fixing an iaito

[ryoishin]

Hey guys this is my first post. I have an iaito but when I came home from japan the tsuba was loose slightly and you could move it slightly in a clockwise direction. I think the baggage handlers must have thrown it around despite my warnings on the box. But now you can move it alot and the blade was coming out a bit. I know nothing about sword maintance and I rarely use it but I want to train more with it. I mainly a jujutsu man and I ve been using a bokken. Im a bit nervous of messing around with it as I dont want to damage it or me.

Any ideas of what I should do or of anywhere that I can get it fixed. Im in Dublin, Ireland.

PS I not sure of the Japaneese names of the various parts of the sword.

John Timmons
Ryoishin Dojo
Ireland

[pgsmith]

Hello John,
This is fairly common, and is usually a matter of atmospheric difference between where your iaito was made and where it is now. The tsuka (handle) is carved of wood, and so can shrink over time. This is what usually causes a loose tsuba. To fix this, you will probably need either a thicker, or an additional seppa (washer on each side of the tsuba) on the handle side of the tsuba. There are many different fixes if there is just a little looseness which causes your tsuba to move. Since you said the blade "comes out a bit", that makes me a little nervous. Something to check first is to see if the blade actually moves in the handle, or just has enough space that the tsuba and habaki (metal collar between tsuba and blade) can move. Hold the tsuka firmly in one hand, and the blade of the iaito in the other. Move them back and forth and see if there is movement, or if they are stable. If stable, then you simply add a seppa to take up extra space. If there is movement of the nakago (tang) inside the handle, then the fix becomes much more complicated and the sword should NOT be used until it is fixed by someone with some experience.

[kenkyusha]

Have you checked to see if your mekugi (the 'pin' that holds the tsuka to the nakago) is in good repair?

When I did Iaido briefly (an embarrassingly long time ago), one of the instructor's loaner iaito had a mekugi that was nearly down to nothing. The person borrowing it felt the blade loosening and slowed his cut-- good thing too, as the blade would probably have launched forward into the shomen wall.

Be well,
Jigme

[rottunpunk]

its a bit of a treck as they are in northern ireland, but check these guys out
http://www.roshukai-ireland.org/

as mentioned above, take the tsuka off and check everything is in good condition, to get a tight fit if the tsuba is moving back and forth, when putting it back together tighten everything up by knocking the kashira (butt) on a hard surface.

i recently changed my tsuba, and have the same problem as you in that it moves round. everything else on the sword is solid. i havent done so yet but chidokan suggested wrapping floss around the sword to pad out the gap between the sword and tsuba.

please check everything isnt broken before you use it though, as already mentioned, the mekugi peg holds the whole lot together, if that is missing or broken it can be very dangerous. bamboo chopsticks cut down work as good mekugi

the most important part of using a sword is making sure it is safe to use.

http://www.yamatanidojo.com/description_of_the_parts_of_a_ka.htm

:P

[ryoishin]

Thanks guys.

Im a bit nervous about taking it apart as Im not very "DIY minded" and would nt know where to start. My father is good with his hands but hes a bit over enthusiastic about doing it and Id probably end up with something resembling my iaito. A least I have info to go on now.

Thanks.

John Timmons
Son of Ironfist
Ryoishin Dojo
Ireland

[rottunpunk]

knock the peg out carefully
theres special hammers for this but using the blunt end of a nail should work.

to loosen everything, hold the sword in one hand (lightly but firmly) and hit the top of your forearm with your other hand (like knocking away a tsuki punch)

then take the tsuka off the blade along with seppa and tsuba.

it goes back together the same way you took it apart, but tighten stuff like i mentioned above.

do you know anyone with iaito that can show you?
its best not to play about with them unless you are being taught by someone, else accidents or worse-bad habits may occure

:p

[rottunpunk]

this link may help you
http://home.earthlink.net/~steinrl/care/handling.htm

:p

[pgsmith]

this link may help you
Hey Debz,
Out of all of the iaito that I've taken apart, I've never had one that would loosen that way. They are generally much tighter than an equivalent nihonto, as they should be. I've had a few that have actually had to be hammered apart (in an appropriate manner!), and many that have shims holding the nakago tight and centered in the tsuka. Taking your iaito apart should not be done lightly, as the potential for not getting it back together correctly is greater than it is for a collector's nihonto, which isn't usually used for daily practice.

It isn't rocket science by any means John, but it should be done carefully to ensure proper safety of your iaito when you're finished.

Cheers,

[Chidokan]

If its just arrived it may have been damaged in transit... I had an iaito snap at the habaki after going through baggage handling. Just be careful.

[Brian Owens]

this link may help you
http://home.earthlink.net/~steinrl/care/handling.htm
That's an interesting site, with good advice from the NBTHK on care and handling of Nihonto.

But some of the advice should not be followed with iaito.

For example, most iaito are chrome plated. Using uchiko on them can lead to dulling of the finish over time, because it actually causes tiny scratches to form with each use.

Overall, though, a nice article.

[rottunpunk]

sorry. i should have read the link proper before attaching it. i just did a quick search.

mine used to be very very tight, but its not as bad now.
:p

[Ken-Hawaii]

John, most of us have pulled our iaito apart, some more carefully than others. I've changed out my tsuba at least a couple of times, & am now using a gorgeous gold-plated one that even my Sensei likes.

Go carefully when taking it apart, & you might want to have a sheet of paper lying there onto which you place the parts in order as you remove them. There's lots of logic to how any sword is built; the ancient Japanese swordsmiths really knew what they were doing! :p

As Paul mentioned, it may not be the best of ideas to mess with your tsuka on your first attempt. What that means is that if a couple of shims fall out (or two matchsticks in my case), you may want to stop until you can get some advice from someone with experience. Very nasty things can happen to, with, & from blades that aren't perfectly secured with mekugi, tsuka, habaki, seppa, & all the other components of the sword.

If you want to learn all the parts of your sword, browse over to www.geocities.com/alchemyst/nihonto.htm. This site is tremendous overkill for that info, John, but it has links to just about anything you'd want to know.

Have fun!

[rottunpunk]

gold plated?

bling as that may sound, mines still nicer.

so has our jitsu freind taken his swordapart yet? how did you get on? hope it wasnt damaged and just normal loosness
:p