Tsuba Box Question

[OceanoNox]

On 1/19/2024 at 11:06 AM, Bugyotsuji said:

When you need to carry them somewhere for some reason (to a friend's house, to a display or going abroad etc.), however, unless you can figure out a way to make the original little pegs secure, (see John above) and the cushion and lid fit tightly, there is always the danger that the tsuba will break loose inside the box.

I made a box for a tsuba that was a gift. To make the airplane transport more secure, and to keep the traditional feel, I added sanada himo (they need some fixations at the bottom to avoid slipping). The knot makes it also very nice, even when closed.

[Bugyotsuji]

Perfect.

Does your tsuba travel inside that box?

[Tsuba gardener]

There are a few boxes that don't have a pillar. Instead there is a tsuba sized recess which the tsuba sits. You can make a similar version by removing the pillar and both pins then cut 4 pieces of balsa or stiff foam and shape each internal curve to match the tsuba  but make the curve slightly larger to allow for the thickness of covering material. Glue with a suitable adhesive.Alternatively use 1 piece of balsa or stiff foam and make a hole slightly larger than the tsuba. 

[OceanoNox]

14 hours ago, Bugyotsuji said:

Does your tsuba travel inside that box?

It traveled from Japan to France in my checked-in luggage, no issue. The cushion I made was big enough that the tsuba did not wiggle about inside its box.

Edited January 21 by OceanoNox

[OceanoNox]

9 hours ago, Tsuba gardener said:

Glue with a suitable adhesive.Alternatively use 1 piece of balsa or stiff foam and make a hole slightly larger than the tsuba. 

Speaking of which, I have been using paulownia to make both the boxes and the plates inside, as I understood it's good against moisture. Is balsa just as good?

[Jesta]

For those who are interested in something more vintage, I have just acquired this Victorian specimen collector's box. It has four drawers with two shelves in each one, divided into two sides. Depending on the size of the tsuba it will store between 2 and four per section, which means that it could store up to 64 of the smaller tsuba. 

Does anyone have any suggestions for a thin, but cushioned and pliable material to put between the tsuba to stop them rubbing and bumping when the drawers are opened? I don't plan to alter the box, but I would like them to be more secure. 

 

 

[Bugyotsuji]

Lovely cabinet. Congratulations. Can't see the smaller divisions that you describe though.

 

Not an easy question to answer, but you could make eight/sixteen identical wooden grids, four/eight of these with  different internal sizes to cope with the various different tsuba in your collection.

 

Which reminds me of a cabinet I bought for my daughter's tools about twenty years ago. It came to light during a spring clean the other day. If she doesn't claim it soon, I might just 'borrow' it for tsuba instead!!! 

[Jesta]

5 hours ago, Bugyotsuji said:

Lovely cabinet. Congratulations. Can't see the smaller divisions that you describe though.

Each side of the drawers is a square box that lifts out to reveal another space below. So, it is two-tiered.

 

Thanks for the suggestion... That would work really well for the ones with 4.

When I tried one big, one small in the shelf, they lie diagonally, and not on an even division. So I would like a soft, maybe rubbery material to pad the space between them. 

[kissakai]

Assuming your tsuba are keepers

For mine I cut out holes slightly larger than the tsuba and lined it with felt

Took ages!

[Andi B.]

We had this here already but I highly recommend to remove the steel nails always!

The solution working for me is to drill one or two holes in the nakago ana piece and glue in some thin shish kebab skewer.

Then I burn the matching holes through the base plate with a glowing thick nail (wetten the silk before).

(When trying to drill through the silk and padding, the silk winded around the drill, so I chose this way.)

Finally I glue the pieces together.

 

 

 

[Jesta]

5 hours ago, Andi B. said:

We had this here already but I highly recommend to remove the steel nails always!

The solution working for me is to drill one or two holes in the nakago ana piece and glue in some thin shish kebab skewer.

Then I burn the matching holes through the base plate with a glowing thick nail (wetten the silk before).

(When trying to drill through the silk and padding, the silk winded around the drill, so I chose this way.)

Finally I glue the pieces together.

Thanks. A very creative way to do it. In this case, I don't want to drill into the drawers, and they don't have enough depth to fit a padded piece along with the tsuba. 

 

I picked up something from a local art shop yesterday which looks promising - it is a flexible, clear plastic with a triangular cross-section. I gave it a quick try last night, and it seems to work ok... I'll post pics when I have sorted it out.