How to tighten a Kaskara hilt?

[blue lander]

Thank you for pointing me in the right direction. It looks like it's stuffed with yarn of some sort, I could try picking it out and repacking it.

Also, you mention the hilt and blade look older than the leather wrapping. Do you have any sense of how old the hilt and blade might be? The seller didn't have much information, they described it as "WW 2 sword", so I assumed it wasn't much older than the 40's. On the other hand they listed it in the Japanese sword category, so I don't exactly trust the seller's expertise.

The blade has some bend to it, but it's much stiffer than my Takouba. It's a little stiffer than a good machete.