"The Pin is missing"

[Kolekt-To]

Being new to the hobby, and having had just enough time to recognize some hobby-related patterns, or things that frequently pop up, I have to comment on this phenomenon of "The missing pin". I see this included in For Sale posts for Gunto and Nihonto with great frequency - quite common. And, now that I've been into the hobby just long enough, I find it humorous. In many cases (too many cases, I believe) the seller does not include information about the sword and the blade that potential buyers would really be interested in, e.g., age of the blade, name of the swordsmith, qualities and characteristics of the blade, the story behind it's acquisition, etc. No! They make sure they include the fact that it's missing a little piece of bamboo for the tsuka that can easily be replaced by fashioning one from a chopstick and costs nothing, or next to nothing. As if that alone is going to be a major factor in reducing the value of the sword - we all know there's a number of things that will reduce the quality of the sword (most importantly the quality of the blade, it's age, and the smith), but the mekugi is not one of them. However, these sellers (I can't see them being hobbyists or having much awareness or knowledge about sword collecting) give significance to a missing mekugi. They frequently take time to point this out as if it makes a difference to someone who is considering shelling out thousands of dollars for their antique sword - as if it's going to be a deciding factor in the purchase. Makes me laugh! What do you guys think about this "missing pin" phenomenon? Text and photo below for reference.

 

"Condition Report

Antique condition. The pin is missing. Damage to the leather sheath. See photos."

[FZ1]

If its eBay, they are probably trying to avoid negative feedback.  You know what some people are like, "Beautiful blade, superbly packaged but no pin, hence negative feedback"

 

Jon

[Brian]

Very important warning. They HAVE to replace it with something secure before shipping, or you risk getting a sword with the tip snapped and buried at the bottom of the saya. Or a sword that slips out of the tsuka when you unpack it.
Or a careless customs officer who unpacks it to inspect, waves it around, and launches the blade across a busy office.
I'd say that is vital info.

[Kolekt-To]

29 minutes ago, Brian said:

Very important warning. They HAVE to replace it with something secure before shipping, or you risk getting a sword with the tip snapped and buried at the bottom of the saya. Or a sword that slips out of the tsuka when you unpack it.
Or a careless customs officer who unpacks it to inspect, waves it around, and launches the blade across a busy office.
I'd say that is vital info.

Good points Brian - I hadn't considered it from the safety perspective, but it is, indeed, important for safety (it's function is to hold things in place, afterall). I wonder if sellers are looking at it that way, or simply from a "missing part" point of view. Perhaps buyers should instruct sellers to put a pin in place before shipping to reduce risk when the mekugi is missing. I think going forward, when considering a sword without a mekugi, I'll ask the seller to insert one before shipping. Sounds like the right way to go. Thanks!

[Bruce Pennington]

Seems to me there aren’t a whole lot of sellers on eBay that I actually know much about Japanese swords. Of course there are some out there, but a lot of them don’t seem to know what they’re really talking about.

[Grey Doffin]

Whenever I see a sale of a sword with the pin missing I always contact the seller and tell him or her to make a replacement and why it is important.  If I save one Nihonto it is worth the effort.

Grey