If the specific customization is not listed here, just email us at info@nihonzashi.com to get a quote.  We will also be glad to give you advice if you want to tackle the job yourself.

Repair Split Saya (no refinishing)

This is the most common repair needed for katana.  The blade is turned before completely leaving the saya causing anything from thin cracks to huge gaps.  While a repaired saya is usually not as strong as the original, a re-enforced version of this repair is also available.  This repair does not replace the buffalo horn koiguchi.  Epoxy resin is used to replace any missing wood/horn or fill gaps.  Wood glue is used to repair the split where appropriate.  The re-enforced version of this repair uses a copper plate fixed in place with epoxy.  

Replace Buffalo Horn Koiguchi

The mouth of a saya usually has a water buffalo horn ring that reduces wear and helps keep the saya from splitting.  This is replaced by plastic in lower end saya.  We will replace (or add a new) water buffalo horn koiguchi that is custom carved for the saya.  This is great for new saya, old saya that have been split, or saya that never had a horn koiguchi.

Replace Buffalo Horn Kojiri

Kojiri are the end-cap of the saya.  These are metal fittings or water buffalo horn that protect the soft saya from damage.  Saya have to be made to fit metal kojiri, but we can fit buffalo horn kojiri to your saya.  This is done to replace a cracked kojiri, replace a metal kojiri, or add a new kojiri to a all wood saya.

Refinish saya with lacquer finish

We will refinish you saya with a hand rubbed lacquer finish with a clear topcoat.  Fittings are masked and the saya is sanded and primed.  Each coat of lacquer partially dissolves the previous one.  This provides a very thick homogeneous durable finish.  The down side is that this thick finish takes a very long time to fully cure.  Once cured, the finish is sanded is progressively finer abrasive and then polished.