Where to Buy Mekugi Pins?

[tanukimario]

Hey there. So I need to buy some mekugi pins/rods... Does anyone know of a website (preferrably one that they've ordered from in the past) that sells them? I only need like 4 though...

How much do they usually go for anyway?

[Mako]

Hey there. So I need to buy some mekugi pins/rods... Does anyone know of a website (preferrably one that they've ordered from in the past) that sells them? I only need like 4 though...

How much do they usually go for anyway?
If Jason can't get them I'd go with Mike Crampton...bottom of page.
http://www.shadowofleaves.com/maintenance_supplies.htm
...or try ebay.

[Jason Moore]

I have tried to get them over the years, but no distributor wants to sell them to me. They always say "We can order them for you" but they never do. Thaitsuki says they can get them for me, but we will see.

[Travis Morris]

LOL, I use bamboo chopsticks. Works like a charm. I soak them then let them dri before I use. Never had a problem yet.

[Mako]

LOL, I use bamboo chopsticks. Works like a charm. I soak them then let them dri before I use. Never had a problem yet.

I'm glad you said that Travis as I almost wrote the very same :) but there's a certain forum which we both frequent where we'd have been crucified by some for suggesting anything other than mekugi made of 'susudake'.
Just so everyone knows what we're talking about...susudake is aged,smoked bamboo which is favored for mekugi but is quite expensive these days.;)

[Brian Brazier]

all very good suggestions, also if you do kendo the shinai bamboo works excellent for making mekugi, and here they sell all the tools and bamboo you need to make your own

Bamboo is here
http://nihonzashi.com/supplies.htm

Tools here
http://nihonzashi.com/tools.htm

Instructions
http://nihonzashi.com/MekugiReplacement.htm#Reshaping%20the%20Mekugi%20A na%20(peg%20hole

[tanukimario]

Thanks everyone for the help. I think i'll buy from the site that Mako posted unless Mr. Sword of Might is able to get the mekugi pegs soon...

Anyway I also have another question. I have a couple of carbon steel swords, and i've heard several times that it is nesecary to have a sword care kit (like the box with the cleaning paper, the oil, uchiko ball thing, and the hammer for dissasembling), but is it extremely nesecary to have? I do have a bottle of the Paul Chen sword oil (that I bought from Sword of Might ;)), is that enough or do I also need to get the kit? I'm sure though most would say it's recommended to have and can be useful, but I am unsure if I want to buy a cleaning kit if it's something to be used like once every 3 months or something...

[Mako]

Anyway I also have another question. I have a couple of carbon steel swords, and i've heard several times that it is nesecary to have a sword care kit (like the box with the cleaning paper, the oil, uchiko ball thing, and the hammer for dissasembling), but is it extremely nesecary to have? I do have a bottle of the Paul Chen sword oil (that I bought from Sword of Might ;)), is that enough or do I also need to get the kit? I'm sure though most would say it's recommended to have and can be useful, but I am unsure if I want to buy a cleaning kit if it's something to be used like once every 3 months or something...
You should find the answer to your question here,under 'Regular cleaning' ;)

http://www.swordsofmight.com/index.asp?PageAction=Custom&ID=3

[Brian Brazier]

tanukimario, unless you want to customize your sword with rust, every sword owner should have a good maintinace kit. I perfer the Paul Chen Maintinace kit because it has slightly better polish in the uchiko, and wood venier for tightening saya's, but the Economy will work just fine, and it is half the price. I would also suggest picking up a tube of metal-glo, metal-glo is a mildly abrasive polishing paste that will remove most serface rusting, and can be used periodicly to really bring the polish out on your sword .

[tanukimario]

Thinking about it I guess I don't really need one... I might buy one in the future just to have it when I need it, but as I was thinking, my father owns a real korean katana meant for gumdo (he used to be a master/instructor long long ago), and he doesn't really clean it or anything, but he polishes it once a year...

