Musashi White Folded Katana SS-1141WT - Elbow grease update
Nov 12, 2011 18:43:15 GMT
Post by lamebmx on Nov 12, 2011 18:43:15 GMT
Introduction
I purchased this sword, my 3rd, due to color, blade and How much I liked my other Musashi. My intention was a nice display sword, not a cutter. White and green is my favorite color combination. When you see the pictures I have already replaced the black and white sageo with a green silk sageo. Well technically its green silk ito, but my other Musashi came with black ito for its sageo.
Historical overview
Skipped, I dont think it is based on another sword.
Full Disclosure
I am pretty new. I like the bang for the buck value of Musashi swords.
Initial Impressions
A big cardboard box, containing another cardboard box that contained the red and black decorative case. Three of the familiar sword case clips and I was greeted by the shiny orange fabric, maintenance kit, certificate envelope and a black sword bag. Sliding the lined sword bag off the sword I was a bit taken aback by the ito and sageo. I already knew the sageo was ugly imho. But the ito looked a bit like a woodworker handled it without washing their hands. It did not look dirty per se, but a bit antiqued with the stark white saya so close to the ito. I am going to file this under initial impressions as that sageo had to go. Upon removal of the sageo the shitodome fell out and there were black scuff marks on the saya. I only mention the scuff marks because they did not come off with moderate cleaning. A couple drops of super glue on the shitodome, the green ito tied up all fancy like and it was much more impressive to me. The fittings however were quite nice. As I pulled it out of the saya the blade was a little lack luster to me. After double checking the ad for the katana where I purchased it, its polish is what was advertised. For some reason I expected the polish to be more along the lines of my shirakawa series (SS7** model numbers).
The Whole Enchilada:
IMAG0165 by LameBMX, on Flickr
Home:
IMAG0126 by LameBMX, on Flickr
Grungy looking ito and nice fittings:
IMAG0131 by LameBMX, on Flickr
The polish it had followed by the polish I expected (review sword is no bo-hi):
IMAG0147 by LameBMX, on Flickr
IMAG0148 by LameBMX, on Flickr
The sword handled well. The nice waisting and slight curve of the handle felt good.
Statistics
Copy and paste from purchase place:
Overall Length:39.25 "
Blade:Very Sharp
Nagasa Length:27.5 "
Blade Material:1060 Carbon Steel
Tsuka Length:10.75 "
Niku:Medium
Blade Thickness @ Habaki:0.317 "
Sori:0.697 "
Blade Thickness @ Kissaki:0.189 "
Kissaki Length:1.386 "
Blade Width @ Habaki:1.244 "
Blade Construction:Forge Folded Mono Steel
Blade Width @ Kissaki:0.843 "
Hamon:Midare
Weight W/O Saya:2.55 lbs
Balance Point:4.5 " <---- Actually 6" from tsuba!!!!
Tsuba Material:Brass
Hardness of Yakiba:58 degrees
Ito & Sageo Material:Chemical Fiber
Fuchigashira Material:Brass
Manufacturer:Musashi
Mekugi:Smoked Bamboo Double Mekugi
Condition:Brand New
Accessories:Box, Sword Bag, Cleaning Kit & Certificate
Components
The Blade/Nagasa
Rough polish. Nice hamon. Nice tight layers.
IMAG0166 by LameBMX, on Flickr
The habaki has very little gap. but the nakago is misshapen. Nothing a file wont fix in the future for me. but for others who just want to cut, I would be a little worried about it. In this picture you can also see how wavy the mune is:
IMAG0155 by LameBMX, on Flickr
The overall habiki fit is nice:
IMAG0145 by LameBMX, on Flickr
Scuff marks on blade:
IMAG0142 by LameBMX, on Flickr
The Handle/Tsuka
tsukamaki seems pretty nice. Ito is cotton shoestring, but not fuzzy:
IMAG0127 by LameBMX, on Flickr
Suffering from the cracked tsuka as common to lower end blades:
IMAG0162 by LameBMX, on Flickr
IMAG0163 by LameBMX, on Flickr
The Guard/Tsuba
Predator and Prey over water. Well made and hefty. The outside cast lines are gone, the inside ones were filed with enough left to make a nice snug fit.
IMAG0158 by LameBMX, on Flickr
IMAG0156 by LameBMX, on Flickr
The Pommel/Fuchi-Kashira
Same theme, a bit smaller.
