Proper packing for shipping Nihonto.

[omorik]

This is my first post to the message board. I have recently starting collecting swords and bought 2 swords in a fit of excessive enthusiasm. My first sword (USA) arrived with a shattered mekugi and the blade had sliced the shirasaya apart and was hanging out the end. The tip sustained minimal damage. At first I was distraught then decided that if the blade has a soul it is an exhuberant and highly energetic one. My first sword so it'll be a keeper. The seller told me it is not uncommon for blades to cut their way out of packaging and come out the end. We do prize them for their sharpness! He also said he had seen a show that showed how packages were handled by shippers/carriers and boxes were handled very very harshly (can be dropped two stories-airplane height?). He likes to ship blades in bulk in gun cases but not financially feasible for single swords. He has decided to replace antique mekugi with fresh ones that are less likely to break and send the old Mekugi in an envelope in the package. (He had tried tying cord around shirasaya but it damaged the wood and also used metal screws for mekugi but people complained about scratches to mekugiana.)

 

My second sword (Japan) also arrived with a broken mekugi but the blade stayed in the shirasaya. My personal experience is that 100% of blades are packed inadequately for what can happen during shipping.

 

I read the thread where there was shipping damage to another sword and considering how this can create a lot of contention, I thought it would be worthwhile reviewing the adequate packaging of these valuable and dangerous items.

 

Fresh mekugi? Paper or cloth around shirasaya then duct tape over top? bubble wrap? Cork?

 

Thanks,

 

G Tu

[farrell]

Hi, omorik. Welcome to NMB.

 

I've been lurking for a while, so this is my first post as well.

 

Firstly, I'll direct our attention to the lovely Search feature availiable at NMB, SFI, myArmoury, etc. Trite, yes, but useful since it's certainly not the first time these "problems" have occured. So I found this thread:

http://forums.swordforum.com/showthread.php?t=65959

 

There's another two threads I think I've seen, but can't find them off the top of my head. AND, from my personal experience, I would not use a triangular cardboard shipping box, they will not roll off the ground but they are very flimsy.

 

The best method that I would use for sending a bare blade through the mail, if kodogu/shirasaya was NOT availiable, would be to first wrap it with soft cloth or paper to prevent surface damage, then sandwich it between two pieces of heavy cardboard and close the cardboard tightly around the blade, like you would use your hands to stop a blade in a chanbara movie. Review how a sword cuts to see the objective here: to cut with the edge, there is contact with the edge, pressure and usually movement. You want to keep it from moving around.

 

It's also possible to use wood, plastic and other materials to achieve this effect, + additional protection for the kissaki is also a good idea.

 

I just take two heavy pieces of cardboard, trace an outline of the blade on both sides of the cardboard, then use screwdriver or a punch to create some hole openings. Cut out appropriately, lay the sword inside and then close cardboard sheets around the blade using the holes using zip ties. Send one through the mekugi-ana for good measure. If you have plastic male-female fasteners, that's fine too but I would stay away from metal screw fasteners or metal of any kind just in case. The method of is up to you, but be very careful if you are going to use a cardboard stapler, to avoid "stapling" the sword (!).

 

You should now have a friction fit "shirasaya", where the blade will not move around in there if it is shaken - preventing internal inertia movement. However, it will not protect from a broken tip or sides if it is dropped. Hence the energy absorbers. Take foam, cloth, soft whatever and ATTACH it to the outside of the cardboard using packing tape. Do not use shipping peanuts since they will shift around and the item will move around in the box.

 

Now, to make sure that everyone is safe when opening the item, you want to put a simple instruction on the inside of the box for how to remove it. If you use the zip ties to secure the cardboard to the blade, the zip ties should be cut and it'll come right out. Just my idea, I haven't much experience with using this since the only time I had to do this was once when I sent a dynasty forge blade for a tsuka recore and fittings. Everything did arrive okay.

 

This is a disposable package, so don't use this for anything international or the packaging will likely not be put together back at customs. For that I would probably try to hack up the closest thing to a "shirasaya" as you can make, PVC pipes if necessary since Customs is brutal with all items!

