Gerry Posted June 6 Report Posted June 6 Yahoo Auctions Japan sure has some interesting items at reasonable prices. https://page.auction.../auction/g1138098422 https://page.auction.../auction/f1108866449 Kelly Schmidt says that he doesn't export blades anymore, so I was wondering if anyone else has suggestions of proxy buyers to use for nihonto in Japan? Gerry Quote
Ilovekatana Posted June 9 Report Posted June 9 One I know and have used is Jauce. So far I have bought one sword from Yahoo Auctions Japan through them. You just have to agree to pay a 20,000 yen documentation fee and tell them where you are located(I told them the state I'm in, but I'm pretty sure just saying the country you are in should work as well). Though be prepared to pay quite a few fees in addition to the documentation fee. For a sword costing 76,000 yen I ended up paying 36,860 yen in fees, including the documentation fee and shipping. Quote
Gerry Posted June 9 Author Report Posted June 9 Ah, great, and thanks for sharing that you have had success purchasing blades using Jauce. I'll check into their website to see how it works. Ah, the documentation fees do seem quite steep, so good thing the USD vs JPY rate is in our favor at the moment. Did you also have to pay for shipping from the sword seller to Jauce, and then Jauce to you? Quote
Ilovekatana Posted June 9 Report Posted June 9 I checked my jauce account and I did pay for the shipping to jauce and to me. Edit: Also you should treat any claims made by the sellers on yahoo auctions Japan with a grain of salt. 1 Quote
Gerry Posted June 10 Author Report Posted June 10 That's very useful advice, and thanks for confirming that you had to cover all the shipping costs for the transaction with Jauce. I'll go hunt around now to see what's interesting on Yahoo Japan, ha ha. Quote
Lewis B Posted June 10 Report Posted June 10 39 minutes ago, Gerry said: That's very useful advice, and thanks for confirming that you had to cover all the shipping costs for the transaction with Jauce. I'll go hunt around now to see what's interesting on Yahoo Japan, ha ha. Good luck. Its a minefield on that site. I would only consider swords with NBTHK papers and clear pics. I was interested in a Kamakura era sword but the pics were awful. Never got a reply from the seller when I asked for better and clearer images. Next. 3 Quote
PNSSHOGUN Posted June 11 Report Posted June 11 That's good to know, fees aren't too bad compared to using an agent. Do keep in mind you will have virtually no buyer protection, and yahoo auctions are 10x more ruthless and dubious than ebay. Quote
Gerry Posted June 11 Author Report Posted June 11 21 hours ago, Lewis B said: Good luck. Its a minefield on that site. I would only consider swords with NBTHK papers and clear pics. I was interested in a Kamakura era sword but the pics were awful. Never got a reply from the seller when I asked for better and clearer images. Next. Oh yes I only buy swords with recent NBTHK papers, and many of the listings do list Kamakura or Nabokucho blades, but without papers to substantiate the claim. This was one that was listed on Yahoo Japan for only about $2300 USD, as opposed to the much higher price on eBay: https://www.ebay.com/itm/305559650419 It seemed like a great buy and an interesting piece, but someone in Japan beat me to the punch. Quote
GreyVR Posted September 4 Report Posted September 4 On 6/11/2024 at 3:11 PM, Gerry said: Oh yes I only buy swords with recent NBTHK papers, and many of the listings do list Kamakura or Nabokucho blades, but without papers to substantiate the claim. Pardon me, but is there a way to see if the papers are genuine? Like, does NBTHK have a place you type in the number and see if it matches? Was thinking of getting a Jauce account as buyee doesn't seem to be interested in handling even very short blades. I see this thread is a little old, is Jauce still good? Quote
moriarty Posted September 4 Report Posted September 4 13 minutes ago, GreyVR said: Pardon me, but is there a way to see if the papers are genuine? Like, does NBTHK have a place you type in the number and see if it matches? Was thinking of getting a Jauce account as buyee doesn't seem to be interested in handling even very short blades. I see this thread is a little old, is Jauce still good? If I remember correctly, they charge something like 8% of the final auction price plus 20,000 yen for paperwork, all of that plus shipping. Not a terrible choice if there's no agent, but as stated above, it's a ruthless minefield Quote
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