New Member Introductions

[co444]

Hello,

I always thought a little about Japan because with the practice of martial arts.

Fascinated by katanas for a long time, I finally decided to try to move forward, understand and learn.

I also attach great importance to koshirae

But also by the way trying to pratice tsukamaki and sayamaki

And finally the iaido is also a good way to connect to the katanas.....(with iaitos )

looking forward to discussing, discovering and learning with you all.

 

[ROKUJURO]

Bienvenue François,

you will find that this is the place to learn all you need!

Have fun!

(Plural of KATANA = KATANA; no added "s")

[co444]

Thank you , it seems i can't edit my previous post.....perhaps it's due to my low number of post(s) ?

[ROKUJURO]

No, it is because of the time gone after posting. I think you have 12 hours to correct as a regular member. Gold members have more time. Gold membership is very recommended, it's only € 60.-- per year. 

[Brian]

Thanks Jean. Regular members can edit posts for 48 Hours after posting. But newly registered members can't edit edit posts for a few days, to prevent "hit and run" spam posters from joining to add malicious or spam content a day later by editing their post.
Gold members have much longer time they can edit posts, and aren't under the new member restrictions from the start.

Brian

[chinaski]

HI, I'm new here!

 

My name is Scott and I live in the Los Angeles area.  I have had a fascination with Nihonto and swords in general since I was a little kid, and that fascination even leaked over to my wife...at least a little bit.   My wife and I recently purchased 2 Nihonto in Shirisaya that are papered.  I also have been browsing here and reading The Samurai Sword by John Yumoto.   I'm a bit of an introvert and history buff, so scholarly pursuits are right up my alley.  

 

From what I can tell about our swords so far, one is a Late Edo Period Wakizashi  forged by a smith named Morihisa.  The other appears to be a Koto era Tachi partially signed by Hidemitsu.  Both are in good polish and present very nicely.   I also purchased proper supplies from Tozanda in Japan to maintain these blades correctly.  

 

I will get around to posting pics here eventually, but currently busy with some things and I haven't had the opportunity.   I also want to continue to read and study on my own to test whether these assessments are correct, but I did have a little help from a Facebook Nihonto group, but I was warned by a knowledgable person to be wary of online "experts"    

 

Lastly, I believe both of my swords were purchased from Mike Yamasaki, as he knew the previous owner of these swords.  I have reached out to him and had a short chat with him via Facebook Messenger, but so far haven't had an opportunity to speak with him directly yet...I know he is a very busy man.  I am also interested in attending a meeting at the Southern California Japanese Sword Society, but my work hours and the location of their meetings is a bit of a stretch for me right now....but perhaps down the road.   

 

Until then I will continue reading here and on my own to learn as much as I can.   It's certainly a fascinating thing, and who knows, maybe I will purchase more down the road to enjoy.  

 

Thanks! 

 

Scott

[Brian]

Sounds like you are doing everything right. Looking forward to seeing the swords, and hope you enjoy the journey.

[Benjamin]

Hello,

 

After about a years lurking here and reading a lot, I finally decided to subscribe, I wanted to thanks the amazing dynamism of this forum and the work of Brian. your way of supporting the field of interest is the gentleman's way. And a subscription is worth buying few books.

That said I bought the books as well.

I'm a very beginner so i'll inevitably say stupid things in future posts. But the hobby is complex and exciting so I'll try.

I'm so sad not having discovered it sooner. My interest began after a family travel in Japan a year ago. the purchase of a iaito that brought me to a koryu then to nihonto. All in a few month.

I own three blade : an awful first purchase I paid to much (but I don't regret it), a cheap (maybe) mumei blade that I like pretty much (discussed here), and a middle range NBTHK TH shinto blade I love.

I'm waiting for a fourth one, a TH koto blade.

 

Oh and I will often apologize with my english for that I'm very unsecure. Please forgive my typos

 

Regards

 

Benjamin

[ROKUJURO]

Bienvenue Benjamin,

looking forward to seeing good photos of your swords, if you like! And your English is wonderful, impeccable!

