Crew Gunto (1) 0

Commissioned officer's short Guntō for crews

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A member of a tank corps and a flight officer with a short Guntō

About Crew Guntō

"Crew Guntō" is not in formality regulation. The formality Guntō was based on the commonsense size for the army and
the navy. A "commonsense size" means the blade of 62-3cm, and mounting around 100cm in full length. In Japanese, this size is called "Jōhsun." This size was carried out based on the Uchigatana of the Edo period.
However, the actually remarkable short mounting Guntō existed.
Two reasons can be considered to a short mounting.
　　　 1. Since the selected blade was short unavoidably, the mounting also became short.
　　　2. The short blade and the short mounting were chosen intentionally.
A short mounting does not have the good appearance at the time of carrying. Therefore, the serviceperson who respects dignity has chosen the Johsun mounting, even if a metaphor blade is short. Therefore, the cases of 1 are rare.
Since a Jōhsun Guntō is inconvenient, the case of 2 is prepared by clear intention. The officer of arming which has restrictions in battle habitation space had the necessary short Guntō.
That is, they are crews, such as a flight, a tank, and a submarine. From this, the short Guntō came to be called a common name "Crew Guntō."
However, crews did not necessarily choose a short Guntō. A large majority of crews were doing the carrying of the Johsun-Guntō so that it might understand also with the upper photograph.
Crew Guntō is a special order Guntō borne by the peculiarity of arming.

Army Crew Guntō

Formality type Mei: Kanenori, Kanbun Shin-tō, (Blade length: 53.1㎝, Curvature: 1.3㎝)
Black polished-and-lacqurered rayskin binding wooden scabbard, Spring-clip.
With the tassel for field officers, Overall length: 80.5㎝

It is a Formality form and is a mounting of a rayskin binding wooden scabbard. Type 98 Guntō of the brown polished-and-lacqurered rayskin binding wooden scabbard in which the Tomofumi Yamashita full general did the carrying about the rayskin binding wooden scabbard is famous.
The elderly brass and braid avoided the heavy Iron scabbard, in order to make a Guntō light, and he made the rayskin binding wooden scabbard or the Japanese lacquered wooden scabbard make from a special order.
This short Guntō is a custom-made item for brass and braids, and feels a specific intention. Isn't it use by army aviation ? In a tank, it seems that it is too long.

Different variety type Mei: Bishū Osafune Kanemitsu, Kanbun Shin-tō,
(Blade length: 49.7㎝, Curvature: 1.5㎝), Brown-leather covered hilt & wooden scabbard,
With the tassel for company officers, Overall length: 71.5㎝

Leather is splendidly stuck to the wooden scabbard and hilt of the hand engraving by pressure. The ferrule is given a Zōgan-engraving which is seen at an Edo term. A mounting is very polite structure. This mounting is a custom-made item clearly more expensive than the Iron scabbard of a formality. Probably, the infantry arm is use in specific arming, since it was demanding as long a Guntō as possible. There must have been a probable reason in the carrying of Guntōes other than a formality. Moreover, the mounting Koshirae of a wooden scabbard wrapped with leather cord has the purpose of making a Guntō light, and it can be thought of also as the consideration for not damaging surrounding apparatus.
When that was right, it may have been used by the flying corps or tank corps in narrow habitation space.
However, it is solvable even if it will attach the leather cover for field battles to an Iron scabbard, if it is only it. If this Guntō depended on the case, it was considered to be also the "army civilian employee sword" which is not restrained by the formality.
However, as for this Guntō, the officer knot was attached from the beginning. And this officer knot is compared for commonsense sizes, and is quite short. Therefore, it can be called the short Guntō of the particular purpose.
The officer Guntōes were the "private general tools" a duty of was imposed. Therefore, the mounting which is not such
a formality was also tolerated.

Different variety type Mu-mei, Ko-tō, (Blade length: 39.0㎝, Curvature: 0.9㎝), Brown-leather
covered hilt & wooden scabbard, Overall length: 60.0㎝

It has equipped with the same suspension mount as the high-class mounting of the upper leather sticking by pressure.
The guard which takes out a periphery slightly is noticed about the point which is a product made from a casting.
This shows that there was mass production of a metal parts. It is appropriate to a guard Tsuba to interpret it as having made it small so that it may not become the obstacle of narrow habitation space and its receipts and payments.
A flying corps or a tank corps use is conjectured

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The table of contents of the Crew Guntō　　

　　　　　　Tadamasa, Kanenobu & Mu-mei three sorts　　Mu-mei & Toshitsugu　　Kamikaze Knife

　

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 January 8, 2014　

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