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>There is such habaki with a hi groove in the Kapp book. I was trying to figure
>out how you would remove it myself, and figured the only way would be to slide
>it over the blade, not a very appealing concept for a newly polished 20k sword,
>eh?
>______________________________ Reply Separator _________________________________

>Author: token_kenkyu_kai@lists.umbc.edu at INTERNET
>Date:    2/19/99 5:55 PM
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>Following Clive Sinclaire's article in the JSS/US Newsletter, "Comments",
>I've thought about the removal of fittings from blades and one tsuba in
>particular.
>
>This round iron tsuba was unremarkable in many respects except for the
>fact the nakago-ana was specially cut to fit the bo hi of a specific
>blade. This was a heavy piece for a thick katana that apparently had
>deep, rounded hi. This is speculation in that the blade was not
>present. Only the tsuba was offered for sale. In fact, the dealer noted
>it as a heavy piece - an armor marker's - an that I should just file the
>ana out to fit any blade.
>
>It does get one to wonder about "ubu."
>
>Last year I had made inquiry to this list about habaki. It is accepted
>that habaki belong to a blade. My query was specific to habaki that
>would be made for a blade with hi that extend below the ha machi but not
>through to the end of the nakago. In this special case I believe that I
>once had seen such a configuration with the added detail that the habaki
>was recessed into the hi. As result the habaki would likely be
>stationary rather that the convention allowing for removal. This would seem
>to be a poor design in that it would not allow for proper cleaning,
>however, I am sure that both blade and habaki remain together - ubu.>
>

I find this string particularly interesting and would like to comment on this habaki subject. The habaki referenced in The Craft of the Japanese Sword is made specifically for nakago that is kaki otoshi or kaki nagashi that has sufficient taper to allow the indention's on the inner jacket to pass into the hi as it extends up the blade. Initially the habaki with shakudo and gold tomoyasuri pictured far right on the stone leads one to believe that it fits into a hi that is kaku dome but this is deceiving. This is an effect of the habakishi and simulates kakudome hi and is pleasing to the eye. There is a niju habaki that is shakudo and gold moko pictured on page 14 that is on a blade with bo hi. The hi does not extend into the nakago but do not mistaken this habaki for the referenced above. Unfortunately its impossible to see whether the inner jacket is indented due to the high quality of the shakudo( Its too black :^). But, rest assured it is not indented. (Incidentally, look at the example of the hitoe habaki with the "fish nets drying" yujo. Its pretty beat up !) These "indentions" are sometimes found on the tsuka of shirasaya and also require a nakago with hi that run partially or entirely through the tang.

As for an explanation of Mr.. Sinclaire's habaki, I would like to tell a little story. When at the show in Florida some years ago I was discussing a koto wakisashi , beautiful bo hi, with its dealer/owner. The blade was o- suriage and had traits that indicated that at one time it was a very quality sword. It had a problem though. Around the habaki , which was stuck in place and corroded with muck and verdigris, it had that blue hue of being heated up by something. My concern was how hot did it really get?and was the the hamon effected by this heating (the blade needed polish) . I over heard some one, who should know better :^) say, "I wonder why someone would weld on an unsigned nakago?" Needless to say this defied all logic and when something defies all logic, look harder. It turns out that somewhere in this wakisashi's history, someone had decided that he didn't like the fact that the habaki came off and he had better solder it in place , hence the blue hue. I suspect that the habaki referred to by Mr.. Sinclaire was purposely altered for some similar reason and was not the result of a craftsman's "final touches". Certainly a habaki that cant be removed defies all logic. (yes, there is tsukurikomi with tsuka and blade as one piece but this is not the case......You're nit picking :^Þ