[solved, thx] Please Help Identifying Stone Quality

[Nestor]

How much was everything? could you post a picture of the board? The stones look wonderful... where do you find this kind of offers?

[Go_Japan]

Right-most column:

• 2nd character: 50% chance 木 (ki; wood), 50% chance 本 (hon; as in honte; Honda; proper/authentic/original ).
• 6th character: 99% chance 物 (mono; thing -- likely in combination with the 5th character ).

I think the first two characters are 銘木, pronounced meiboku. If you do a google search you can see that it is a particularly good type of wood, for example here is an image search.

[Bonobo]

OK, friendly folks, thanks a LOT for all your help!

I have made an imgur album where I have added the information you have given. (Sadly, the iPad photos are just too bad, except for those with the shell stones. Some 1D10T [and I suspect one certain person ] has misplaced my camera.)

Congrats.

thx It really makes me dizzy to learn how lucky I actually am …

Is this your first ever slate & shell set ?

No, a few years ago I did another lucky heist:

Sadly I had to remove the img tags because of the 800 pixels limit … hopefully you have a plugin that shows you the images if you hover over the links … otherwise pls. visit the above-mentioned imgur album.
http://i.imgur.com/Upl0Bqg.jpg
Front: old bowls (~45–50 yrs) (in reality darker)
Back: Keyaki bowls, here the colours are quite correct

http://i.imgur.com/Y8x59Jd.jpg
Front: old bowls with size ~30-31 shell & slate stones, ~45–50 years old
Back: Keyaki bowls (actually lighter than here)

http://i.imgur.com/dXbx216.jpg
Old bowls (~45–50 years) , no idea what kind of wood, in reality darker

http://i.imgur.com/uEbwQu3.jpg
Size ~30–31 (8-8,4 mm) shell & slate stones of unknown grade, ca. 45–50 years old

Is this your first experience with Mr. Kuroki ?

You already know meanwhile: the original purchase was ~10 yrs ago from Kiseido, and I only recently recently purchased stones, board, and a book as “used” (i.e. used once for re-playing a pro game ten years ago, from somebody who has finally (and sadly) given up playing Go after not playing for this long time. This person actually had played in their company’s Go club for a while but apparently couldn’t stand the pain of everybody being stronger than them (which frustration I can well understand). I guess if I lived AND were closer to that person, I’d then try to convince them to take it up again, just by playing with them.

the calligraphy on your Go bowls box is "medium" free style

LOL, prolly like my own handwriting which has degraded even more since I began using computers

On the right of the first image, it is hard to read the calligraphy for me on the right side. The signature also on the left bottom is very difficult. I can only read the big text in the center, which says, "Go Bowl" or "go ke" in Japanese.

and

[..] I am asking a friend to see if they can read it as well, since this is difficult to read even for Japanese people. Unless you know what it is in advance, calligraphy can be very hard to read.

edit: if you could get a close up of the Red stamp, it might be easier to read than the freehand Kanji.

Will these somewhat modified images help?

With such nice stones you really need to have an equally nice kaya board.

The (probably) shin-kaya board I have now is the best I’ve ever had

Images again too big, sadly. If you don't use an image viewer plugin pls visit this imgur album

http://i.imgur.com/CTLNz8X.jpg
Table board, maybe shin-kaya (very bad photo, sry)

http://i.imgur.com/yk8ddm0.jpg
Table board, maybe shin-kaya, should be slightly more yellow-orange

http://i.imgur.com/Pdvf4St.jpg
Table board, maybe shin-kaya
strongly colour-edited so as to make it “real”—the surface looks quite right here; BUT the edge in front is NOT dirty but just a bad Photoshop mask :v

With such nice stones you really need to have an equally nice kaya board.

Indeed. A new set of size 33 yuki stones will be over 55,000 yen these days.

/me faints. Maybe I should bring bowls and stones to the bank for them to put it into their vault so that I have something for my old days. But kidding aside, I’m almost shocked to read all this … Yuki grade, so-and-so valuable … I almost feel bad about heaping up such values while being such a measly player, and I wonder whether the former owner was aware of all this … and how many much better players, gifted young players, just play with cheap material, and then to think that I could as well have donated the money to some good cause …

OK, I looked it up on Kiseido just this moment: as of today (2016-05-22) size 33 Yuki stones are $820, and the Keyaki bowls are $270. I’m … shocked

How much was everything?