Kind regards,

Jean

[Brian]

Welcome, and your English is great. You seem to be making great leaps in terms of collecting. I wish I had been so smart and progressive.

[Pierre F]

Hello everyone,

 

I obviously just registered on this forum and wanted to tell you that I'm glad I did.

 

As part of the arduous task of developing my (very, very modest) knowledge of Japanese swords, I often came to this forum. After consulting it countless times, it is obviously ,thanks to its members, a mine of knowledge and  nice place for talking and learn about Nihonto. I have seen thousands of pictures of swords but very little in real life. A few years ago I saw in a museum a Japanese sword that I never tired of looking at. A few weeks later I visited the "Cluny Museum" in Paris and when I saw the European medieval swords, they appeared to me like old heavy and rusty nails. The technical and artistic domination of Japanese in making swords seems to me to be dazzling.

 

Only right combination of passion, talent and a the "long term" can lead to that kind of artistic, historical an technical perfection.

 

I believe passion is the only thing we need and I hope to share this here with you.

 

PS: I'm 43, live in Switzerland (the French part), have 2 kids, many passions (my kids and wife, food, piano, history...)

 

(Please accept my apologies for my very sad and poor English)

[Brian]

Welcome Pierre. And what do you mean about your poor English? It's perfect.

[Pierre F]

Thank you Brian !

 

I believe the translator and Word assistance is the "perfect" wizard here ;P

[palousian]

Hello, everyone. 

 

I am an aikidoka (30 years of training, thus far), and I am here because serious interest in nihonto has sort-of crept up on me in the last ten years.  For twenty years, the only swords I used were bokken and shinai, but then one evening a friend who is a blacksmith handed me a katana, and going out into his backyard and practicing some suburi was a revelation.  So I started to look into what was involved in acquiring one, and my first inquiry was with a friend I know from my native plant interests, whose late father was an important kendo master.  I asked C.--do you know about swords?  And her answer... "I know a little."  Which is to say, more than a little, but then she said, "I have a sword, I don't know what to do with it and it sits in a closet somewhere, but I will give it to you."  She had given her father's swords to his students, but one of those students saw this sword in a pawn shop and told her to buy it, which she did, and she took it to K., also a kendo master and sword polisher, had it polished, and put it away in her closet for decades. 

 

I thought that what she really wanted was for me to sell the sword for her, so I took it to K., and asked him if they could help me submit it for shinsa, and then help me sell it for her.  He knew I was a musician and that I played the violin, and after examining the sword and showing me some of its features (it is a wakizashi in shirasaya by Hyuga Daijo Sadatsugu--I did submit it to NBTHK and it made Hozon.  Image below), he bluntly asked me, "Do you know about violins?"  I said, "I know a little." Then he asked me if I would look at a violin for him.  Of course.  He brings out a very low-quality violin, made in Czechoslovakia in the 1920s.  Violins like this were made by farmers in the off-season, and they could hack out a fiddle in a day, sold by the dozen to wholesalers ("dutzendarbeit"--"dozen-work"...like all those Muromachi-era quickly-made mumei katanas, right? Whenever someone finds a "Stradivarius" in their attic, it invariably is one of these with a Strad label stuck in it).  I remembered the sword etiquette of not speaking ill of a sword, so I endeavored to describe this fiddle in the most positive terms, stressing the real skills of these makers to make a functional fiddle in a day (true), that the materials were very good (also true of a lot of these), and that some of them sound and play wonderfully (also true, sometimes).  But I respectfully pointed out one other significant issue and described it using the nihonto term--"fatal flaw".  The violin had a sound post crack on the back.  I told him that it is technically reparable but would cost thousands of dollars to have a luthier do the work, so this sort of thing is only done on very valuable violins.