While I was reading about some of the other information on the website, I found this to be really funny!
"Also keep swords out of reach of people who want to clash blades like in the movies or cut down trees with them." =)
It's funny because it's true. When my friends see my sword collection for the first time they always have the need to touch it and swing it around and stuff. I always have to tell them that a katana is a sword, not a wood-cutting axe. :P

[Dotanuki]

Travis and Mako,
Years ago, there was no Internet, or easy access to any sort of sword furniture or supplies. Especially depending on where you live, you were usually writing "letters" to various stores, usually in California.[that's if you could even find out who existed][long distance phone calls back then were very expensive]
Back then, that is what we used, bamboo chopsticks for mekugi replacement, because we had no other access to original mekugi.
I think it is a shame that the sword arts have gotten so politically correct, that you would have to worry about making such a statement on any Forum.
Travis, to me your statement just means, you were taught by an old-timer who knew what he was doing.

[Brian Brazier]

I just wanted to add that anyone who owns a Paul Chen Practical should look into replacing the Mekugi as they aren't made with Susudake (smoked bamboo) and will most likely fracture or come apart if you remove them. I believe the high end PC stuff does have the proper Mukugi at least it appears to from the pictures I have seen

[Dotanuki]

Brian,
I don't know about the new practicals, because I really haven't examined them, but on the old practicals the mekugi aren't meant to be removed. The tsuka are epoxied on [glued], the mekugi looked like plastic pins, that just reinforced the glue job.

[69NINJA]

any idea if the paul chen Great Wave has any mekugi problems?

[Brian Brazier]

From what I can tell by looking at pictures they should be replaced, the easiest way to tell without removing them is by the color, if you look at the pics of Justice's review of the Tori http://swordsofmightforum.com/showthread.php?t=209, the Mekugi are a brown color, those appear to be the proper smoked bamboo pegs , the ones that come in most of the PC Katans are wood. I am unsure if the ones sold by shadow of leaves are smoked, but I know people that use them and haven't had any problems with them. I choose to send my sword in to nihonzashi http://nihonzashi.com/Repair.htm , they custom make the mekugi from the traditional susudake, it takes a couple weeks, it costs about $50 overall (that includes shipping there and back), but the quality of their work is great, and I know it is done right.

[Kissaki]

I'm glad you said that Travis as I almost wrote the very same :) but there's a certain forum which we both frequent where we'd have been crucified by some for suggesting anything other than mekugi made of 'susudake'.
Just so everyone knows what we're talking about...susudake is aged,smoked bamboo which is favored for mekugi but is quite expensive these days.;)
Just to **** them off you should say you used a stick of chalk or a soda straw to secure your blade before you used it in a public demonstration :D

[Jason Moore]

=))

[bobO]

Hey, if you keep having to much fun were going to have to lock this thread down.

[Jason Moore]

Who made you a moderator Bob! If I remember correctly, you seemed to be havin fun to...


That's it ,Firehand you are officially "The Man".Great review,we got swords,we got cool music,we got cutting and we got babes with blades,it don't get no better then that.Tell your wife we all said thanks for being such a good sport.And stop cutting up that poor table top.

http://swordsofmightforum.com/muggled/misc/progress.gif

[bobO]

Whoops forgot this is the fun forum,but go ahead make me a mod I learned from the best.Thread locked,your not old enough to buy that sword,this is a sword forum not a gun forum,ask your sensei,NO religion,No politics,No fun,see I can do it,put me in coach!

[Ben]

Chill bobocop!;)

Now that we are on the subject of house hold sword supplies, has anyone ever used turtlewax rubbing compound to polish a sword? I find it works pretty well. It removed the stains I recently got from an acidic beach matt.

[bobO]

Yeah ,forgot myself there for a moment,spending to much time at that other forum,but I'm feeling much better now.And no I never even thought of that(turtlewax)but I'll try anything once.PS,you guys know I was kidding right.

[Ben]

I hoped you were kidding, but its so easy to misunderstand the tone of what people write on a forum. Things can be easily taken out of context.

Your comment reminded me of the moderators at a certain Euro dominated martial art forum I used to frequent. Those guys could be so mean.>:P

I just want to make it clear that the turtlewax that I suggest is not the wax. It is the turtlewax rubbing compound polish. There is the hardcore grit and the fine grit.

