The attention to detail and level of prep work before you begin wrapping is astounding. I need to put myself in the queue to have at least one tsuka by the Legendary Mr Cottontail. Excellent work! Thank you for all you do!
so, you're redoing the wrap again using only a strip of same instead of a full wrap; is that because the already-sculpted dip where the same sits prevented you from using a full wrap? was it a choice instead?
yes, I replaced the original panels with higher quality, wider panels. I don't usually recommend applying a full samegawa wrap on a production tsuka that originally used panels because you don't know how well the interior was carved. when removing the necessary amount of material from the core to accommodate a full wrap, there is a good chance of breaking through to the core cavity if you don't know the tolerances. When I carve my own core, I know how far I can safely go. A well made tsuka with panels is plenty strong and in my opinion, there is no reason to take a chance of accidentally weakening it by attempting to make it stronger.
Nice tutorial! A couple of additions that might be helpful: --When gluing down the shim, I insert a pencil or rod and clamp it down overnight. This helps ensure that the entire surface of the shim adheres to the koiguchi. I use a small clamp that I lined with adhesive-backed cork so that the metal won't scratch the saya, but you can simply put a folded paper towel under the outer side of the clamp --When the glue is dry, I file a slight ramp or bevel into shim at the koiguchi. This helps the habaki to slide in without hitting a blunt shim end that can cause splintering or cracking (even more likely if you've stacked two shims). --Sometimes one shim is too loose and two are too tight. It's okay to go with two shims and then shave it down with a needle file. --When filing or sanding, be sure to angle the saya so that the koiguchi is the lowest point. Otherwise sawdust falls into the saya, which can adhere to or even scratch a blade. If you have a compressor, it's a good idea to blow air into the saya after the shim is finished.
Thanks for the video Josh , so am I right in thinking you don’t really want the saya touching the sides of the Habaki and to only shim the mune and edge side?
You're welcome and you're correct. as mentioned in the video, too much pressure on the sides of the saya koiguchi can lead to the saya cracking/splitting at the seams of the ha and mune. as you can also see in my example, there are scratches on the sides of the habaki, which were caused by the epoxy residue left inside walls of the saya.
for all the pronunciation police on yt, here ya go. there's a lot more too, search it. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ZWmVQSQL8CQ.html
Well done. My experience is limited but what stands out for myself is that fit the handle onto the tang with precision allows for battlefield longevity. If you can remove and replace a Suzuki RM250 motocross bike ignition then you get that craftsmanship.
Didn't ever have to replace an ignition-- thank God. Dealing with Chinese forges for custom rare KoKatanas etc, keeps my blood pressure active enough. If you don't have a KoKatana, you're missing out on speed and leverage "feel" that will get addicting. A Katana length handle with a Wakizashi length blade is sweet and nasty--just like a good dirt ride. Ko-K's are hard to find, but HERO Swords will do you right, "Cheng" is my treasured contact. (That communication thing) Reasonable $ T10 or 1095 for around $150ish! You reminded me that I still miss my Yamaha 250 from the 70's. Blue smoke from a lazy mix and blurred vision. Bonzai mofo!!
@@t10claytempered16 well said mate. I have a Cheng katana, very nice. And I nearly bought a can of two stroke deodorant because I miss my 77 Husqvarna wr250.
most likely, your handle was already broken, as they are so often from the factory. if your handle breaks removing it this way, it wasn't made well in the first place.
Really nice work. Do you think it's worth the additional expense to buy Japanese silk instead of the China synth? I had been trying some synthetic suede, and man my hands get shredded from it. Also trying some synth silk, and frustrated how much it stretches when trying to wrap. For an iaito that could see a lot of handling, does the Jp silk pay for itself in use? Also, does it stretch less when wrapping? Any thoughts would be appreciated. Good vid and show here.
I personally don't like the feel of synthetic silk ito, especially the cheaper varieties. I find it very abrasive. as far as woven ito, I haven't found anything that feels better or wraps better than genuine Japanese silk. I also like genuine leather, nubuck and suede ito. all ito should be pre-stretched before wrapping but yes, synthetic will probably still stretch more than silk.
@@cottontailcustoms Thanks. Also read your writeup on cottontailcustoms website in the meantime. Synth silk is definitely too abrasive! Thanks for the advice to prestretch. Will likely try the Japanese silk next. About the abrasiveness, have tried microcrystalline wax etc on a couple swords. I have a vid of the process: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-L3MzOKFoQ_I.html Had to scrub the surface after because I used too much, but at least the Huawei doesn't feel like synth anymore. Thanks for the info and have a good day. E
Not so easy on some swords. I have one that has a leather wrap around another leather wrap and underneath that are where the wood pins are located so i would literally have to dissemble the entire handle just to even get to the wooden pins and im sure it would be loads of fun trying to put it all back together lol.
@@michaeldavis2420 if it still didn't budge after trying this, it might possibly because it's glued. I don't know the brand well enough to know if they have or still do use any glue in their tsuka. if it is glued, you may be able to soften it enough to remove by using a heat gun or hair dryer. obviously be very careful not to burn the ito or samegawa if trying this. and of course, double check that you removed all mekugi.
Guys I had to go to town on mine. I put the wood block on the handle side instead of blade side, held the handle and block firmly in my hand and whacked the block with controlled deliberate but forceful blows. Of course alternating sides of the handle will help too. The tang had quite a bit of rusty pitting, and there was also some Chinese newspaper wrapped around it (glad it came out with the blade). Hammering from the blade side like in this video, I guess might be safer for the tsuba and rest of the brass fittings (mine were fine), but it's a lot harder to really get some extra force out of the hammer blows if it's needed.
