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Post by vermithrax on Mar 12, 2017 23:21:47 GMT
"Battle of the Mounds" from Conan The Barbarian. The music cannot be beat:
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 12, 2017 2:52:52 GMT
Two others of equal or greater quality: NICE! Loaded them now, will be watching in a few minutes! Thanks!
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 11, 2017 1:12:57 GMT
The painting was from my mom, she passed away this week. I was initially going to keep it, but I feel that if it's kept as art it will be ok. I don't need/want to do anything else with the money... Very sorry for the loss of your Mother. My wife had same loss 2 years ago. Brutal tough. My own Dad died when I was 20 years old (he was 50). Difficult. I only mentioned the ETF because you said something that appreciates. I am getting a Nihonto (to be delivered Tuesday!) but that thing is getting buried with me. I have zero idea the long term appreciation rate for the authentic blades, imagine a Sotheby's stock chart would explain it; goes in cycles.
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 11, 2017 0:51:32 GMT
Buy some ETF's spread across financial sectors.
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 10, 2017 23:56:06 GMT
No worries I am a scientist, I can get HPLC grade solvents
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 10, 2017 4:17:31 GMT
Take care of that nihonto, or we will be less nice. .... Ahem. I kid. ( But no, seriously, take good care of it, it's a piece of history.) Trust me, it's getting a nice home. Am a collector of first edition books and they are my kids. This will be my wife. Wife not happy BTW.
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 10, 2017 4:06:34 GMT
Definitely listen to Verity as this goes. I know next to nothing about nihonto care and feeding. The only thing I use Ren Wax on currently is one blade that I don't ever intend to cut with (structural problems, a production blade, but I love how it looks). I was thinking of potentially using it on some others for long term storage, but pardon me while I look at it funny now. Edited: Hey, at least for all of my other swords, I use a similar procedure to Verity's... working on computers gives me an ample supply of rubbing alcohol. I am listening to Verity! Good tips from everyone. I want to clean up my older swords from years ago that I have neglected and I know I came to right place to discuss it all. Thanks!
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 10, 2017 3:56:14 GMT
I'll take a bit of time and cover reconditioning and conservation methods I use. 1st: caveat emptor on Renn wax as I mention above. Miracle stuff but recently museums have learned that some of their miracle methods have come at a price. See my above posted case study. That said it can be a good option for some. I do not use it for the reasons posted in case study. Getting it off is near impossible. 2nd: I strongly urge you to not attempt to restore a Nihonto yourself. Restoration and polish of Nihonto takes years of study to become adept at. Keep it oiled and conserved in whatever present state it is in. Save the polishing of Nihonto to the trained professionals who have studied, apprenticed and have become skilled in the nuances of the practice. Conservation methods I use for any non-Nihonto is pretty simple: silicone gun and reel cloths. I use KleenBore ones. I wipe down my swords every few weeks and never get any rust. Period. I do it every couple of weeks because it can sometimes evaporate in higher temps in the summer and such. Avoid WD-40 as the silicate there evaporates very quickly. Sewing machine oil, pure light mineral oil, 3-in-1, etc all work well too. But I find the gun and reel cloth to be no muss no fuss. Every 4-6 months I clean the blades down with denatured or isopropyl alcohol down to bare metal and re-wipe with the gun and reel cloth. This ensures no "muck buildup". For blades I have need of polishing to remove rust (usually ones I acquire that may need some TLC) involves scotch brite pads, automotive wet/dry paper or stones. Which I use depends upon the original level of polish; is it mirror or satin.. Verity, thank you! Great post and I appreciate it. The Nihonto is newly refitted and polished so I will not be doing any of that. Just want to take care of it. Loved that article with the reference links. I am a molecular biologist (DNA manipulation and synthetic chemistry) so I eat that kind of thing up big time.
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 10, 2017 3:43:18 GMT
The last 2 posts with the folded steel blades, OMG!!!! If you ever are going to part with those blades, let me know!
Original poster, show some pics, but I think I know the sword you are talking about.
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 10, 2017 3:27:49 GMT
No Thumbs Up button here but all responses I appreciate.
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 10, 2017 2:35:31 GMT
Thanks all! Great links and great advice. I came to the right place.
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 9, 2017 2:39:41 GMT
I had been prowling your forum and loved it. Reminds me of the Camaro forum I belong to, knowledgeable and fun. I have several swords from over the years but something else always got in the way, or was more important. I have been a bad sword owner.
I want to correct that.
I want to re-condition my old blades (mostly mass produced but cool to me stuff) and I have coming an authentic Edo Period Nihonto katana in the next week or so.
So, if my old swords have some rust, how do I clean that up?
How do I protect a blade I want to keep for a long time?
I have Renaissance Wax, machine oil, you name it. Help me out.
When I get the new sword, I will do a post with all my blades cleaned up and on display.
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 9, 2017 0:00:38 GMT
If you are not after the more accurate look, like if you really cut with your sword, I wrap that sort with tennis Tourna grip overwrap and love the feel and tack of it.