IMAG0161 by LameBMX, on Flickr
IMAG0160 by LameBMX, on Flickr
IMAG0159 by LameBMX, on Flickr
The Scabbard/Saya
Pretty beefy actually. Noticeably thinker than the saya's for my tenchi or other Musashi. The fit however is great. No rattle, habaki is held really good. Koiguchi is thick. Kurigata does not have as fine of attachment as others. Shitodome fell out as mentioned previously. EDIT: I found if it gets bumped from the side it has a little rattle to it. It passes a grab and shake test though.
Handling Characteristics
It feels closer to my tenchi than shirakawa musashi. You can feel the mass on a turn in direction. It has the authoritative heavy blade feel to it. After dis-assembly I can feel a bit of looseness in the handle. Edit: Has a quiet yet sharp tachikaze
Test Cutting
Pickle chipped paper with it. A little fuzzy at the edge of the cuts.
Conclusions
I liked the presentation of the sword a lot. I liked the potential of the blade, though I did just want to throw on some green sageo and hang it up. Take the blade out and look at every now and then. I like the fittings and the antiqued ito has grown on me.
Pros
- Nice Koshirae, blemishes are hidden
- Hada and Hamon
- Great overall fit (when not swung due to tsuka)
- Great potential at under $200
Cons
- Polish was lack luster and there were numerous scuff marks
- Finish on mune. Looks good but feel and reflections show how wavy it is
- Tsuka issues.
The Bottom Line
I would not recommend this sword for practice, cutting or show. I would however highly recommend this for someone that wants to learn more about making or repairing swords.
Morning coffee accompanied with strop block, honing compound, rubbing alcohol and a little bit of elbow grease then a little bit of Mothers polish made it a whole new blade.
Original, notice the diffusion of light and the clouded blade by the habaki:
IMAG0166 by LameBMX, on Flickr
After the morning coffee. Notice how you can kind of make out the corners of the light cover in the reflection, and how unclouded the blade is as you move away from the light:
IMAG0168 by LameBMX, on Flickr
EDIT: didnt do anything else besides take the pic around the same angle as a previous picture.
IMAG0181 by LameBMX, on Flickr
See a few posts down for how it turned out with some more elbow grease applied.
Another note, during another handle re-wrap, I notice the bottom of the nakago had about 1/4 inch wiggle room in the nakago-ana. It is snug at the tsuba, but not at the other end.
I purchased this sword, my 3rd, due to color, blade and How much I liked my other Musashi. My intention was a nice display sword, not a cutter. White and green is my favorite color combination. When you see the pictures I have already replaced the black and white sageo with a green silk sageo. Well technically its green silk ito, but my other Musashi came with black ito for its sageo.
Historical overview
Skipped, I dont think it is based on another sword.
Full Disclosure
I am pretty new. I like the bang for the buck value of Musashi swords.
Initial Impressions
A big cardboard box, containing another cardboard box that contained the red and black decorative case. Three of the familiar sword case clips and I was greeted by the shiny orange fabric, maintenance kit, certificate envelope and a black sword bag. Sliding the lined sword bag off the sword I was a bit taken aback by the ito and sageo. I already knew the sageo was ugly imho. But the ito looked a bit like a woodworker handled it without washing their hands. It did not look dirty per se, but a bit antiqued with the stark white saya so close to the ito. I am going to file this under initial impressions as that sageo had to go. Upon removal of the sageo the shitodome fell out and there were black scuff marks on the saya. I only mention the scuff marks because they did not come off with moderate cleaning. A couple drops of super glue on the shitodome, the green ito tied up all fancy like and it was much more impressive to me. The fittings however were quite nice. As I pulled it out of the saya the blade was a little lack luster to me. After double checking the ad for the katana where I purchased it, its polish is what was advertised. For some reason I expected the polish to be more along the lines of my shirakawa series (SS7** model numbers).
The Whole Enchilada:
IMAG0165 by LameBMX, on Flickr
Home:
IMAG0126 by LameBMX, on Flickr
Grungy looking ito and nice fittings:
IMAG0131 by LameBMX, on Flickr
The polish it had followed by the polish I expected (review sword is no bo-hi):
IMAG0147 by LameBMX, on Flickr
IMAG0148 by LameBMX, on Flickr
The sword handled well. The nice waisting and slight curve of the handle felt good.
