There are many types of flaws in Japanese
swords. Some like Kirikomi are not considered a problem, others like Hagire
are considered a fatal flaw. Some of these flaws are caused by damage due to
poor care of the sword, other flaws are a result of poor workmanship of the
smith. Since the blade has been polished many times the flaw might now start
to appear. The list below is only a partial list and covers some of the more
common flaws. Some flaws can be overlooked if the blade has significant age.
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Hagire
A crack in the hardened edge of the sword
at or near 90 degrees. This is a fatal flaw. Hagire can be hard to see and
often do not appear until the final steps of polishing. To look for a
hagire, look for a scratch on the blade running
through the edge. Then look for the scratch in the same place on the other
side. If a sword has been bent there are often hagire.
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Umegane
This is a piece of steel that has been
added to the blade to fill in a Ware, pocket or other flaw. They can be seen
to look like an island of steel.
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Kirikomi
This is an actual cut in the blade,
usually on the Mune, from another sword. These marks are not corrected by
the polisher and appear toward the front of the Mune. this is not considered
a problem and is not removed during polish.
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Shinae
There are wrinkles in the surface steel as
a result of a sword being bent and or straightened. They look like
cross-hatched lines or have a thin tin foil look to the blade surface. Even
if the bend has been straightened, the wrinkles can still be present. These
require a full polish to correct.
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Hadaware
Ware are openings in the steel along the
weld line and can be a result of a poor weld or a very old weld. The
openings follow the hada or grain pattern since that is the weld line.
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Muneware
These are weld lines that are opening
along the Mune or back of the sword.
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