First time making a habaki

[budodeshi]

Let me start of by saying that i'm no pro.This should never be attempted on a nihonto with out the proper knowledge,tools, and year's of experience in the field of habaki making.

 

I have a Shobu zukuri made by John Lundemo http://sbgswordforum.proboards.com/inde ... read=16910 that needs to be mounted so the first step is to make the habaki.I know its not a nihonto but there's no way in hell i'd try to make a habaki for the few Japanese blade's i do have.

 

I made a very poor tutorial for you guy's i hope it helps you in some way or a other.If there's any one that is active in habaki making i would appreciate any help or comments good or bad

Also if there is any thing i missed or did not do correctly please let me know..

 

So here we go..

 

http://s234.photobucket.com/albums/ee18 ... V_0016.mp4

 

http://s234.photobucket.com/albums/ee18 ... V_0017.mp4

 

http://s234.photobucket.com/albums/ee18 ... V_0018.mp4

 

http://s234.photobucket.com/albums/ee18 ... 4&newest=1

 

http://s234.photobucket.com/albums/ee18 ... 4&newest=1

 

http://s234.photobucket.com/albums/ee18 ... 4&newest=1

 

For thoses of you who just whant pics

[IanB]

David, A good attempt that will have taught you an awful lot about habaki. You ask for comments. What really strikes me is that you have started with a uniform sheet of copper with the result that your habaki is pretty much of uniform thickness when viewed from the mune. Look at a professional one and you will see that it should thicken considerably towards the seppa and tsuba. So, when you next have a go, obtain some thicker copper and hammer one long edge down until it is about half the thickness of the other. Then when you wrap it around the tang, you get the correct taper. What you could do is convert this one to a niju habaki which will correct the fault. You will however need to look at a real one since no amount of description will really convey how subtle they are.

Keep up the good work.

Ian Bottomley

[Ford Hallam]

Hello David,

 

you will probably find "The Craft of the Japanese Sword" by Yoshindo and Kapp to be a great help. There is a whole section devoted to habaki making which focusses on Hiroshi Miyajima, a mukansa habaki-shi. Here's a link to the book.

 

regards,

 

ford

[budodeshi]

Thanks IanB yah i wished i had used some thicker copper for this one but I'll be getting some better stuff soon.

I did manage to get a bit of a wedge shape by filing and sanding.

I got the saya carved yesterday I'll have some pic up later today if you guy's want.

[Brian]

David,

Sorry, but this is a bit beyond the scope of this forum. We stick to original and traditional objects, and don't really cover the DIY stuff.

We do work well with Ford's forum though, which is perfect for this, and can be found here: http://www.followingtheironbrush.org/index.php

We are happy to discuss any original swords or parts though, or ones made under Japanese tuition.

 

All the best

Brian

[budodeshi]

Sorry Brian for being off topic.I only put it here to get some comments and pointers i do plan on expanding my education on restoring Japanese blade by practice and if the chance arises maybe study under a teacher but if any one would like to follow the progress here's a link.http://www.swordforum.com/forums/showth ... ost1125112.

Thank againg guy's

[Grey Doffin]

i do plan on expanding my education on restoring Japanese blade by practice

David,

By that I hope you don't mean polishing. You can't learn polishing without a teacher; you'll only destroy swords.

Grey

[budodeshi]

God no,by restoration i mean just mounting ,saya tsuka ect...

I would never attempt to polish a Japanese blade.

[Nihonto Chicken]

Congrats on your habaki. Gives one an appreciation for what's involved. I made one for a shobu zukuri wak, came out rather well if I do say so myself. It was somewhat of a sweat hammer fitting it to the blade and praying the ha machi would survive (it did). Unfortunately, the habaki was responsible for one of the worst cuts I've ever had. I was filing the narrow (blade) side of the michigane when it seized on the fine file, with the result that my thumb slid on the sharp edge, cutting it quite deeply, just like a knife (much deeper than the michigane thickness, given the pressure I was applying). Oh, well, the fun of restoration! Carry on!