Lonnnng blades - Wally Hayes, MS - sword set

SharpByCoop

SharpByCoop

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Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
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A collector buddy of mine dropped in on Sunday. We spent the afternoon working together to shoot this trio of Wally's swords. (I had to change the studio to shoot these, and I needed help with moving things)

This has taken over three years to complete the package, and the tanto was the final in the set.

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The scabbards have a bit of purple at the ends to balance out the handle colors while sheathed. the blade lengths are 26", 18", and 10".

Going further, I shot the tanto (the SMALLEST one is bigger than most bowies!) as a separate shot:

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One final detail shot of the inside guard (I know there is a Japanese term for these, but I forget it. Sorry...)

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The collector gave me permission to post, although he does not venture on forums much if at all. :confused:

Coop
 
The fittings in the detail shot are (in order) habaki, seppa, and tsuba.

I really don't have anything else to add except YOU ROCK! :D

10 out of 10
 
Is that tamahagane, or pattern welded damascus? If tamahagane, does anyone know if Wally Hayes makes his own?
 
Lovely set. My preference is for slightly more exotic shapes for wakizashis, which are always the least interesting pieces... I love the use of wrought iron for the tsubas.

Do you know who made the sayas?
 
Very impressive set. Not hard to figure why this would have presented a real challenge to shoot. :eek:

Roger
 
Very high wow factor for me. I like the color of the handle wraps, and the fade to purple on the tips of the scabbards really sets the color off.
 
I,too,would be interested in knowing if they are tamahagane or pattern welded.
Impressive set, to say the least,masterfully shot.

Doug
 
Charles M said:
The fittings in the detail shot are (in order) habaki, seppa, and tsuba.
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Thank you. :thumbup:

Joss said:
Do you know who made the sayas?
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That's the cloth wrapping, right? Jerry's mom (Oops, I gave him away;) ) made them. Somehow, she made it out of a Kimono she acquired.

I'll chase Wally this thread. I am certain he has answers that will qualify.

Cop
 
SharpByCoop said:
Thank you. :thumbup:

That's the cloth wrapping, right? Jerry's mom (Oops, I gave him away;) ) made them. Somehow, she made it out of a Kimono she acquired.

I'll chase Wally this thread. I am certain he has answers that will qualify.

Cop
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Hi Coop,

Great set, the tsubas <guards> look really good. I've been waiting on a couple of swords a few years now to be complete so I know your customer must be thrilled.

If I'm not mistaken the wrap is called the ito. The saya is the scabbard and the term for the handle construction is tsukamaki. I'm not very proficient on all the terms though but that's the general idea.

Great pics, hopefully you'll have your sword setup available once mine is complete.
 
SharpByCoop said:
orig.jpg
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Time to practice!

The photographs cleanly and clearly allow me to see what is going on with these swords..everything stated will be opinion, based upon almost 10 years of Japanese sword usage and handling, if it is fact, there will be statement indicating so.

Coop, the only issue that I have will the photo is that the handles in general could have received more attention...it is a wonderful detail to the enthusiast to see all of the elements, the handle ornaments, ferrule and rear bolster(menuki, fuchi and kashira), as well as close up shots of the cord braiding(tsuka maki)

SharpByCoop said:
The scabbards have a bit of purple at the ends to balance out the handle colors while sheathed. the blade lengths are 26", 18", and 10".
Click to expand...

I like Wally, and he knows what he is doing. The three pieces, tanto, wakizashi, and katana, are all clearly different styles, and I am wondering why?

Usually a daisho(two pieces, tanto AND katana, OR wakizashi AND katana), the three pieces would be maybe sansho(three pieces)? Anyway, usually at least the wakizashi and katana are the same style blade, and here they are not, for one thing, the wakizashi has a short point(ko kissaki), and the katana has a long point (o kissaki), this is just one detail, it can get boring to the non enthusiast, and we are trying to keep it fun.

The shapes of the scabbards, specifically the wakizashi, and tanto, are uneven, and look differently finished compared to the katana...and I am curious about that, as well. Why is the shape of the wakizashi saya(scabbard) so much less refined in line than the katana saya?

