Paper shims under seppa

[Habaxi]

 

I've seen some people use paper shims in the shape of seppa but slightly smaller, placing them between the seppa and the tsuka to improve the fit of their katana, so

If a katana is already stable with no noticeable looseness, does adding paper shims still provide any benefit? Or is it only useful when there is some slight movement that needs to be corrected? Would it enhance overall stability or have no real impact in a well-fitted katana?

 

 

 

[Scogg]

A properly and well fitted Japanese sword  will require no such things. Craftsmen make the fittings to fit perfectly. In battle, you wouldn’t want things slipping or rattling around, so the fit is important. 

 

With time and changes in humidity and climate, wooden components can shrink or swell. When this occurs, sometimes the paper shims helps the fit. Also, when people piece together swords from non original parts, sometimes you can find these types of things. 

Probably some other scenarios in play too, that I have not considered. 

Hope that makes sense.
-Sam  

[Tohagi]

I use to do so (with cooking paper) when i put a decent tsuba on a pratice sword to avoïd the wear off... not very orthodoxe thow.

 

Best regards,

Eric