Statistics
Copy and paste from purchase place:
Overall Length:39.25 "
Blade:Very Sharp
Nagasa Length:27.5 "
Blade Material:1060 Carbon Steel
Tsuka Length:10.75 "
Niku:Medium
Blade Thickness @ Habaki:0.317 "
Sori:0.697 "
Blade Thickness @ Kissaki:0.189 "
Kissaki Length:1.386 "
Blade Width @ Habaki:1.244 "
Blade Construction:Forge Folded Mono Steel
Blade Width @ Kissaki:0.843 "
Hamon:Midare
Weight W/O Saya:2.55 lbs
Balance Point:4.5 " <---- Actually 6" from tsuba!!!!
Tsuba Material:Brass
Hardness of Yakiba:58 degrees
Ito & Sageo Material:Chemical Fiber
Fuchigashira Material:Brass
Manufacturer:Musashi
Mekugi:Smoked Bamboo Double Mekugi
Condition:Brand New
Accessories:Box, Sword Bag, Cleaning Kit & Certificate
Components
The Blade/Nagasa
Rough polish. Nice hamon. Nice tight layers.
IMAG0166 by LameBMX, on Flickr
The habaki has very little gap. but the nakago is misshapen. Nothing a file wont fix in the future for me. but for others who just want to cut, I would be a little worried about it. In this picture you can also see how wavy the mune is:
IMAG0155 by LameBMX, on Flickr
The overall habiki fit is nice:
IMAG0145 by LameBMX, on Flickr
Scuff marks on blade:
IMAG0142 by LameBMX, on Flickr
The Handle/Tsuka
tsukamaki seems pretty nice. Ito is cotton shoestring, but not fuzzy:
IMAG0127 by LameBMX, on Flickr
Suffering from the cracked tsuka as common to lower end blades:
IMAG0162 by LameBMX, on Flickr
IMAG0163 by LameBMX, on Flickr
The Guard/Tsuba
Predator and Prey over water. Well made and hefty. The outside cast lines are gone, the inside ones were filed with enough left to make a nice snug fit.
IMAG0158 by LameBMX, on Flickr
IMAG0156 by LameBMX, on Flickr
The Pommel/Fuchi-Kashira
Same theme, a bit smaller.
IMAG0161 by LameBMX, on Flickr
IMAG0160 by LameBMX, on Flickr
IMAG0159 by LameBMX, on Flickr
The Scabbard/Saya
Pretty beefy actually. Noticeably thinker than the saya's for my tenchi or other Musashi. The fit however is great. No rattle, habaki is held really good. Koiguchi is thick. Kurigata does not have as fine of attachment as others. Shitodome fell out as mentioned previously. EDIT: I found if it gets bumped from the side it has a little rattle to it. It passes a grab and shake test though.
Handling Characteristics
It feels closer to my tenchi than shirakawa musashi. You can feel the mass on a turn in direction. It has the authoritative heavy blade feel to it. After dis-assembly I can feel a bit of looseness in the handle. Edit: Has a quiet yet sharp tachikaze
Test Cutting
Pickle chipped paper with it. A little fuzzy at the edge of the cuts.
Conclusions
I liked the presentation of the sword a lot. I liked the potential of the blade, though I did just want to throw on some green sageo and hang it up. Take the blade out and look at every now and then. I like the fittings and the antiqued ito has grown on me.
Pros
- Nice Koshirae, blemishes are hidden
- Hada and Hamon
- Great overall fit (when not swung due to tsuka)
- Great potential at under $200
Cons
- Polish was lack luster and there were numerous scuff marks
- Finish on mune. Looks good but feel and reflections show how wavy it is
- Tsuka issues.
The Bottom Line
I would not recommend this sword for practice, cutting or show. I would however highly recommend this for someone that wants to learn more about making or repairing swords.
Morning coffee accompanied with strop block, honing compound, rubbing alcohol and a little bit of elbow grease then a little bit of Mothers polish made it a whole new blade.
Original, notice the diffusion of light and the clouded blade by the habaki:
IMAG0166 by LameBMX, on Flickr
After the morning coffee. Notice how you can kind of make out the corners of the light cover in the reflection, and how unclouded the blade is as you move away from the light:
IMAG0168 by LameBMX, on Flickr
EDIT: didnt do anything else besides take the pic around the same angle as a previous picture.
IMAG0181 by LameBMX, on Flickr
See a few posts down for how it turned out with some more elbow grease applied.
Another note, during another handle re-wrap, I notice the bottom of the nakago had about 1/4 inch wiggle room in the nakago-ana. It is snug at the tsuba, but not at the other end.