Shinsakuto Katana Project: Part 3 The Finish (忠善作 Tadayoshi Saku)

Описание: My objective in this project was to make a nice shinsakuto that would be solid as a cutter, functional for iaido, styled for a collector, and done at an affordable budget.

I got this Shinsakuto about a year ago as a bare blade. It is signed 忠善作 Tadayoshi Saku. I don’t know much about this smith or if the signature is legitimate. I have did not receive any prestige with the blade when I got it. What I can tell you by looking at it is that is is a shinsakuto made by a skilled smith. The planes and lines one the blade are all even and clean. Not national treasure level work but still very good in this price range. The blade has a very basic polish on it and the hada is very subtle. You can make out some of the hada under close examination but most of the blade is a mirror style polish. The blade has a shallow sori (curve) and a very wide profile. It resembles many of the competition cutting blades that are produced today. I am sure the blade would function well as a cutter or look great in a collection. The blade is on the large side, and while it can be used well for iaido, it is a bit on the large side for that (in my opinion).

The fuchi kashira kojiri are from an old japanese iaito. They are simple cast pieces but have a nice pattern to them and a good build quality. They are made of brass from what I can tell and they were large enough and clean enough to use on this project.

The menuki are brass and made by hyper cafe. I tend to put mitsudomoe themed pieces everywhere and this is no exception. They match the fuchi/kashira/kojiri well.

The tsuba is an edo period antique. It is something I was saving for a special project. It is a mitsudomoe theme tsuba with brass inlay work. It is not in great shape but it is very old. I got it for a good deal and it worked in the theme and kept the costs low. The tsuba is the only antique component on the sword and probably worth a few hundred on its own. I think the colors and theme worked well in this project.

The tsuka has a full wrap of small nodule black lacquered samgegawa with gold silk ito. This is a nice gold ito that is dark enough to hide use for a little while. The saya is a gold base coat that matches the fuchi/kashira/kojiri with a black Ishimae lacquer over the top in a splatter pattern. It came out very stunning. The habaki and seppa are also new and custom made for this blade. I chose to do a brass habaki to keep with the black/gold theme.

Blade/Nagasa: 29” (wihtout habaki) 30” from tip to guard.
Tang/Nakago: 9.5”
Tsuka/Handle: 11.25”
Motokasane .28”
Motohaba 1.2”
Sakihaba: .98”
Sori .3”
POB: 5.5” from guard
Weight: 2lb 9oz

The mount is new and the blade has not been used for cutting. That said there are a few things to note. Even though this blade is new there are a few blemishes that picky folks will want to know about. The blade has some minor defects in the polish. Mostly scuffs from shipping and minor stains. It is straight, sharp, and clean but there are some scuffs and stains visible in the right light.Also the tsuba has a little bit of wiggle to it. The tsuba is old and could be tightened down more but be aware that it has some minor horizontal movement. Also keep in mind this is a very new sword mount. The lacquer has not fully cured yet. It will be a few weeks before it is ready to be put on a stand or have a sageo tied to it.

Part 1:    • Shinsakuto Katana Project: Part 1 (忠善作 Tad...  
Part 2:    • Shinsakuto Katana Project: Part 2  Fitting...  
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