|
Post by Bodhidharma on Feb 26, 2013 2:34:32 GMT
I bought this blade because it was banged up and filthy. I bought it cheaply with the view to practise hybrid polishing. it was pretty beat up and lots of dings so was perfect for doing what i had in mind. I want to restore my "kanemichi" project, and so i am learning on the run. I am using an aluminium sandpaper at 150 grit and i am about 20 hours into it. I intend to use finer grades in the latter stages as it starts to show a polish. I am having problems with the tip and would like some help with that if anybody has been down this road before. When i disasembled i was surprised to find a stamp which i think says "put in bin" :lol: but the blade is coming up not too bad. If anybody in SBG land has tackled this i would love a guiding hand at this stage. On reading the heading i guess it is incorrect. I am not restoring in as much as i am cleaning it up. Excuse my exaggeration. :oops:
|
|
|
Post by Jakeonthekob on Feb 26, 2013 6:40:55 GMT
Well we all gotta learn, right?
The only thing is whether or not you want to learn how to do it "properly" or just do it. Are you trying to take up the edge again? Are you trying to keep the aesthetics?
Keep in mind you can do a good polish with only sandpaper, so that shouldn't really be a limiting factor.
As it stands now, unfortunately, the shinogi ridge has been wiped out and cannot be restored without removing a lot of metal. However, you can still take out the chips in the blade and turn it into a serviceable edge.
Here's an example of a sharpening and polish job more geared towards aesthetics:
|
|
|
Post by aussie-rabbit on Feb 26, 2013 11:43:02 GMT
150 is a little coarse to begin with, I would have suggested 320, you can buy a cloth backed single belt for a belt sander and cut it into squares, then progress to 400, 600, 800 and 1000 grit wet-or-dry paper and use a lubricant, water and a little dish soap works well. It takes a lot of patience but you will appreciate the work you put into it.
|
|
|
Post by Jussi Ekholm on Feb 26, 2013 12:03:46 GMT
If you are talking about personally restoring that probable Showato possible Gendaito that you posted few days ago, I would advice against it. Even if it would be "just" a Showato, in my mind it's still a valuable item that has historical value. Even though I agree that it's value might not justify professional polish, I would still advice not to polish it by yourself. However I consider Chinese made replicas of Japanese swords to be right medium to polish on as a hobby tinkerer. Of course this is a personal view, but I wouldn't personally touch even wartime Japanese swords. I am very amateur at polishing and my efforts are mediocre, that's why I won't polish anything above low-end production or replica that's in bad shape. The problem with the cheap Chinese made sword that you have is that it's lines/shape is already ruined. Therefore it's very hard to make it look proper. I've made one polishing project on similar blade, although the one I practiced on was still in better shape than that of yours. As my sword had very uneven shinogi, it was above my skill to repair it, and as the sword had nothing in steel (tried polishing a bit to 1000 grit, but it was TH), I only focused on kissaki. I tried to alter the shape of fukura (outer shape) and ko-shinogi to look more proper as well as create and artificial yokote. Here are the results, pretty mediocre, but a lot better than it was, and looked half decent when viewed from a far. When you have something that will show activities then the finer grits come in effect. This rust removal of old Bugei tachi is probably my best polishing job so far. Unfortunately some small rust spots still remain, as I didn't want to get too deep, as I already removed quite a bit of metal. From 100 grit to 2000 grit, I should have been more careful at removing scratches from the previous grit, I always work up too fast, should be more focused and careful. Some scratches might not show in certain light & angle, so I would advice tilting the sword at various angles so you can see that no scratches from previous grit are left. Camera & flash is very unforgiving to scratches, you see things you wouldn't with normal light & eye. I would strongly recommend getting a copy of The Art of Japanese Sword Polishing: www.amazon.com/The-Art-Japanese- ... 4770024940 Unfortunately the book is out of print, but you should be able to get one in 50-80$ range. This book will help on polish related things more than I ever could. Or getting a copy of The Art of the Japanese Sword: www.amazon.com/The-Art-Japanese- ... 4805312408 Those books and getting a DH blade at least in fairly good shape to practice on would be my tips. DH so that you will actually see easily the improvement that finer grits do. Hopefully this helps a bit.
|
|
|
Post by Bodhidharma on Feb 27, 2013 21:35:20 GMT
Thank you very much for all the informative input Gentlemen (i presume anyway). I will take it all on board. i am doing this for pure enjoyment as i am a wood man and i am still learning to enjoy steel. I have had it in the back of my head for a while now, you know, that guy going " i wonder if i could" The blade as you can see was ruined from the get go. It needed straightening and the edge was totally gone, half sharp and half blunt. Lots of nail chips. I think they demolished a house with it. If it becomes even half decent i will be happy. The better swords i have will be going off to a pro or the Edo period Katana will be anyway. I would eventually like to have a go at the ww2 one but we will see.
|
|