stray colours appearing in the steel.

 

Adrian,

Thak you for the suggestion. I was sort of hoping that the images were clear enough to not need the features described to be highlighted. For the same reasons outlined above I would try to avoid ringing features as I think it distorts and detracts. I think you need t see these features as part of the whole not isolated by a coloured ring

Thanks again for the comments and suggestions. This is all part of a longer term project and I have some way to go before I can be satisified with the results. I think it is moving the right way and I hope I am understanding the material a little better.

Regards

Paul

[Doug S]

Hello Paul

 

Excellent photo's.

Thank you for posting them.

 

Doug

[Jacques]

Hi,

 

As I think you are suggesting it is possible to have "tight" hada which is a larger pattern itame and nagare but that is not shown here.

 

Yes and you can find ko itame or ko mokume which is not tight. I have noticed that the mix-up between small and ko is not uncommon.

[runagmc]

I have noticed that the mix-up between small and ko is not uncommon.

You mean the mix-up between tight and small/ko... I assume... I don't think I've ever seen the term "loose" used to describe a ko-hada... I do understand your point though...

 

And thanks for the good pics Paul...

[Jacques]

Hi,

 

I don't think I've ever seen the term "loose" used to describe a ko-hada

 

No need being loose, it can be just normal ... The most tight that i've ever seen is on Shinshinto sword (muji hada). Not comparable with Shikkake hada