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 8, 2017 23:56:33 GMT
Well, it looks to be the real deal, as far as being a traditionally made Japanese sword, but I can't verify the smith etc. What I can say is the condition is very rough, but it logs as though it could be repaired. Unfortunately, you're looking at double the price or more to just get it back to "good" condition. That's your cash to make. I only own two Japanese antiques, one's condition is comparable to this one, the other debatably "better" but still not great. I paid a bit over half the cost of this sword for one, and more than double for the other, and have yet to have enough to polish either... Of course, I've since moved on to other things and the priority level has declined. Long/short: It's rough. Can't verify details, but it's at least a real Japanese sword. Should you want to fix it, you'll need a pro to do it right, and it's probably going to end up costing more than a comparable blade that's already in decent polish. You'll probably want new furniture after, at the minimum you'll likely need a new habaki. Otherwise, the furniture looks pretty good as-is. Thanks for your reply. I've made up my mind and I'm buying it. I don't know why. It's kinda like I fell in love with it. I know it's definitely not the best blade or the best deal out there, but I just can't forget this blade. So I'm bringing her home.I very recently had this same kind of feeling about a sword. If it speaks to YOU then that's what matters. Enjoy your purchase!
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 7, 2017 1:44:49 GMT
With how good this board is, I am sure you have seen this National Geographic video on Samurai sword forging. If so, a reminder how cool this is. If not, enjoy!:
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 7, 2017 0:48:37 GMT
Hey all, I worked with Matthew Jensen (Thanks moderator Adrian!) and he sure has plenty of excellent swords available. It was not an easy call for me to make. In the end, I decided on the Nihonto Katana signed Kanemasa as it's just too pretty to believe and an "authentic" Japanese sword, which I have always wanted. Second place was the Dynasty Forge Tamahagane Sword, which in better pictures has a really nice pattern on the blade. Hope to have the sword here near end of week or early next week. Pretty damn excited!!!!!! Thanks to this board, it really saved me a lot of time and worry because I could get to the right resources with confidence. Great group.
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 6, 2017 2:35:27 GMT
Please share what you get, we love to see that kind of stuff. I will, waiting for invoice tonight! Close the deal.
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 5, 2017 2:43:15 GMT
Working on a sword purchase right now. I wanted to stop in and say thanks to this forum and especially Moderator Adrian Jordan for all the help and direction. Great forum, knew I came to right place.
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Post by vermithrax on Mar 1, 2017 0:24:13 GMT
No, it's not made via the same process that I believe you are referring to. Smelted in a tatara, broken up into pieces based on carbon content, then arranged, stacked and forged by a smith. I cannot say whether the Chinese tamahagane is better or worse performance wise, but it is not made in the same manner from that forge. They may very well fold it and differentially harden it. They tend to specialize in low cost mono steel blades. They are affiliated(allegedly a sub-branch) with another forge/vendor that has been shown to provide false information and blades that are not as advertised, such as polishing a folded but mono steel blade to appear to be of a San Mai construction and selling it as such, at an appropriately inflated price. If you are wishing to purchase a blade specifically made of tamahagane, Dynasty Forge has their Daiymo line. They are much more trustworthy. Not Japanese tamahagane, but they have skilled workers and source from makers with a lot of experience. With your budget you could afford to get one and have it refitted by a customizer to your liking. Also, and you may want to ask around about this a bit, but I seem to recall a fellow by the name of Simon Lee that makes swords with tamahagane(Chinese) for not a lot of money, and they were of pretty good quality. Lastly, is tamahagane a must have? It has a great look, but performance wise it is on par with modern carbon steels ranging from 1070 to 1085. You can actually get more performance out of modern steels, and with your budget you could get a pretty fantastic sword from someone like Bugei, Citadel or any of the aforementioned vendors made in a fairly traditional manner. To get 100% traditionally made tamahagane you will need to get a sword made in Japan by a Japanese smith. The guys I mentioned in my first post are probably your best bet to get one fairly soon/easily. Again thanks for the great info. The user you linked Matthew Jensen already has a few I would just LOVE to have. Tamahagane is not a dealbreaker, but I really want to see the damascus like lines in the metal. I think If I check in on his listings I can find something. Except for the green wrap, I love the James Raw Katana, except for green wrap ( drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B7Ws_1m1h-WsZV93by10d0VMVjA ) as well as the Dynasty Forge one he has ( drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B7Ws_1m1h-WseXRycDRBOFUtVVE ) though I am not a bo hi fan. All your help is making this way easier. Thanks again. *Not sure why my Quote button is not setting your comments off with a break but, will work on it!
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Post by vermithrax on Feb 28, 2017 23:13:12 GMT
I'll answer assuming that by "authentic" you mean an actual Japanese made sword, not a foreign made reproduction. Swords of Northshire is a Chinese vendor that deals in Chinese made reproductions. They are functional, but not "authentic". If you wish to have a real Japanese made blade, made of Japanese tamahagane, you need to look elsewhere. There is a fellow by the name of Paul Martin who runs The Japanese Sword. He specializes in mediating between Japanese and non-Japanese in order to get actual, authentic Japanese made blades. www.thejapanesesword.com/www.facebook.com/The.Japanese.Sword/?fref=tsOutside of that you can look at the websites of toshigi(polisher) as they sometimes get swords as payment and resale them. Here are a couple of sites where I have seen them for sale also. www.aoijapan.com/www.nihonto.ca/Lastly, we have a couple of forum members who buy/sell them and could possibly point you towards something. sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/user/16527sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/user/14074Matthew also has many swords for sale, including some Nihonto(Japanese made sword). If you want a top notch Non-Japanee made custom katana, he has some of those made by a few of the best Western smiths alive. sbg-sword-forum.forums.net/thread/48177/japanese-swords-custom-production-partsWow, great information Adrian, thank you very much. I figured this place was the right way to go! I guess by "authentic" I mean the actual construction process. Are the Swords of Northshire tamahagane swords made using the old school furnace melting of the steel, is it folded? I really want to see the finish with all the grains, that's so wild to me. Appreciate this response and the others above, I have plenty of reading to do tonight. Thanks again all, great site.
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