pgandy
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Post by pgandy on Oct 9, 2023 17:36:36 GMT
Good observation mrstabby.
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Post by pgandy on Oct 9, 2023 12:45:29 GMT
I strongly suggest that you follow Tera’s advice and stop cleaning for reasons he stated. It would be helpful to photograph all stampings and other marks and add those to your post. Welcome.
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Post by pgandy on Oct 9, 2023 12:40:53 GMT
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Post by pgandy on Oct 8, 2023 18:07:02 GMT
I believe some historians and/or sword lovers will find this of interest.
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Post by pgandy on Oct 8, 2023 14:17:40 GMT
That is indeed a great acquisition. Thanks for the history lesson and sharing all.
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Post by pgandy on Oct 7, 2023 14:56:26 GMT
Those of us who have been involved with swords for a while know this, yes. Beginners/novices do not. Unfortunately, there are a lot of novices sharing inaccurate information, a trend that is by no means new, but certainly harder to fight against now with multiple social media platforms making anybody who can sound confident an expert I'm their platform... Unfortunately. With YouTube and the likes anybody can be an expert these days making a camera and a good delivery more important than knowledge.
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Post by pgandy on Oct 6, 2023 16:59:07 GMT
I know, no such thing exists. I hadn’t thought about trolling at this point.
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Post by pgandy on Oct 6, 2023 16:55:31 GMT
I’m sorry to say that I missed this earlier. That is gorgeous, one of the few that has everything that I would look for in mine, if I had one. I’m envious. Thanks for sharing.
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Post by pgandy on Oct 6, 2023 16:33:20 GMT
I read auto. AUTO??? Out of curiosity what did you or your friend claim it was?
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Post by pgandy on Oct 5, 2023 19:17:05 GMT
Your support is helpful. Thanking each for your support. RIP
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Post by pgandy on Oct 4, 2023 15:36:53 GMT
For sub $500 check out Musashi. They often lack the frills & bells but the basics are there, well put together, and hold up. Mine are more the 15 years and are tight as a drum, and slice copy paper like a razor. Of course, I’ve had to maintain them over the years. Musha, I believe, is part of that company. I’ve no experience with them but have heard nothing bad. I don’t believe that you could go wrong with either, though my preference is with Musashi.
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Post by pgandy on Oct 4, 2023 13:46:22 GMT
Rather than patronizing Amazon you would be better off dealing with a reputable sword dealer. I’m sure our members can chime in with their favourites. Although I have dealt with them only once since they changed hands a popular site is KoA (Kult of Athena) www.kultofathena.com/
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Post by pgandy on Oct 4, 2023 13:30:50 GMT
I read your post past my bedtime and was feeling the effects. While lying in bed it dawned on me what was bothering me about the sword. I will point out that I do not consider myself an authority and could well be wrong. The finish doesn’t seem right for a knife that has been in the tropics for 250-300 years. Latinos are not noted for maintaining their machetes. Most I’ve seen appear never to have received a drop of oil. That knife appears to have been a working tool/weapon and not a work of art or jeweled and set aside and never used but guarded. I wish that I could examine the blade or had some measurements of the thickness. What bothers me is the rust is uniform and no use or abuse to any of the edges. Even storage rust would not be so uniform. Guatemala is to our north and the climate similar to ours. I live N10° and used to cross the line daily. Overall, the climate is hot and humid. Although I live high in the mountains where it’s cooler, about 27°C±10 daily. Rust is a daily enemy and cannot be counted on to be uniform. For example, the area a knife is resting upon is subject to condensation. That design is for a working knife and I see not the slightest ding nor the results of many sharpening, much less repeated. If the knife is from the island add the effects of salt air to that. And after all those years the edges appear to be undamaged, about like new with an uniform layer of rust, making me suspicious. I agree with Pellius in thinking that someone artificially aged it, possibly waiting for a tourist to come along.
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Post by pgandy on Oct 4, 2023 3:06:51 GMT
I’m afraid that I have more questions than answers. Antigua? Guatemala, Island (Caribbean), other? You state the blade at 10½”, from the photo it looks like in the neighbourhood of 13”. All English speaking isles in the Caribbean call machetes cutlasses. I have reservations about saying it’s a 1700ish cutlass, but at this point I am not prepared to say one way or the other.
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Post by pgandy on Oct 3, 2023 16:52:05 GMT
Welcome to the forum. I’ll try to address your questions, without having seen your wakizashi. I have no reason to believe that the blade is not carbon steel. However, ‘carbon steel’ is a catch all term. For the price and the fact they don’t state the specific type of steel I suspect the it is at the lower end of the spectrum, perhaps 1045, but could be a notch higher. I would also guess that it is in all likelihood tempered. I highly doubt it isn’t. Having said that, there are good and bad tempering jobs. But in all likelihood the tempering is satisfactory and I would not worry. If it is 1045 steel it will be on the softer side of blades. This does not mean that there is a problem obtaining a sharp edge as you already know. The issue, if you want to call it that, is edge retention. Meaning that you will have to sharpen more frequently to maintain that edge. Granted, there are better swords out there, but I would not be too quick to call it junk and tear it up. As far as Chinese writing, if you may find some on the tang. As for seeing how much abuse the sword will take; all swords have a limit, and tree cutting is not recommended for any sword. This is not to say that people don’t. Also, a full-blown katana with a longer blade and heavier would be better suited. Not that I’m suggesting this. If sapling cutting is your goal a $22 Tramontina machete is your best bet and I dare say do a better job. An Ontario, being heavier, will probably do a better job on hard wood, but the price jumps.
As for posting your ‘howdy’ we have a sub-board under “Adrian Jordan memorial Café” titled “Welcome Wagon”.
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Post by pgandy on Oct 3, 2023 15:19:53 GMT
Just a WAG, but I’d say that you left some residual acid and no amount of oil, wax, or whatever is going to stop the rust until that is neutralized. Baking soda, as mentioned, will be your best bet. I would increase your mix, perhaps to the point of saturation, and soak the metal, maybe using a brush such as a toothbrush. Then dry and oil.
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Post by pgandy on Oct 3, 2023 13:42:45 GMT
Now that's something I can get into. I suggest that we avoid slang and idioms with this guy. He's dependent on Google or something, and it mangles them. I wish not only “with this guy” as I often have trouble also, and frequent Wikipedia and Merriam-Webster.
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Post by pgandy on Oct 2, 2023 21:17:27 GMT
pgandy , after I took it apart and re-fitted it, the seppa, habaki and tsuba are now rock solid! I will shim the saya soon, so it also grasps the habaki better. Sometimes that’s all it takes. Glad to hear of the improvement.
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Post by pgandy on Oct 2, 2023 21:07:31 GMT
Yep, again, luckily I didn't pay it in full ;) On that topic, I got a response. It's amazing. They claim that the ito is of 'superior quality because it is thicker', and hence the large and loose knots.... go figure. They offered a €50 refund, only for the bad braiding... I offered to return the sword, but only after they refunded me completely. I trust them to sell a premium product, now they can trust me that I will send it back once refunded. Anyway, let's see how this plays out. I hope all works out to your satisfaction.
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Post by pgandy on Oct 2, 2023 12:50:22 GMT
I just received some breath-taking news while opening my email. My oldest daughter was killed in or just outside of Houston, TX. The first report said that she was killed in a car accident. That was quickly updated to a drive by shooting. I suppose more up dates to come.
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