[bobO]

So which one do you use,I've have stains on my kat that just don't want to come out.

[Jason Moore]

Did you try metal glow?? It works really well here at the shop.

[Brian Brazier]

I have had good results with metal glo, if that dosent work try Pikal, it is expensive but works very well

[bobO]

I've been using simichrome polish,but I think I'll try metal glo,I'll let you know how it works on this one stain that just doesn't want to come out.

[rick]

what about that renaissance wax by m.r.l.

[bobO]

The wax is great for potecting your sword for long periods of time,but will do little to get out a stain in the blade.

[rick]

how can I tell if my gen2 has real mekugi pins

[Brian Brazier]

if they are the regular bamboo will look simmilar to wood but there will be a bunch of little holes in either end, traditional smoked bamboo pegs will look the same but they will be brown

[rick]

mine are medium brown w/ darker brown dots ........ I think they're real

[Mako]

Some are soaked in tea to make them appear as susudake [smoked bamboo] ;)

[Dotanuki]

Mako,
I like that soaking in tea idea!!
Would I have to use a herbal tea? Or would any old brand do?
Would green tea turn my Mekugi green?
I drink coffee myself, is there any chance I could use coffee grounds instead?
And what would you reccommend? Regular or decaffeinated?=))=))

Hey old friend, it seems that now we are moderaters we don't get the chance to joke around as much as before.;)

[bobO]

WAIT,you guys are mods??But..but..you don't chide people,you don't lock down threads,you don't tell people there to young to own swords,you don't tell people to,wait for it...Ask your sensei!You guys must come from the lao Tzu school of mods.(best damn mods on the net!)bobO

[Jason Moore]

Now you see why I chose them Bobo...

Funny and smart!;)

[Mako]

Mako,
I like that soaking in tea idea!!
Would I have to use a herbal tea? Or would any old brand do?
Would green tea turn my Mekugi green?
I drink coffee myself, is there any chance I could use coffee grounds instead?
And what would you reccommend? Regular or decaffeinated?=))=))

Hey old friend, it seems that now we are moderaters we don't get the chance to joke around as much as before.;)
Oh any old thing will do.:>

I could never understand why anyone would want to smoke bamboo instead of tobacco anyway...it's all bad for your health. :))

[rick]

well bamboo is a type of GRASS

[69NINJA]

HA, geez. =P~

[rick]

sorry , couldn't resist

[Ben]

I tried chopstick mekugi!

I kind of had to, I recently screwed up my real mekugi by not hammering my tsuka back on all the way before re-installing the mekugi and really screwed them up. That's what I get for paying to much attention to the t.v. while working on the sword.#-o They work pretty well, I even cut with them in. But I don't trust them enough to keep them. I'll be ordering more mekugi soon.

[tanukimario]

Yeah, it'd be even worse of an idea to watch TV while trying to polish a razor sharp blade. ;)

[royalblueeyes]

...I had to reread the forum rules.

I WAS going to joke about what kind of TV, and then move on to questioning the ingredients in sword-polish...

:cry:
T'would have been funny...

[JohnnyRotten]

This is my first time on this forum, but I've been looking around for mekugi for a katana I'm building and it was suggested I try bamboo knitting needles. They are supposed to be very good quality bamboo, readily availible at most craft stores, and in several diameters. If anyone has tried them I'd be interested in hearing if they are any good.

[bobO]

JR,Welcome to the Forum! Haven't tried them but I'm going to look into that,sounds like a great idea. At the very least it'll give the old ladys at the Yarn Barn something to talk about.

[Ben]

JohnyRotten,

I don't know about sewing needles. But, mekugi are really not expensive. You can get the real thing here: http://www.shadowofleaves.com/maintenance_supplies.htm at an average of $1.30 a piece for the 10 pack.

[JohnnyRotten]

Thanks for the heads-up Ben, I was just hoping to avoid the 3 week wait and $40.00 shipping charge to Canada. You gotta love livin' in the Great White North!!

[Sairon]

Why not make your own? there not that hard to make just buy some bamboo and sand it to the right size.

HORRAY JASON CARRIES MEKUGI PINS.