I cannot talk about that without being embarrassed for several reasons, and you wouldn’t want to embarrass me, therefore you didn't ask that question, out of courtesy

could you post a picture of the board?

pls see above link to the imgur album, but the photos are really bad (like in: VERY bad).

The stones look wonderful... where do you find this kind of offers?

Well, somebody advertised the stones, the board, and a few books as a bundle for a friend of theirs, in the German Go forum. (see above for a little more about this.)

I think the first two characters are 銘木, pronounced meiboku. If you do a google search you can see that it is a particularly good type of wood, for example here is an image search.

Thank you, “meiboku” is nice to know. I also looked up “Keyaki” on the Wikipedia, and it says it is “Zelkova serrata” (and since it also says that this tree is often grown as Bonsai, I have promptly ordered a few seeds for experimenting )

[Bonobo]

And here’s another photo of the shell stones

White plays second.JPG (156.44 KiB) Viewed 12758 times

Size 33 (9,2 mm) Yuki (snow) grade shell stones, Keyaki bowl (but colour too dark here, see other pics)

(interesting: I can upload larger images than I can embed with img tags (max. 800 px) … Joaz & Co.: is this intentional?)


<edit>

And BTW, I still want need …

• a set of double convex Yunzi stones (I do have a set of ~45-50 yr old single-convex green Jade luster Yunzi stones), and …
• a set of ING stones.

It’s all for the local Go club, of course

</edit>

[Go_Japan]

With such nice stones you really need to have an equally nice kaya board.

The (probably) shin-kaya board I have now is the best I’ve ever had

Images again too big, sadly. If you don't use an image viewer plugin pls visit this imgur album

http://i.imgur.com/CTLNz8X.jpg
Table board, maybe shin-kaya (very bad photo, sry)

http://i.imgur.com/yk8ddm0.jpg
Table board, maybe shin-kaya, should be slightly more yellow-orange

http://i.imgur.com/Pdvf4St.jpg
Table board, maybe shin-kaya
strongly colour-edited so as to make it “real”—the surface looks quite right here; BUT the edge in front is NOT dirty but just a bad Photoshop mask :v

[/quote]

What makes you think it is shin-kaya? Does it have dents in it from playing on the board? I have been looking at a lot of boards to purchase recently and I haven't seen a shin-kaya board made from several pieces. Perhaps I am just looking at the more expensive boards, but shin-kaya I have seen is always just one piece of wood. OTOH, Kaya is often made from several pieces because it is much more expensive. So, I am just wondering, maybe your board is kaya.

Edit: It is hard for me to see in the picture though. Maybe it is one piece board, in which case shin-kaya would be more plausible.

[Go_Japan]

edit: if you could get a close up of the Red stamp, it might be easier to read than the freehand Kanji.

Will these somewhat modified images help?

[/quote]

I think it says this on the right side. The left bottom is still not legible for us.
It is like saying, it is "special wood, high quality hikimono". Hikimono is a special process for making wood. Like this: http://blogimg.goo.ne.jp/user_image/49/ ... c4c658.jpg

銘木高級挽物

[Bonobo]

What makes you think it is shin-kaya?

Uhm <scratches head>

TBH, I have no idea … I just thought it would be “too good to be true”.

Does it have dents in it from playing on the board?

No, but as said, it has only been used once, and only for re-playing a pro game … but well, there actually is one tiny little dent (perhaps 2mm long and 1 mm wide) outside the playing area, between the edge of the board and the edge of the grid, but I’m quite sure that this is not from playing and may have happened during some transport or something. If you visit the imgur album I linked to in the other comment, there is a photo of a textile jacket (sleeve? envelope?) for the board, maybe you can recognize it, I think it may be a certain vendor who sells these together with their boards?

I have been looking at a lot of boards to purchase recently and I haven't seen a shin-kaya board made from several pieces. Perhaps I am just looking at the more expensive boards, but shin-kaya I have seen is always just one piece of wood. OTOH, Kaya is often made from several pieces because it is much more expensive. So, I am just wondering, maybe your board is kaya.

