Suriage

[hybridfiat]

I know for some this must seem like a daft question but can someone tell me roughly or approximately how far could a blade be shortened if damage occurred to the tip? I presume that it could not be shortened much before the softer core metal protruded. ?cms? ?mm?

Also am I right in assuming that since the cutting portion of a blade used most often was the last 6 inches, suriage was done because of bending/break near the nakano?

[John A Stuart]

Hi, You have me going in two directions at once. To reshape the kissaki would depend on the boshi. A bent or broken area removed and reshaped while retaining integrity. The monouchi is the area that does most cutting. A lot of suriage happened because of bakufu laws governing sword length, as well as changing modes of combat were responsible eg. when the tachi of the Heian, Kamakurajidai became uchigatana and katana of the Muromachi, Momoyamajidai. Sure a broken sword can have a new nakago made becoming a wakizashi or if a long tachi an uchigatana. John

[Brian]

As mentioned, the most important thing is to preserve the boshi. You are I am sure aware that if the hamon drops off the edge anywhere on the blade, that is a fatal flaw. So the kissaki can be reshaped only as far as it still allows the boshi to remain in the kissaki. If the reshaping would allow the hamon to drop off the edge anywhere, you are looking at a fatal flaw that will generally ruin most fo the value and integrity of the blade.

 

Brian

[hybridfiat]

Thanks. I haven't damaged my sword, it was a quest for knowledge.

I had forgotten about the laws governing length.