 

So, when I again mentioned submitting the sword for shinsa, and then selling it for C., K. looked me in the eyes and said, very firmly, "No, you must not sell it!  You must keep this sword, it has chosen you, and you must learn from it."  When I told C. what my plan had been and what K. said to me, she laughed and said, "See?! I TOLD you that this was your sword!"  And that is how I acquired my first blade.  I don't intend to become a collector (I have that affliction in other areas--antique tribal carpets, musical instruments), though there are now two other blades in my life.  But K. was right that C.'s wakizashi (below, and--apologies about the quality of the images) has indeed taught me.  And it ultimately led me here.  Thank you for all the information!

 

Paul

 

[ROKUJURO]

Welcome Paul,

to the NMB! Nice story! Have fun here and learn something, if you like!

[PNSSHOGUN]

Lovely story Paul, thank you for sharing and welcome to the forum.

[Brian]

Good looking sword. I'm glad it made its way to you. Welcome to the forum.

[karnoff]

Hi everyone, 

I'm Arnaud, from France, and i have swords, and I'm interested in nihonto. 

Want to learn more, and maybe buy a nice sword! 

All the best

[Greg]

Hi everybody

I am new on your forum.

I have been collecting military items for 30 years, mainly World War 2 aviation items. Years after years I discovered tsubas and Samuraï armors in museums and found in love with them. I took me many years before starting buying some items as I first tried to obtain informations in books and auction catalogs to see what I really like, what I would be able to purchase and get some knowledge.

Thanks for accepting me.

[ROKUJURO]

Hi Gregory,

welcome to the NMB forum. You will find a wealth of useful information here! Good idea to start with books!

TSUBA (no plural form) are a world of their own, and I hope you will show your purchases one day!

Kind regards,

Jean C.

 

[Crusader22]

Hello, everyone.

 

I am a novice collector, I just started really building a knowledge base, and am absolutely fascinated with this very nuanced and complex collecting field.

 

I have collected martial firearms most of my life (I am 56), and specifically rose to an advanced state in the field of WWII K98k rifles, specifically sniper variants and optics. That area is a minefield, to say the least, with abundant fakery, and a steep learning curve. I am published in a couple journals and one excerpt in the most thorough book volume set on the subject, and have left it all behind to solely focus on Nihonto. It has been a lifelong casually interesting subject, seemingly out of my reach, but I now understand even with my meager financial means, it is absolutely something I can participate in.

 

I truly appreciate the vast knowledge on this forum, and the gift of being able to readily connect with advanced collectors on this valuable venue.

 

I recently posted my first sword, a gendaito Type 3 (or Type 100) Shin Gunto I found locally, and traded for - I got lucky, but also had studied enough in advance to immediately see it was of higher quality than others I had seen. The outpouring of knowledge when I posted it was wonderful. It is posted in the Japanese Military Sword section.

 

Having said all that, I did do EXACTLY what I always advised junior collectors in my old field to not do - plunge in on passion and impulse and buy a lower end sword with limited knowledge a few weeks ago. It is in the importation process, and I genuinely hope I have not taught myself an expensive lesson in impulse and it's consequences. I will not repeat this. It did, however, "speak to me", and I truly hope it is as represented by the seller.

 

I will wait until it arrives to post it, and receive opinions, and take my beating, if warranted!

 

I have since, however, purchased books and flash cards to get myself up to (slow) speed, and now know more than I did. I am reading anything I can find voraciously.

 

I am looking forward to a wonderful collecting "career", and after collecting what are essentially machine made, heartless pieces of equipment, the Nihonto collecting field is a breath of fresh air, and cannot exist without a fundamental appreciation and understanding of many other aspects of Japanese culture, language, spirituality, and art in everyday life.

 

Thank you all in advance, and I look forward to conversation and sharing this passion.

 

Jeff Diederichs

 

Elgin, AZ, USA

 

SSG (RET) US ARMY

 

 

[Toryu2020]

Welcome Jeff.

Sounds like you'll have a great time here.

-t

[McNally]

Hi, everyone!  I'm a little out of my element here, being mostly a collector of muskets and an American Civil War historian (or, if you prefer, the American Sengoku Period).  I've always had an interest in Japanese history and swords going back to when I saw the 1980 adaptation of Shogun as a teenager (on DVD, I'm four years younger than the miniseries).  I also took Japanese as my language in college.

