edge hardness?

[Jean]

BTW, I love these blades

[Ted Tenold]

  Birdman said:

Tenold's email address is dead, and much of his website is down. There is a note on his site saying he is not taking any more polishing commissions. I'm going to hazard a guess that he's not taking more commissions at all at this time.

 

Hi Rich, my email is not dead. You may have an improper link to a very old page or something in a cache. http://www.legacyswords.com You can reach me through there, or here by PM.

 

I do take commissions, but they're subject to acceptance. I talk myself out of more work than I talk myself into because so many swords aren't good candidates for restoration and I'd rather see folks put money into worthy candidates or those available at a comparable investment that are provide immediate gratification (in other words; done and enjoyable ). The images of your sword won't be enough for any polisher to fully say yay or nay. In hand examinations are the only way they can be evaluated. Images just get you past the *really* obvious disqualifiers. As Jean mentioned, yours could be a late koto piece. This shape was done by many different schools such as Shitahara, Mihara, Bizen and others. Entering the Shinto period this form rarely made.

 

As noted by Grey, the shape illlustrates the blades overall mass has been greatly depleated because machis have been reinstalled by grinding down the nakago on the ha and mune edges of the habakimoto. This will make the proper fitting of a habaki impossible without further disruption of the entire nakago.

 

So what do we have at the end of the day here? A probably Sue-Koto piece of questionable quality, likely of compromised health, that needs polish, nakago alteration, repatination, new habaki, new shirasaya. Even on the cheap you're probably looking at $2500 *without* papers, shipping, insurance, brokerage. None of which include your preliminary purchase price of the sword. For what? There are a lot of decent swords out there starting in this range that won't test your patience and tie your hard earned cash up for two years, and also without the risk. If this piece comes up with hagire, fukure, shintetsu, etc., etc., etc., then it's dead as the cash you put into it.

 

Without attempting to appear rude, I think it has as much chance of being a Kiyomaro school piece as I have being crowned King of Norway. Even if it went to Kiyomaro or Kiyondo, it's mumei and of greatly compromised condition for a shinshinto piece, and thus no appreciable potential.

[Jean]

  Quote

I've seen lots of original nihonto on the web that also had the hamachi moved up, but not the munemachi. Was this common, then? Why not move the munemachi as well? What was the general reasoning behind this? Or were there lots of different reasons? I know on my blade it was likely, as was mentioned, a result of either a repair or of lots of polishing.

 

because your sword is not suriage (in short)

[Birdman]

  Jean said:

because your sword is not suriage (in short)

Pun intended? :D

[Jean]

Why should not it be?

 

Generally you move the munemachi and the hamachi in the same time/way when the sword is suriage or O suriage.

 

Your blade is half machi okuri

[drbvac]

You gentlemen are more than kind - where is Rheinhart when you are surprised at the tact and what some poeple really think -

 

I had a blade exactly like this and finally undertook a self polish followed by attempting to hack and cut various bushes in my back yard - I even made a tsuka out of pine and what a great weed wacker. I had a lot of laughs and KEPT my money to polish #2 blade that cost me almost the same as the first BUT was in fact WORTH the polish and the polisher even thanked me for letting the blade "come out".

 

I know - my mother used to say if you have nothing good to say keep quiet - but its like my 4 kids = it was so hard to learn some of these lessons it is painful to watch someone else do the same

 

At least he isnt seeing how hot that blade really gets in the forge with his finger

[O koumori]

According to Yumoto, these were popular during Muromachi.

Dan K.

[Birdman]

  drbvac said:

You gentlemen are more than kind - where is Rheinhart when you are surprised at the tact and what some poeple really think -

 

I had a blade exactly like this and finally undertook a self polish followed by attempting to hack and cut various bushes in my back yard - I even made a tsuka out of pine and what a great weed wacker. I had a lot of laughs and KEPT my money to polish #2 blade that cost me almost the same as the first BUT was in fact WORTH the polish and the polisher even thanked me for letting the blade "come out".

 

I know - my mother used to say if you have nothing good to say keep quiet - but its like my 4 kids = it was so hard to learn some of these lessons it is painful to watch someone else do the same

 

At least he isnt seeing how hot that blade really gets in the forge with his finger

Ok, guys - I'm afraid I've got egg on my face (or maybe just seagull crap). I was looking at my sword today, and found something I had not noticed before: a very fine crack, hard to see unless the light hits it right, running deep into the yakiba. Not all the way to the edge, but deep enough that most of the hamon would be gone if the crack was removed.

 

You're right, it isn't worth having a professional polisher put his time, and my money into it.

 

 

However, I still think it's a neat old sword, and would like to make it at least presentable for display. Any suggestions on how to achieve this? And please, no snide comments about belt sanders. I at least want to put my own best effort into it.

 

I'll chalk it up to a lesson learned.