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Post by AmishBob on Jan 12, 2014 18:15:49 GMT
***Unrelated observation: This forum needs a spell check that understands Japanese.
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Post by William Swiger on Jan 12, 2014 23:31:52 GMT
Welcome to the forum.
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Post by AmishBob on Jan 12, 2014 23:48:04 GMT
Thank you!
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Post by jblakey on Jan 13, 2014 21:30:48 GMT
Wow, such a difference in workmanship between the blade/habaki and that leather. Blade seems very nicely done, habaki fit looks good, but that leather wrap... I can't imagine it holding up for very long under actual use... Everything else look pretty nice, though.
Thanks, jason
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Post by Jussi Ekholm on Jan 14, 2014 0:07:03 GMT
Welcome to the forum.
I like the blade and saya, but tsukamaki is off. However I think that might be common when leather is the chosen material.
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Post by AmishBob on Jan 14, 2014 4:52:54 GMT
Yes that is my concern as well, the tsuka.
I suppose I have two choices if it is a problem- try to unbunch the wrap near the kashira by prodding the leather, or asking Ryan to send a hinerimaki wrapped tsuka, which would probably work better for leather. I wish there was a hemp ito available, it acts more like cotton but is 10x more durable.
BTW, are modern tsukas generally interchangeable?, or is there some kind of standardization among different manufacturers?
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Post by Adrian Jordan on Jan 14, 2014 6:02:31 GMT
Welcome to SBG!
Well, it's true that 99% of production tsuka are carved to a general size which varies depending on the factory it comes from, but I wouldn't go so far as to say that it is an exact science. Many forges get tsuka from a single source, and generally fit them on by any means necessary. Pound it on with a hammer, ect. I guess that a new tsuka from them has about the same chance of fitting as the current one does, you'll just have to be careful putting it on.
Best of luck, and have fun(safely, hahaha) with your new sword!
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Post by frankthebunny on Jan 14, 2014 8:46:57 GMT
What Adrian said. Pounding the wrap will most likely only make it looser as it will stretch it out. There are many problems with this tsuka as far as I can see and if it's not too late I would suggest seeing what they can do to fix it before it's shipped. The ito for one is not even properly made, it is just one ply with open edges instead of the edges being folded in and a seam along the back. The katate-maki (battle wrap) was done poorly and the folds do not alternate and the end knots are reversed. While these are all fairly common problems on inexpensive Chinese reproductions, you don't always see them all on one sword. I think more than an aesthetic issue, it will be uncomfortable to use and will not last very long. Hopefully they will be compliant.
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Post by johnwalter on Jan 14, 2014 9:08:55 GMT
Welcome to the forum Bob. Kinda high price for a Ryan waki.And i admit Im very biased when it comes to Ryan.The tsuka and maki really looks bad. Where are you located,I may be able to help find a dojo.
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Post by AmishBob on Jan 14, 2014 19:26:37 GMT
There are dojos near but nothing for iaido, just hand to hand types. I would literally have to drive 2 or 3 hours minimum be in a place that would even consider having an iaido dojo.
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Post by AmishBob on Jan 14, 2014 22:57:25 GMT
Good news: getting a replacement tsuka with traditional wrap.
Bad news: I will need to drill the holes for the mekugi. However I do have access to a drill press, levels, clamps, etc, so this should not be an big issue.
Does anyone have any advice about doing this job?
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Post by jblakey on Jan 15, 2014 3:44:12 GMT
Hey AmishBob,
i'm in Ottawa, and I often head over to ogdensburg to pick up stuff at the UPS store. Is that anywhere near your area? I could rewrap your existing tsuka for you. Wakizashi are really no sweat, they go so fast. Trying to line up existing holes with holes on a new tsuka is very tricky.
Thanks, jason
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Post by johnwalter on Jan 15, 2014 3:55:19 GMT
In that case you may want to consider checking meetup.com for any study groups or practitioners near you looking people to practice with.You may get lucky.
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Post by AmishBob on Jan 15, 2014 5:15:36 GMT
Hey that is a nice idea. I live about 40 min from Ogdensburg. Would you use the existing ito? As someone pointed out it is not the correct material. As far as drilling, I was planning to clamp the blade down and line up the mekugi-ana with the drill bit. Then add the tsuka, pray, and drill. If I would just get it re-wrapped I would have one less reason to pray
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Post by AmishBob on Jan 15, 2014 5:19:27 GMT
Thanks, I will check that out!
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Post by jblakey on Jan 15, 2014 22:01:39 GMT
Hi Bob, cool - how 'bout you try mounting the new one, and if that doesn't pan out, we can meet up at the Wal-Mart over there (or something like that), and I'll rewrap your original one for you? I don't want to deprive anyone of the chance to work on their own swords! Thanks, jason
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Post by AmishBob on Jan 15, 2014 22:54:53 GMT
Jason, Thank you very much! That is a very nice offer. Of course I would help you out for your time.
But hey, as frankthebunny pointed out on the first page, the ito is not the right material. If I purchased new ito for you to wrap, how much should I buy? I see it sells by the foot at some stores.
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Post by johnwalter on Jan 16, 2014 0:15:44 GMT
General,one foot per inch of tsuka,plus one foot. 12" tsuka= 13' ito.
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Post by jblakey on Jan 16, 2014 2:18:40 GMT
Hi Bob, wakizashi are no sweat - honestly, they go so fast that the job's done almost before you know it:) Such a nice break from 11" katana tsuka. As for the ito, I've got some brown synthetic 7-8mm ito i can give you - it's not enough to wrap a full tsuka, but should be long enough for a wak. If you've got your heart set on black (or another color), you could just order up 8 feet or from swordnarmory.com. Their Japanese cotton is nice, and it's pretty cheap (about 2 bucks a foot, i think), and drop it off with the tsuka when I pick it up. They also sell other colors and silk as well. Here's a pic of the brown - it's not bad, but it's not the easiest stuff to work with. Dirt cheap, though ( 2.5 katana's worth for about 10 bucks from artsfeng). Thanks, jason Attachments:
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Post by frankthebunny on Jan 16, 2014 2:28:47 GMT
I might be able to help. I have some spare real leather ito, it's not enough for a katana but just might be enough for your wak. I'll donate it to the cause if you pay shipping. I'll check to make sure it's long enough, just let me know how long the tsuka is.
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