Q: sukashi tsuba - style and technique

[loempe]

Hi there...

I was thinking about forging some sukashi tsuba this spring, but then I realised that I didn't really know how the sukashi style developed and how a sukashi tsuba is made - traditionally?

Is it cut, drilled, sawn out from a solid steel/iron plate? - like most of us would probably do, or...

Is it forged in one piece - like a modern viking blacksmith would forge a rose? or..

Is it forged together piece by piece? - like traditional menukis, fuchis and kashiras would be?

I have attached some photos of the sukashi styles I had in mind.

Love to learn from your answers :detective:

/loempe

[goose710]

loempe
Not in response to your question , but a great tsuba video.
http://img682.imageshack.us/img682/6338/backofnewtsuba.jpg (http://img682.imageshack.us/i/backofnewtsuba.jpg/)

http://img36.imageshack.us/img36/2585/newtsubafront.jpg (http://img36.imageshack.us/i/newtsubafront.jpg/)

and a video of the laboriuos process involved

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulaQ6C47sig


da gooseman

[loempe]

yes! indeed a great video...and I certainly hope this video only shows how to refine details - It would be rather labourious to carve out a sukashi tsuba this way, from scratch/a solid plate. Thanks Gooseman ;-)

[zentredi]

ive seen a few cast from the softer metals but all the iron ones ive seen were made pretty much like Goose's vid showed though i do have a few modern cut outs.

[Caliper]

I believe there are 3 ways of making a tsuba,
- handmade, very tedious
- press milled, where the shape and design is basicly stamped, complex machinery required
- casted, a mold is used, fastest and easiest way, but the iron ends very brittle

if you have access to one, you could use a waterjet cutter, just program the shape on the jet computer, it will cut your tsuba quickly and you can work out the details for fitment by hand

Great video Goose, I followed the links on it and found a fantastic tsuba making series by jswords.com, if you ever wondered why handmade tsuba are so expensive, here's your answer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhP4V-nCbwk&feature=related

[loempe]

yeah Caliper...Pavel Bolf is a fine smith. For one thing he is a martial artist himself and he really takes great care into his work. His like a european equivalent to Rick Barrett in the US (without comparison, though)

But how do you think the two tsubas I have attached are made?

[zentredi]

by hand with chisel, hammer and files and then sanded, though some of the bulk cutting might have been done with drill-punch and saw, if you look close you can still see file marks on the second one

[Dotanuki]

From the looks of it (I have one) the SOM custom katana's tsuba was done by a laser. I have first hand experience with lasers.

[Mako]

But how do you think the two tsubas I have attached are made?
Sukashi means 'cut out' but the ones you've posted look as if they were cast to my old eyes but its really hard to determine from pics, just like many other things.

These are not Sukashi style but how would anyone know that those at the bottom of this page are fakes from the pics?

http://home.earthlink.net/~steinrl/tsuba.htm

I wouldn't.

[Caliper]

This might help

Patrick Hasting, a true koshirae artist
http://www.taganearts.com/sukashi.html

[loempe]

Indeed Caliper. Patrick Hastings really does the trick there with his jewelers saw. And if there really isn't any forging per se to traditional sukashi tsuba crafting, I would definately stay with the jewelers saw (or the occational water jet). Thanks for the link ;-)

[goose710]

This i did a few years ago, solid bronze, with nothing more than drill, file,sandpaper, buffer.
http://img25.imageshack.us/img25/1146/dsc01260ww1.jpg (http://img25.imageshack.us/i/dsc01260ww1.jpg/)
I'm thinking of doing another in mild steel maybe this summer

da gooseman

[wolfhound]

Gooseman, that's truly amazing!!!!

[Torawashi]

This is an excellent thread guys. Goose you are an artisan par excellence buddy. I would love to chime in here but I know absolutely nothing about the subject matter so i'm gonna watch and learn. thanks for the opportunity!

[andysoard]

This is an excellent thread guys. Goose you are an artisan par excellence buddy. I would love to chime in here but I know absolutely nothing about the subject matter so i'm gonna watch and learn. thanks for the opportunity!

Ditto =)

[Caliper]

sweet job Goose, damn nice!!
love the seppa =P~

[Mako]

love the seppa =P~
Mrs 'gooseman' is still looking for her silver candy dish. :ohyeah:

[goose710]

Mako


I'm suprized at you !!! SSSSHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH let her look! hidden in plain sight

da gooseman