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Post by Robnose on Apr 17, 2015 21:31:38 GMT
I'm going to try heat shrink underneath a new tsuka wrap. It's mainly for an added level of security since I will epoxy the tsuka to the nakago and lacquer the ito. I used 1 1/2" on this particular tsuka but think 1 1/4" would have been better since it didn't really close the crack I was concerned about. Still, I think the underlayment of heat shrink will give it a little extra strength.
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Mikeeman
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Post by Mikeeman on Apr 18, 2015 15:51:20 GMT
If the crack is because of the tang being to large for the hole in the tsuka, you probably just need a new tsuka. The tang will just keep splitting the wood. Even if you glue that crack back together, the wood has to flex somewhere and will cause a crack somewhere else.
No, tsuka cracks aren't really the death making flaw of doom we usually make it sound like they are, but it IS a little safer to have a tsuka without them. I've had several tsukas catastrophically fail during use. Nothing bad happened. The mekugi keep the blade from flying away and the rest just ends up in a few pieces in your hands. The worst thing that happens (usually) during a tsuka failure is the "Aw, man..." feeling and trying to find your kashira after the string unravels and it falls off.
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Post by Robnose on Apr 19, 2015 13:07:02 GMT
Well... it's re-wrapped. It feels larger than the original. Don't know if it's the heat shrink or different ito. It was a lot harder to reassemble as well. Either way it wasn't worth it. Did I mention I hate tsukamaki...
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