always click REFRESH

The Fuchi and Habaki should look slightly corroded and stained while the tsuba should be darkened more and also corroded here and there. Nothing looks new.
Habaki doe not seem to follow the sword profile. Metal parts on saya should be copper looking, but copper should be more yellowish. Its too reddish overall.

Here is your latest rendition. Notice the main differences with the corrections of colors I have introduced below using photoshop.

See the tsuka color difference? And the darkening of the tsuba and the lightening-yellowing of the fuchi and habaki?
Notice what I did on the Saya. There should be some cracks only, showing beneath layers and layers of red brown dark lacquer that gave in to some cracks. Its not the entire saya with cracks. Also you must now update the copper fittings to the same color of the sword copper fittings. I hope you know got the picture.

This is now much better. But the saya is still too cracked. The saya fittings look very good.
See my corrections below.

Look at the saya now. I have covered many areas that showed cracked wood.  Now its just showing much less.

It now looks perfectly Ancient, preserved but a bit pitted. What I wanted.

Some more additions by Eric, per request. Dated Nov 27, 2002 Macau time

SOME CORRECTIONS:
1. The metal kashira should not be THAT pitted. It is too large a surface for that. The round part of the pommel should be cleaner looking. Fuchi and Habaki should also be less corroded, but not too less. Juts a bit.
2. The blade itself should very much have some different black like the picture below. Its not a plain flat piece of metal. That's why I placed this to your reference. See how rich the surfaces are, full of different colors of black. Continued below

3. The saya should in this case be black, with patches of gloss (remains of lacquer) while the two hinges should have more presence. They are looking very weak.
4. The leather ito is does not have enough relief and it is not shinny nor does it have a leather look. Seems like parachord. Yiiiikes. Let's start the changes from here.

Second version. The blade itself needs more different coloring. Check my correction just below.

Notice how I have changed the blade's surface by giving it different shades of black and not only one type of rusting. It is not all about rusting.
NEXT TASK: The leather cord has to stand out as 3D circular section chord. And it's too be leather. Black Leather. The edges are circular like the ones on the picture below, only thicker.

The swords should look ancient, For this reason I have enclosed some Ancient samples for better explanation.

This sword or tanto was definitely unearthed, shows a very uncommon kashira that will be used with a rounded butt, as well as the leather chord wrapping.

The fern shaped handle dagger is also another example of textures that are being pursued. Note these are different grades and sizes of textures.
These are all elements of reference for rendering.

Althought the design is not this one anymore, the measures remain the same.

Here we can see an example of a blackened blade. Cloning it is not a good idea.

This is the basis for which one of the saya was rendered, through cloning. That is not the aim. The aim is an ancient look, something that is ANCIENT, with different layers of brown-red semi-transparent look showing some surface degradation here and there. The degradation is, however, very superficial.

JOE WALTERS APPROACH
By carefully viewing the texture and the indications for both the Blade of Light or HIKARI NO KEN and the Blade of Darkness KAGE NO KEN, you can get a closer approach. Keep the page booked

The Sword of Light as rendered by Joe Walters does not contradict the original approach but rather adds some more technical value after a digestive process. I believe it shows a yokote which makes the blade historically more ancient than the shobu-zukuri style.

The Sword of Darkness shows more technical vocabulary specially  if you carefully read what it says. Below is a follow up of pre-renditions so that you can follow.

UPDATED NOVEMBER 4 VERSION BELOW

In the present case I have not colored the swords at this stage but would want to obtain further approval. My memory made me a mistake in placing the swords length at 26", they are actually 25" in proportion.
In the KAGE NO KEN I have made an alternative addition: an oval extra handle-habaki as we have spoken. The idea is to create more variations. At this stage we can see that this lower sword tsuka is wrapped in leather cord and the tsuba is oval with two holes.
The sword of light displays a red brown tsuba which will better match an antique dyed oosic tsuka. Both tsubas can bear a certain amount of textured corrosion. In the case of the sayas for both blades, one is to be in brown wood as saya above, for the HIKARI NO KEN, while the Black Blade would have a more sleek look in a blackened wood with metal fittings. The idea is to have diversity and uniformity, in as much as a rainy day can give way to a wonderful night.

UPDATED NOVEMBER 5 VERSION BELOW

This is an updated pre-rendition for final reviewing. The habaki and fuchi are in copper and we can see that they should not look as new as they are shown. Very much the contrary.
The tsuka should look like a piece of ancient wood with two metallic mekugi-ana, tarnished in the surface. The saya itself is shown here in total decrepitude because of cloning with Photoshop. I have already explained all these below.

Same applies for the Kage no Ken or Blade of Darkness. All metallic parts are to be aged properly and again all the texture in the blade is just for reference. This is as far as I can go for the rendition instructions. Note that the  tsuka is wrapped in black leather chord and there is a tsuka-habaki in front of the saya which section can be seen, and should have a 4.5 inches lenght. This is to be used for a left hand when striking while the rounded kashira is used for left hand manouvering as well as for piercing.