Cleaning restoration question

[drbvac]

I am well aquainted with the problems and methods of cleaning and maintaining blades but have read very little on the cleaning/polish/maintenance of fuchi/koshira and tsuba. I recall reading about a guy who cleaned old tsuba with some powdered soap solution and then dipped them in old shoe polish bits (not black) heated on a stove!

 

Most I have ever done is brush them off and it is some hard to get to menuki that are still on the hilt!

 

Like my avitar - Kinai of Echizen signed! :D

[Rich T]

In regards to cleaning Iron, read Jim Gilbert's essay from his website.

 

http://home.earthlink.net/~jggilbert/Cleaning.htm

 

In regards to cleaning other soft metal fittings. Don't. Unless you know what you are doing and have been shown by someone who does. Shakudo, gold and silver on any fitting can come off easily with too much rubbing, and once gone, is gone for good. Some things like silver should have a dark base to their colour, like a blackness in them. They should NOT look like Grandma's tea service.

 

All these things have a natural age to them, a patina added to their original colour and beauty. It should in my opinion, be left alone.

 

If there is exessive dirt or crud on an item, a little warm soapy water (face soap) and a very soft cloth to gently wipe it clean is all that is needed. Do not remove anything from the backs of menuki, the inside of sukashi tsuba etc.

 

These are just my 2 cents worth.

 

Rich

[Bungo]

" All these things have a natural age to them, a patina added to their original colour and beauty. "

 

still waiting to turn back the clock by one hour and have nothing better to do....... , so I will play the " devil's advocate " und post this question......

we have seen tsuba completely cover by gold foil or solid gold , so we more or less know the " original " intent of the maker/buyer...it's going to be a shiny thingie.

How about those iron tsuba covered completely by silver nunome ? Was the intention to be a silver shiny thingie or " doctored " black ? If latter, then what's the point ?

 

http://www.esnips.com/doc/9f9e9087-b455 ... f77/silver

milt the flying ronin

[John A Stuart]

You bring up a good point Milt. Fittings made fron sterling silver in my mind look absolutely terrible when black. They almost never have an even patina. Conversely brightly polished silver looks almost as bad. These fittings when on a koshirae that is used regularly show nice wear pattern with the areas buffed by clothing contrasting with the darker areas. Now being stored tend to tarnish more, especially where sulphur laden fuels heat homes. I have a koshirae being restored by John Tirado with whom I asked his opinion on this, it being all sterling. He has lightly buffed the fittings but not to a high polish. I hope to get it soon, been a year and a half. John

[Brian]

These are just my 2 cents worth

 

I think those are more than opinion, I think they are widely regarded fact.

I go with what you said. This isn't just a Nihonto thing. If you have old silverware, and you clean it, you reduce the value considerably.

In spite of the fact that the original finish was bright and shiny, the age patina is an important part of the value and collectibility. I know that the total black silver patina is sometimes less than splendid, but it is preferable to a shiny new finish.

John, I am sure that Mr Tirado will know the limit and will not overclean the fittings. Do not mess with patinas unless you are a trained expert. It is easy to overdo, and considerably more difficult to undo.

Antiques are not always required to get back their original finish. The patina is there to let you know it has aged gracefully and is a few 100 years old.

 

Brian