Kuya
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Posts: 1,396
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Post by Kuya on Jul 5, 2012 6:44:18 GMT
So I disassembled my Cheness SGC Katana for the first time tonight, and among other scary bad news... I found that it was really hard to get the mekugi pegs out. I found out why after trying to put it back together. The holes on the tsuka aren't lined up straight across the handle/core. When the mekugi were in, they were actually at an angle. So when I look through the holes while the handle is on, on one side I see the top part of the tang hole, and on the other side I see the bottom half. Is this normal, or is this another problem with my sword's creation?
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Post by Adrian Jordan on Jul 5, 2012 6:56:36 GMT
Perfectly normal, my friend. They are supposed to be set in diagonally.
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Post by ineffableone on Jul 5, 2012 6:58:32 GMT
Mekugi actually are supposed to be slightly angled, and if you have two they are supposed to be at opposing angles. This is supposed to help increase the security of the tsuka.
From your description it is sounding like your not fully lining up the nakago mekugi ana with the tsuka's mekugi ana if your seeing parts of the nakago when you look into the hole.
I use my mekugi hammer and slip it in the hole and give it a little tug/wiggle making sure the tsuka and nakago line up. You can also do this with any other long poky device of similar diameter to the mekugi ana.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 5, 2012 7:08:05 GMT
As mentioned, the mekugi should be at an angle...
However, there is one other thing... mekugi are often tapered so that one end is slightly smaller than the other. They should only be taken out in one direction, hammered out from the small end. I only hope you didn't have problems getting them out because you pushed them out the wrong way.
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Kuya
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Post by Kuya on Jul 5, 2012 7:13:29 GMT
Thank you so much! I really was going to start crying if this was a defect or something.
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Post by THE_SUPERWEIRDO on Jul 5, 2012 7:16:53 GMT
To add more info here, the mekugi usually comes out from where your hands should be placed when holding the katana traditionally, so you tap the mekugi out at the opposite side. I believe this is true in some swords. P.S. You're not alone, I've experienced this similar event before. :mrgreen:
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