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Polishing Japanese Swords, Why is the sword polish waiting list so long?

by David S. Hofhine
www.swordpolish.com

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THE BETTER SWORD POLISHERS WILL ALWAYS HAVE THE LONGEST WAITING LISTS.

That is a frustrating but irrefutable fact.


Scheduling

Larger jobs such as foundation and full polish work need to be scheduled well in advance. I do finish work in between larger jobs to give my wrists and shoulders a rest. I have one waiting list for full polish work and a separate list for finish polishes and other smaller jobs. There is currently about a 12 to 18 month wait for various polishing services. If you are not familiar with traditional Japanese sword polishing this may sound like a long wait, but by polishing standards it is actually quite good. To have a blade polished in Japan takes 2 to 3 years depending on how well connected you are. Some togishi have waiting list that extend out more than 5 years! Anyone who is doing completely traditional hand polishing will not be able to finish more than 2 large blades a month. At this rate it only takes a few regular customers and a hand full of blades to fill up a LOT of time. Any polisher you come across who does not have a significant waiting list is not to be trusted with your blades. They are either NOT doing completely traditional hand polishing (i.e. sand paper and acid!) or they have NO repeat customers, even worse! Beware the polisher who can, "take your blade right away" or "just happens to have an immediate opening". Unlike most polishers, I let you keep your blade (and your money) until I am actually ready to start working on it. I do this to minimize my own liability, by keeping as few blades as possible on hand at any one time. This also gives you the luxury of having your blades to enjoy and the ability to change your mind about which blade you would like to have polished without penalty. The down side is that I am less able to predict exactly when I will be able to work on a given sword. I find most people to be happy with the trade off.


A few years ago I tore the extensor tendons in my right forearm, working too much. That kept me out of polishing for well over a year. Unfortunately this left several people waiting for quite a while to get their swords done.

I am back at it now, but at a slower rate. I may eventually be forced to go back to a more conventional career, but for now I endeavor to persevere. I am grateful for everyone’s continuing patience and hope to achieve my greatest works in the coming years.

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Please feel free to contact me for more information at the following address:
E-mail:hofhine@worldnet.att.net

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