Mh… I know close to nothing about all this, and you definitely know a LOT more, so I’ll just take your word and go <wow> and again <wow> …

Suddenly I feel “rich” as I never have felt before (OK, that’s not totally true, happened similarly in 2013 with that olden Goban, S&S and Yunzi stones which also were a steal; see below [and another comment above], and sort of undeservedly so … I mean, I’m almost 59, how can I ever fully appreciate all this—and do it justice—in my remaining lifetime?

I cannot say that I feel totally at ease … on one hand I have a little bad conscience b/c I spent a LOT more money than would have been “wise” for a person in my life situation, and OTOH I got a LOT more for the money than “appropriate”, very odd. Can anybody understand? Maybe it’s just a question of self-esteem or something. I know I have some issues. Yet I know (do I?) that I’m not amassing these “riches” to increase my “worth” or something, it’s rather that I enjoy the beauty and want those who play with me resp. play under my roof (I “am” the local Go club) to enjoy just the same, I hardly ever re-play or exercise IRL alone for myself, all this is only used whenever other Go players (or people interested) turn up.

I think it says this on the right side. The left bottom is still not legible for us.

Ah well, never mind, you have helped me SO MUCH already, thank you!

It is like saying, it is "special wood, high quality hikimono". Hikimono is a special process for making wood. Like this: http://blogimg.goo.ne.jp/user_image/49/ ... c4c658.jpg

銘木高級挽物

awesome … just a few weeks ago somebody posted a video of the process, here or in one of the Go groups on FB or in the Go community on G+, and I watched it open-mouthed, wishing I had learned woodworking instead of acquiring a flat butt while being the lonely ape in front of the computer … especially the repeated waxing and polishing of the bowls at the end, wow … I believe that every real good artisan also is sort of a philosopher … at least I personally respect them as if it were so.

________________________________

I have created another imgur album for some images I found on my HD, from 2013 where I was lucky to acquire … (EdLee, since you asked above and I wrote a little bit in reply, this is what I was talking about.)

• a well-used Katsura goban,
• size ~30-31 (8,2 mm) similarly well used shell/slate stones in wooden bowls (both have a vertical crack, you can see it in one of the photos), and …
• single convex green Jade Yunzi stones in straw bowls.

all about 45–50 years old

The album als has a few pics of my “Go salon”; meanwhile there are a LOT more books, while I haven’t yet “acquired” enough time to read them all … though I have read in quite a few. BTW, did I ever mention that I really like Robert Jasiek’s books, every single one I read or read in?

[EdLee]

銘木高級挽物

Yes, this makes a lot of sense.
Most of the characters were my guess, too, but I wasn't sure, so didn't guess the other four. The cursive 銘 was unclear to me;
高 was too much -- if it was written like that, stand alone, out of context,
it'd be nearly impossible to guess.

Hi Tom,

This person actually had played in their company’s Go club for a while but apparently couldn’t stand the pain of everybody being stronger than them

Yea, to each his own; but this seems a little strange.
If the gap was huge -- say, everyone else was 7-dan, and he was DDK..., still... --
but if there were both high dans and people slightly better,
that could be a nice environment. Alas, education is very difficult.

[Go_Japan]

What makes you think it is shin-kaya?

Uhm <scratches head>

TBH, I have no idea … I just thought it would be “too good to be true”.

It is hard to tell really. I thought if you saw a bunch of very small dents in the board, it would be obviously shin-kaya. But if it doesn't have them, it doesn't mean that it is kaya, I think.

The old bowls in that album look like kuri maybe, chestnut. Hard to tell, but usually those bowls are pretty cheap, like some of the cheapest wood you can get about 5000 yen new.

http://www.maekawa-kayagoban.co.jp/SHOP/gh00095.html
http://control.kurokigoishi.co.jp/updir ... 1463902643

[sybob]

Beautiful.
Table board looks very much like a board I have which was sold as being kaya.

Can you press your fingernail in it (on bottom site) without putting too much pressure, making a small scratch?
If so, probably kaya indeed. Kaya is fairly soft wood, shin kaya is harder.
But it does look like it could use some TLC. Probably, if you oil it correctly, its appearance will improve even more.