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Post by santoryususanoo on Jan 17, 2024 1:55:01 GMT
Hi everyone,
I am looking at purchasing a new made to order custom katana (Shinsakuto) from Tozandoshop.com. From what I have heard, Tozando is a legitimate shop/site in Japan, and I have seen reviews from people getting a custom Iaido from there, but I haven't seen anyone talk about getting a legit custom sharpened katana from there and the process of purchasing it from overseas. Since this is such an expensive purchase (like over $10k), I want to make sure I wouldn't get scammed since I would be paying for it after placing the order, and it would take like 6-12 months to make. Plus I live in the US, and so it might be an issue for me to do anything legally if I pay for it and never receive the katana.
Any experience with Tozando that anyone could share with me, or any advice anyone has regarding purchasing an expensive sword like this from overseas would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you, Santoryu Susanoo
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Post by blairbob on Jan 17, 2024 2:18:29 GMT
i dont think ive ever heard of anyone being scammed by Tozando.
That being said, there are a lot of shinsakuto in good condition for sale from Japan but finding them in longer lengths can be difficult
ofc, there are some antiques and shinsakuto for under 10k in the US unless you are not in the US.
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Post by larason2 on Jan 17, 2024 3:48:12 GMT
Tozando is reputable. It looks like they deal directly with swordsmiths, and they all come with paperwork, which is important if you have to send it back for some reason. Still, if you plan on cutting with it, better to get a reproduction. For these prices you're paying for an art piece. If you get scratches on it, it's not going to be easy or cheap to get it repolished.
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Post by santoryususanoo on Jan 17, 2024 23:42:59 GMT
i dont think ive ever heard of anyone being scammed by Tozando. That being said, there are a lot of shinsakuto in good condition for sale from Japan but finding them in longer lengths can be difficult ofc, there are some antiques and shinsakuto for under 10k in the US unless you are not in the US. Thank you for the feedback. That is nice to hear that you haven't heard of anyone being scammed by Tozando. I am just a bit nervous doing this large of a purchase from a site overseas that who knows how long it will take before it is completed and ready to ship, or what my options are legally if something goes wrong and they just take my money and run. I am in the US, so trying to find one here is a possibility, however I feel like if I am going to spend this much money on a sword then I want to go all out and get a newly forged katana from Japan made from tamahagane, and also be able to choose all of the stuff on the saya and handle and everything else.
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Post by santoryususanoo on Jan 17, 2024 23:50:41 GMT
Tozando is reputable. It looks like they deal directly with swordsmiths, and they all come with paperwork, which is important if you have to send it back for some reason. Still, if you plan on cutting with it, better to get a reproduction. For these prices you're paying for an art piece. If you get scratches on it, it's not going to be easy or cheap to get it repolished. Thank you for your feedback. I'm glad to hear others validate Tozando being a reputable shop/site. I am just a bit nervous with making this huge of a purchase from an overseas shop. If anything goes wrong, I don't know what legally I could do since they would already have my money and it being in Japan, I don't know if I could sue them or anything (at least I am assuming it is a lot more difficult dealing with a company in another county than dealing with legal issues with companies here in the US)? And yes, this would definitely be an art piece, and not used for cutting or anything like that (unless a zombie apocalypse happens lol).
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Post by larason2 on Jan 18, 2024 3:54:46 GMT
Buying stuff from another country is always a risk, but I think it's probably worth it if you want a certified Japanese made blade to your specifications. There are a few other companies that do this sort of thing. The main problem is that they take a long time to get it done. Could easily be 3 years before you get it. When they get it from the first craftsperson, they send it to the second, but it may not be first in their queue. What I've run into too is that if they have enough business for now, they may not even answer your email. If you persevere though, it will be worth it. Also worth considering is you can get antique nihonto in very good condition already in the US from a reputable dealer. You don't get to choose the details, but many of them are gorgeous. $5000 is a good price point for a blade like that. For instance Ray Singer has some nice blades: swordsofjapan.com/You can find other reputable dealers on the Nihonto message board.
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Post by blairbob on Jan 18, 2024 9:25:59 GMT
There are also many blades in shirasaya in the US. While buying a new blade supports the craft in Japan, if you find a blade you like and that fits your needs, you can have a saya and tsuka crafted and mounted in something like 6-9mo instead of waiting for it to be done in about 1-2yrs.
There might even more blades in shirasaya than mounted. Especially blades pre Meiji.
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Post by santoryususanoo on Jan 24, 2024 0:36:55 GMT
Thank you both for the information and advice. I did decide to go with the newly forged sword from Tozando, so hopefully everything goes smoothly and the sword turns out great (will know in about a year and a half lol).
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