I plan on establishing a very modest collection - one or two pieces - and tend to want to learn everything I can possible learn about a topic when I start.  My collection currently sits halfway complete at one, a wakizashi I somewhat impulsively placed a bid for on eBay.  I'll have photos taken and posted hopefully this weekend and I'm quite eager to hear what the forum can tell me, both good and bad (and to start:  Yes, I know, I know.  eBay was probably not the best place to start considering I know nothing.  Like I said, impulsive).

Of course, just because I plan on a modest collection doesn't mean that's what's going to happen.  I never planned on getting more than one musket either...

I'm happy to take book recommendations, I can never get enough book recommendations.

[Benjamin]

Welcome to NMB Harry!!

 

You'll find a large amount of information by incredible people with incredible knowledge here, I'm a very beginner myself and you will see the NMB is perfect to sustain your enthusiasm. Do not hesitate to ask question.

Do you think we all have our own sengoku period ? 

By the way knowing Japanese will be a great benefice to understand this complex field.

 

Classical books recommendations for beginners are usually :

- Markus Sesko, the Encyclopedia of Japanese Sword, and countless amazing publication you'll find on his website. Some are reference here.

- The Connoisseur's Book of Japanese Swords by Nagayama never deceive the beginner.

- Study of Japanese Sword by Yurie Endo is very pleasant to read, you'll find an online version.

- The Japanese Sword, a Comprehensive Guide, by Kanzan Sato is very recommended.

- Fact and Fundamentals of Japanese Swords by Nakahara is also a great addition.

 

And you'll find topic about books searching the forum.

 

Best regards

 

[McNally]

3 hours ago, Benjamin said:

By the way knowing Japanese will be a great benefice to understand this complex field

 

At the very least I won't embarrass myself with a terrible mispronunciation.  But as far as the rest of it, my lessons were remarkably quiet on things like "hamon" and "nakago" and "koshirae."

But I can ask where the library is, so that helps.

[KungFooey]

Better late than never, I guess.

 

I work a crazy schedule in a very demanding job so I have a wide range of interests to relax with.
I go to the gym five times a week and practice mixed martial arts. I'm also a gun enthusiast so you often find me down at the shooting range. I favor very powerful handguns and specific models are listed on my profile.

 

My family is all military from way back and I have a younger brother currently stationed in Japan.

 

I'm a mega history buff, often combining my love of ancient weapons with a study of the societies that produced them. I'm currently making lots of mistakes about tsuba. 😂 (But the guys here are teaching me a lot.)

 

Reading literature has always meant a lot to me so I've now moved onto the Japanese classics such as The Tale of Genji and The Pillow Book of Sei Shōnagon.

 

I love animals and value all life. I suppose JD Vance would call me a single dog or cat lady - before I whupped his ass.

Despite not liking him, I'm true red all the way but avoid talking politics whenever possible.

 

Real glad to be on this forum - thanks for having me!

 

Dee

[Joseph P.]

Hello all,

 

First off, thank you to Brian for assistance with recovering my account. I am not a new member but I have not posted for about 15 years. I was a young man of 16 years old when I first signed up for this website. I enjoyed studying Nihonto and Japanese history, as well as arms from around the world of all types. Unfortunately life sometimes can be difficult and I was forced to put most of my interests aside for "reality". Well 15 years later and a good amount of hours poured into work, I had a bit of a breakdown and I now find myself unemployed and without any hobbies. It took some time but I finally reignited my interest through spotting a Kyu-Gunto on eBay which sold for much (!) lower than I was expecting. I ended picking up a few starter blades for study, and now the addiction returns. I have decided to become a supporting member (after seeing what happened to SFI) and a regular poster again.

 

All the best

[Brian]

Welcome back Joe, glad you found your way back. Wish you all the best in your Nihonto endeavors.
Also, thanks for your support to the forum.