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Theater-made Gunto

Article about: Continuing in my surfing around about the Sword Repair Team in China, Naruse further writes: [Google Translation! .... I only polished up a few areas, so read with that in mind! I have no id

  1. #1

    Default Theater-made Gunto

    Continuing in my surfing around about the Sword Repair Team in China, Naruse further writes:

    [Google Translation! .... I only polished up a few areas, so read with that in mind! I have no idea why the ���� are appearing!!!]


    (軍刀修理班の) 加古伍長は優秀な刀匠である。部隊 鍛工場の工員が武器を持たない為、 身用として作刀の依頼があり、自動 車の廃物である古いスプリングを材 に、一応鍛錬して刀の形とし、本式 焼入れ作業は出来ないから、全体に 焼を入れて適度に戻す "造兵刀" と同じ製造工程である。
    二三日で幾振りかの刀がつくられ、 れを油鑢 (やすり)でみがき、

    有り合わせの砥石にかけて白研の程 とし、

    本工場軍刀修理班・鞍工
    場で柄・鞘・鞘覆いをつくり、とも くも佩用の出来るようにした。

    試し切りをして見ると、実にもの凄 切れ味で、誰云うとなく「兗洲虎徹 ※1 の名が高くなり、工兵隊あたりでは 那鍛冶の工場を
    借り、此のスプリングを漁 (あさ)りつくして刀を作った程盛んに なった。
    "兗洲虎徹" については、当時津浦線一帯※2の評 で、軍刀を消失・破損した将校は、 自身出向いて来たりして一刀の鍛造 所望し
    て止まなかった。此の事については 自分は両三回発表した。


    物理學上、物質の慣熟性を考察して ると、かうした古鐵、特に自動車の うな重いものものを、

    四六時中さヽへて幾年も走り続けて
    いた精良な鋼鐵が、いつしかそうし ものに耐え得るように鐵性が慣熟さ 、

    粘硬なものと化成した結果であると われる。

    刀が折れず, 曲がらず, 良く切れさへすれば良いというのな ば、この "兗洲刀" は満点に近いものと云へるであろう
    後に戦闘で十数名を切ったが、刃こ れも刃曲がりも生じ無かった。

    Corporal Kako (of the Guntō repair team) is an excellent swordsmith. Since the workers at the forging factory of the unit do not have weapons, there was a request to make a sword for self-defense, and old springs from automobiles, was tentatively forged into a sword shape, and this type of quenching work was possible. Because there is no way to make a "yaki-ire" [heat-treat the cutting edge], the whole blade is heated and cooled to an appropriate level.

    It is the same manufacturing process as the "Arsenal sword" where the whole sword is quenched returning it to an appropriate level.
    In a few days, several swords were made, polished with an oil file, and polished with a whetstone on hand.We made a handle, a scabbard, and a scabbard cover on the spot so that I could use it right away.

    When I tried cutting, it was really sharp, and the name of "Yanshu Toru" 兗洲虎徹 [Unbendable Tiger of Yanzhou] became high. Around the engineer corps, it became so popular that a Chinese blacksmith's factory was rented and fished around for this spring to make swords. With regard to "Yanshu Toru", the officer who lost or damaged his Guntō had a reputation in the Tsuura Line area at that time − he went out himself and wanted to forge a sword.
    I have announced this three times.

    Considering the physics of matter, we can see that old iron, especially heavy ones such as in automobiles, have been running day and night for many years. It is believed that this is the result of the refined steel iron, which has been habituated to withstand such things, and is coming to fruition with persistance.

    If the sword does not break, does not bend, and should be sharpened well, then this "Yanshu sword" can be said to be close to perfect score.

    Later, he killed a 20 or so people in battle, but there were no chips or bends.

    -- Guy

  2. #2

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    Guy
    Great info,Thanks for sharing!

  3. #3

    Default

    Guy,
    Am I right in thinking these were Kyu-gunto blades he made from springs? Also, the ""Yanshu Toru" 兗洲虎徹" - was that inscribed on the nakago? If so, that would be one great gunto to find and collect!

  4. #4

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    Bruce,

    I'm thinking he's talking about his later visit to China in 1936 -- so would be shin-gunto:
    "....Konno Akimune (Sadaharu) and Ishii Akifusa (Masatsugu) joined the Denshu Jo as ... Kurihara had formed a team of craftsmen for gunto repair around this time [1936]...." (Leon Kapp, Modern Japanese Swords and Swordsmiths: From 1868 to the Present; p.54.)

    Note his uniform and LOOOONG shin-gunto!

    The way I read it, "Yanshu Toru" was just a nickname and I doubt anything was inscribed on the nakago .... that WOULD be a treat to find, eh?

    Theater-made GuntoTheater-made Gunto
    At the forefront of China Mongolia. Naruse Kanji (right) and Kurihara Hikosaburo (left) of the Akimune Konno Swordsmith Guntō Repair Team.
    [EDIT: Possible misidentification by original author. Kurihara Hikosaburo was born in March 1879, was a Diet Member, and founded the Nippon-to Denshu-Jo in Tokyo. This man is definitely not 57 years old!!]


    -- Guy

  5. #5
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    Mr Ohmura has something to say about the spring-to made in China as well.

    "Special spring steel is a combination of silicon, manganese, chrome, nickel, panadium, boron, and molybdenum, depending on the application.
    In 1938, it was made on the Chinese front using scrap wood springs from automobiles. Demonstrated high performance in swords and actual battles.
    It was made quite a bit locally and was well received and produced inland. It had strong toughness and stickiness.
    The secret lies in the delicate balance of quenching, tempering and annealing. As a practical sword, it was far superior to the Japanese sword, which is not good at ordinary steel.
    it is said that the secret of general swords is moderate tempering."


    素延べ刀 Sunobe-tō

  6. #6

    Default

    As someone who was a former truck mechanic, leaf spring steel is some of the toughest steel you can find, outside of heat treated armor plate. Consider that a leaf spring has to be able to support tons of weight AND has to continually bend and spring back hundreds of thousands to millions of times in it's life without breaking, using that steel for a sword would make perfect sense.

    However, if one were to suggest to Japanese sword enthusiasts/purists that a Chinese leaf spring was used for their prized Gunto they would have a massive coronary, debilitating stroke and involuntary bowel release all at the same time.

  7. #7
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    Default

    The other favoured raw material was 19th century raitrack, both in Japan and China, but let's not tell the Nihonto guys that, they get upset!

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