A free Japanese sword...

[Scout]

Hi Joe-
I really am not comfortable evaluationg a blade from photographs. There are too many things like workmanship, flaws and defects to judge in a sword for value just from pictures.
As to the length of the blade, that can reflect the owner's height. It can also indicate the form of fencing that he studied. Different schools of swordmanship reflected different lengths of blade. The famous Yagyu school for instance favored shorter blades as they favored a quick draw technique. The masters of the Yagyu school made the mistake of challenging the famous samurai Miyamoto Musashi out for a duel and he killed all three. For revenge, some of their students ambushed Musashi for revenge and he killed all of them also.

This made my day. Today, Ive shelled out for service for my 4X4 and had to pay bills and then was told then I arrived home, that I had to make a run to the post office. I sensed, that it was not up for debate and only answered "Yes!"
Ohh how the times were simple back then. They might not have had Landcruisers or runs to the postal office. They only had to react to ambushes and kill everything in sight!!
Just kidding of course.
I assume, that the iconic Mushashi carried a Yagyu blade!?
Imagine the finely hones swordship of a person like that. Personally, Ive only trained with the epee. I was very good with the eppe, but might have lasted all of a split second against a sword fighting machine like Mushashi.
He might have briefly contemplated the strange Picture of a person brandishing a tooth pic, before he chooped off several limbs and went on his way.
Its not that I long for times when there were no modern Medical supplies or times when blood was on the daily agenda. I would just have liked to be a Humble fly on the wall, when Mushashi trained with his sword.

Ohh, by the way, i would like to thank Joe T. He as conveyed to me in a PM, that he wants the free sword to be appreciated by forum members. He will make a pass-around of interested members starting with sending the sword to me for a five year trail.

Thank you, Joe T!

[ghp95134]

If you really wanted buffalo horn, you can buy a mekugi from Fred Lohman [see bottom of image]:

image source

Or, you could use bamboo. Bamboo is extremely resilient because of the fibers -- it will never break in two ... even if you could snap one. Some swords had two mekugi: one in the traditional location, and the other [called a hikae-mekugi, "reserve pin"] closer to the pommel. Sometimes the reserve is made of steel; when this is done, you should score some lines perpendicular to the mekugi (use a file or wire cutters). The scored lines will prevent the steel pin from slipping out due to metal-to-metal contact. [Do not ask me why I know this!]

Cheers!
--Guy

[ghp95134]

Combat covers on Japanese swords are very hard to replace, as they were stitched and then shrunk on with age, you could be very lucky and find one on maybe nihonto message board, you found a copper hilted NCO sword in the trash? WOW hope you got a lot of dosh for it , there rare, like hens teeth.
Chris.F.

But don't count on that!!! The curvatures and lengths are so unique to each sword, it would be the ultimate "needle in a haystack" scenario.

--Guy

[ghp95134]

...[Musashi] might have briefly contemplated the strange Picture of a person brandishing a tooth pic, before he chooped off several limbs and went on his way....

Quite the contrary. Some Musashi experts strongly believe his "Niten Ichi Ryu" two-sword system was based on his observing Portuguese duelling techniques with rapier and main gauche.

Musashi's sword was not a "Yagyu" short sword. Also, up until Eiji Yoshikawa published his 1935 novel Miyamoto Musashi (serialized in the Asahi Newspaper), the common concept of Musashi was that of a ruffian troublemaker. Yoshikawa created the myth.

Musashi's wooden sword, still in possession of the 10th-generation headmaster of Hyoho Niten Ichi Ryu:







the image title is "oar"; the scroll is approximately 10 inches long


I have a Yagyu bokuto [wood sword] ... it is not "short".
Formalized Yagyu ryu exhibition. Note the wooden swords are not short.

My own preference is Tenshin Shoden Katori Shinto Ryu .... even their formalized forms are strong, fast, and combat applicable.

--Guy

[GIZMO8Z]

Ohh, by the way, i would like to thank Joe T. He as conveyed to me in a PM, that he wants the free sword to be appreciated by forum members. He will make a pass-around of interested members starting with sending the sword to me for a five year trail.

Thank you, Joe T!

Not so fast there, Scout! The terms of the trial are five years or 100,000 slices... whichever comes first!

[GIZMO8Z]

Hi folks!

The wood worker found two more fittings for the sword's scabbard!



He also made me a custom gun rack!

(I just stuck random rifles from my collection into the rack to see what would fit... I'm not sure which rifles will live there on a perminant basis...)