[USMC-LCPL]

If you don't have a shirasaya, I would recommend thus:

 

1. Oil the blade. Wrap in ceran-wrap. Cover the tip with a (small) piece of hard Styrofoam. Ensure that the foam is tightly wedged over the entire tip, and that the sword is not poking out the other end.

 

2. Cover in foam wrap, then in heavy construction paper. Tape.

 

3. Take a cardboard tube large enough to house the wrapped blade. Cut a piece of plywood in the size of the tube's lid. Super glue the wooden circle inside the lid. This will ensure that the blade will not penetrate the tube, while also ensuring (because plywood is relatively soft) that the blade will not bend it's tip inside the tube either.

 

4. Place the blade, tip end toward lid, inside the tube. Fill the gaps inside the tube with packing peanuts, if you want to be crazy safe. Cover the tube with the wood-lined lid. Tape.

 

5. Place inside rectangular box filled with packing peanuts. Ship.

[DSweet]

My experience is limited to only 1 instance, but my opinion is that if it wrapped correctly and has a koshirae or shirasaya there should be no problem. I received my first wakizashi via UPS ground (if i remember correctly). The box did look a little beat up. The corners were smashed in, some more then others. The sword however was completely undamaged. Packed in a tight wrapping of heavy bubble wrap and it seemed like it would hold up to anything the shipper would throw at it besides maybe standing on it directly.

 

I would either chalk you experiences up to poor packaging, or just some really bad luck with shipping services. If the first package was shipped state to state within the US, i think someone really screwed up and this is a worst case scenario.

 

With shipping bare blades that would be a greater challenge. And i believe i saw a post around here while searching for something else titled "Shipping bare blades" or something to that effect.

 

bugei.com has a few posts about their packaging on their forum site too. I have read several rave reviews about how they package their swords before they send them to customers. (If you register there, register under your real name. Board rules)

 

*edit* Found this on the bugei site. Posted by moderator, togishi, bugei sword inspector, and all around knowledgeable gentleman Keith Larman.

"Bugei has a larger, double-walled box that was custom made for their swords. They also have a full foam insert. Not small pieces, not tiny little rings of foam, but a full, box-shaped foam insert with a diecut-katana shaped insert. The insert comes out, the sword goes in."

 

Of course this is probably more then what the average person would do. But there is no substitude for good packaging.

This quote is just after he mentions how Hanwei uses regular boxes with just foam rings that suspect the sword in the box. Foam rings only shock absorb 4 of the 6 sides and swords packaged this way do get damaged.

 

-Donovan

[Mark]

if mailing a bare blade - wrap it in paper or plastic wrap, then get a peice or wood (like lathe or trim), place the sword on the wood with an inch or more wood past the sword tip, make a hole in the wood to line up with the ana, secure the sword with insulated wire or similar at the ana, tape the blade to the wood, wrap it with bubble wrap, pack tightly etc....... the wood will stop the tip hitting the end of the box or getting damaged.

[remzy]

Ive bought a couple nihontos and i noticed that when you deal with well respected sellers, this sort of "accident" rarely happen. No matter what some think or say, it is the sender's job to insure the blade is proprely packed and ready to witstand the onslaught the shipping crew might put it thru... and if you cannot ensure that it will survive the shipping then for crying out loud, pay a little extra and deal with a more gentle shipper.

 

the only time something like this happened to me was when i received a satsuma rebellion mounted nihonto that had no mekugi at all, so the blade poked out the saya, luckily there was no damage because the shipper proprely packed the blade and insured it couldnt poke out with extra shielding on the kissaki side.

 

Bubble wrapping is cheap, nihonto isnt, wrap it up!

 

[Carlo Giuseppe Tacchini]

Gun cases.

Ok, not cheap, they rises the shipping costs, but no way something can hurt your koshirae or blade.

They are easy to be detected at custom, but after 9/11 nations with laws about import of blades

have enstrenghten so much the controls that you'll be not able to avoid taxes anymore, anyway...

 

If inside there are several grands of blade/s and koshirae, 50 or so bucks more are of no consequence.

 

Gun cases can hold more then one item but you have to put them into their respective fukuro or something similar to

avoid accidental friction between the koshirae.

 

There are for handguns too, so you can use them for Tanto or wakizashi in shirasaya (dimensions matters here).