How long is the handle on the wakizashi?

The blade length on the katana is quite short for use...is the owner a short man?

SharpByCoop said:
Going further, I shot the tanto (the SMALLEST one is bigger than most bowies!) as a separate shot:

orig.jpg
Click to expand...

The tanto looks very good, overall...I think I would enjoy owning it. The blade collar looks very proportioned, but the spacer(seppa) is of an odd shape for the hilt, it might have benefitted from being smaller, just barely clearing the habaki(blade collar). The makers's mark on the hilt is very out of place imo, it might have been better hidden on the tang where it belongs, or stamped onto the end of the kashira for some whimsey, so I am wondering about that as well?

This is good for a start into dialogue, or it just might slip into oblivion...but either way, Coop and Wally, nice stuff, and thanks for sharing!

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
Hi all,
been a long while since I posted here. I was an early member, but it's 4 pc's later and a couple of years later and I just don't remember my old logon info, I'm not even sure what email I originally used.

In any case, that's my set of swords that Wally made per my request. Let me see if I can answer some of your questions. First I have to thank Coop for his great photography.

All of the pieces are made from 1600 layer cable damascus, silver habaki and wrought iron fittings, silver dragon menukis, black stingray covered in purple silk wrap. All pieces/parts/etc. are made by Wally Hayes, including the sayas, all fittings, even the menukis are made by Wally. It's sole authorship. The cloth sword bag was made by my mom from an old kimono.

dims -(blade - straight line from tip to face of tsuba, handles -face of tsuba to end)
katana - 27 1/2" blade, 12 1/2" handle
waki - 21 " blade, 9 1/2" handle
tanto - 12 1/2" blade, 5 1/2" handle

FYI - Wally does make tamahagane, but these pieces are not made from that.

They are both heavier and lighter than they appear, if that makes sense.
 
Good points, Steven. This set seems to me to be more of an American, or Canadian, interpretation of the Japanese style. Not exactly historically accurate but somewhere inbetween a traditional mount and one of Hartsfield's katana. I don't think there's anything wrong with any of those interpretations of a sword they are just different. The Japanese way seems to me the most well thought out but hard for a single craftsman to accomplish.

Congrats, Jao, I'm sure you're happy with your new blades. :thumbup:
 
jao said:
dims -(blade - straight line from tip to face of tsuba, handles -face of tsuba to end)
katana - 27 1/2" blade, 12 1/2" handle
waki - 21 " blade, 9 1/2" handle
tanto - 12 1/2" blade, 5 1/2" handle
Click to expand...

Jao,

Hi.

The blade lengths make much more sense now, with you providing dimensions, but the handles on the wakizashi and katana are still fairly long. Is there a specific reason for this?

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
Jose Reyes said:
The Japanese way seems to me the most well thought out but hard for a single craftsman to accomplish.
Click to expand...

Very true, Jose, and is that not a TOTAL excuse for awesome makers like Wally who can do it all to TRAIN some locals to do it for him, so he can focus on the really important aspects?

It seems making the blade, and polishing should be enough for any smith to do well.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
Congradulations on a very nice set. I really like the Katana and I like the dimensions of it. This is a fine example of Mr. Hayes interpitation of a traditional Katana , wak and tanto. Not that I do not like the wak I for some reason am drawn more to the other two pieces.

STeven some people prefer slightly longer handle's and shorter blade's. See I am not the only one
 
I think they all look pretty darn good. Does anyone know if there is a particular reason that all three have different tips?
 
Keith Montgomery said:
I think they all look pretty darn good. Does anyone know if there is a particular reason that all three have different tips?
Click to expand...

That was part of the questions that I was already asking, Keith, but it is even more insidious than that!:D:eek::D

The tanto is a hira zukuri shape(without ridgeline)....the wakizashi is shinogi-zukuri(with ridge line, which is paralell in this case)..and the katana looks like kata-shinogi, which usually has a higher ridgeline that tapers inwards, in more of a diamond cross section.

I'm thinking that they were just having fun with the different possibilities, but am waiting for information, regardless.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
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