Manner of Blade Shortening (SURIAGE)
 
There are several styles by different amounts of blade shortening. The blade shortening work or the shortened blade is called "Suriage".
 
An example of original tang, by hand drawing.

 
Machi-okuri (= Machi moved)
The tang keeps original, but the machi's are moved upward. It is done to shorten the blade length a little. So the tang length is extended. Such a small shortening is not called Suriage. It is just a "Machi-okuri".


An example of Machi-okuri

 
Suriage (= shortened blade)
The blade is shortened, but a part of the original tang is kept on one side.
The machi's are moved upward, the bottom of the tang is cut off, the back side and cutting edge side is filed, to shape new tang. One surface of the tang is ground off to get a proper taper of thickness. Another surface isn't touched to respect the original, even if originally unsigned.
The new tang occurs a small bend by one side ground, so it is straighten again.
There is one more reason why the tang is ground with such way, that comes from steel construction. Usually the core is milder than the outer surface in the meaning of tempered steel. So one side grinding means to keep the tang harder.
Sometimes, the original tang is left a few inches at the bottom of the new tang, and signature of the smith is there.


An example of newly shortened blade by the work of Suriage.


On the obverse, the lower part where has a signature is original. The upper part is newly filed. The reverse is all new filing. So the grooves became shorter. The hole is newly drilled. The small arc at the end of the tang is a trace of original hole.
 
O-Suriage (= much shortened blade)
So much shortened as the original tang cut off.
The work is the same to that of Suriage. In this case also, one surface should be kept in original.
(=> Tomomitsu)


 
There are several ways to keep the signature in O-suriage blades.
Orikaeshi-Mei (= folded signature)
The signature is folded back to the other side of the tang. The newly filed surface of the tang has a channel to put the folded signature in good fit.



This system is used to also suriage blade with long signature. In such case, lower part of the signature is folded back to the other side.
Some examples of Orikaeshi-Mei in Suriage blades.


(from the book "Bi no Takumi tachi" by the Saitama-ken Museum. p42, p59)
 
Gaku-Mei (= channeled signature)
The signature is cut off, and shaped as a thin plate. Then it is inlayed into the new tang.



 
Hari-Mei (= put signature)
The signature is cut off, and put at the bottom of the new tang with small rivets.



 
An exceptional way of blade shortening
Satsuma-age (= contra-shortening)
This system is used for broken blade that the kissaki is broken off.
The tang keeps original, but the blade has no kissaki. Then the tip is sharpened by grinding from the back.



When the blade is short as tanto, the tang is cut off to make good balance.



(=> others7)
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