Went to a DIY Woodworking show today....

Stuart Ablett

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Tokyo Japan
It was not bad at all this year, lots of stuff to see and I met some really interesting guys.

First off, they have almost zero large machines on display, almost no tablesaws, the only ones I saw were bench top ones, no bandsaws, no jointers, and only a few thickness planers, so this is not nearly the same kind of woodworking show as you guys get in the US etc.

But, I got to meet a number of black smiths, cool guys for sure, and some of them were very talkative too.

One guy I met and I got to talking, he told me that he sells a ton of his dovetail chisels to some company in the US & Canada. I asked him when he started to sell them, he said in April or so this year. Well, I thought that it HAS to be Lee Valley, as they just started selling "Japanese Dovetail chisels".

Says this on their site.........

lv_dovetail_chisels.jpg
Known as umeki-nomi (filling-in chisels) for their ability to work into sharp corners, these are versatile traditional tools.
Though they excel at removing the waste from between dovetails, they are suitable for a variety of tasks because their triangular sections and narrow edges allow them to work adjacent to any inclined surface. Their red oak handles have pre-seated hand-forged hoops and are slightly canted to provide clearance for flush-trimming projections and paring recessed joints.
Hand forged and finely finished by master blacksmith Hiroshi Koyama (Koyamaichi), the laminated blades combine a hard high-carbon Hitachi white steel face with a shock-absorbing softer steel back.
Hardened to Rc65-66. Available individually or as a set of all six sizes in a canvas tool roll. (Since these are hand made, they may vary in size by ±1mm.)
So I get home and I check his card, and sure enough this is the guy! :thumb:

heck of a nice guy, selling a bunch of his stuff cheap too, they were seconds, but you had to ask him to show you the (VERY) minor flaws.

I bought this off of him.........

bachi_nomi1.JPG bachi_nomi2.JPG bachi_nomi3.JPG

It is called a "Bachi Nomi" which is a play on the pick used to play the Japanese Guitar, a thing called a Bachi, as they are similar in shape.

shamisen_closeup.jpg

Here you can see a bachi on a shamisen.

Here is a basic bachi....
SC72741.fpx&obj=iip,1.0&wid=120&cvt=jpeg


Anyway, Mr. Koyama told me that these bachi nomi are not made much anymore, they are difficult, due to their thinness and the odd shape.

Usually 15,000 yen ($125 USD) but today I got it for 5000 yen ($42 USD) so yeah, I'm a bit happy!

This fellow was so friendly, he invited me down to see his factory, and such, but it is in Hyogo, which is a 7 hour drive :rolleyes:

So much more to share, but I got to hit the sack, I'm going again tomorrow, as I want to take part in a blacksmithing hands on, but you got to be there when they open or they fill up too soon.

Oh, one thing I'll share, the Festool Domino, they want 189,000 yen for it, that is $1575 USD, without the fence thing and with out any of the floating tenons, they want about $250 for the systrainer full of tenons....... take that one off my want list :bang:
 
Stu very cool story....I once met Mr. Rogers in an airport, my biggest celeb meeting, but I think meeting a master blacksmith would trump that anyday.

Make sure to post pics from the "hands on" blacksmithing if you can:thumb:
 
Very cool Stu. I'm not much of a talker at shows, so when I hear stories like your's, I find them fascinating. Only 7 hours away!? I would definitely try to take him up on his offer. It sounds like he really wants to share his art, and with your curiosity, I'd say this is a match made in heaven!:thumb:

Wes
 
cool stu!
i`ve only been to one woodworking show in my life awf last year in atlanta, it might be 7 hrs well spent to go see that guys foundry?
(i`d like to see pictures)
 
Stu, glad you are having/had a good time at the show. Come on now, make the seven hour drive for all of us. I could send you a little mula to cover gas and hotel for you and the Mrs.. Pictures, interview, post on here, that could be extraordinary!!!!!!!! Tuck that in your mind for a while would you????
 
Stu, what is a Bachi Nomi used for? The handle looks a bit long to be used on one of them square banjo-looking things. ;) (That said, my guitar pick of choice is stainless steel...but without the handle.) :)

Sounds like a good time at the show.
 
Well, I did not make it back today, I was not informed :rolleyes: that I had a delivery to do for the local Daycare, a bunch of stuff, needed the truck and there was no way I could pass this one off to my lovely wife :bang: Oh well......... :(

The Bachi Nomi is used mainly for cleaning up work in tight places, like corners etc. it is very sharp right out of the box, and will only need a minor hone. It is one of those tools that I do not expect to use much, but when needed it will be great to have around.

Cheers!
 
Man, the Japanese folks must have a different approach to daycare than we do in the US. We never had liquor deliveries when I was in preschool. Seems like a good way to keep the little curtain climbers under control, though. Nap time from about 10:00 AM until the parents pick 'em up in the evening. :rofl:
 
Very interesting, Stu.

Where in Hyogo ken is the factory? I worked in Hirano-Ku when I was living in Osaka. You could take a Nozomi shinkansen and be in Osaka in 2 1/2 hours. Is the factory far from Osaka?
 
Very interesting, Stu.

Where in Hyogo ken is the factory? I worked in Hirano-Ku when I was living in Osaka. You could take a Nozomi shinkansen and be in Osaka in 2 1/2 hours. Is the factory far from Osaka?
The factory is in Mikishi, Miki city is famous for blacksmiths.

Some other fun things........:rolleyes:

At another booth was a guy selling planes, Japanese wood planes, called "Kana". We got to talking and he was a WEALTH of information, and was eager to chat.

That company is called "Tsunesaburo"

Link to their location on Google maps > Link <

Their website is > here <

The Kana plane iron has two types of metal laminated together, as you might know, a hard thin piece on the bottom, that is either Blue or White steel, and a much softer piece on top. The had these large chunks of steel there on display, some looked like large ship anchor chain, and that is what it was. He told me that for the Kana, the BEST steel was all made in the UK in the the mid 1800s. The steel he had was not very "Pure" and it had a LOT of voids in it. The chain they got somewhere from a large ship that was being scrapped and they also got a LOT of steel that came from a bridge that was built by English engineers in 1835, near Osaka somewhere, when the bridge was torn down, they got 5000 Kg of it, a LONG time ago, he says they have something like 500 Kg left, but that should last a while, as they don't make anywhere near as many planes as they used to.

He explained that this steel, which by modern standards is rather inferior, but for them it is great, because the voids and the impurities leave gaps in the steel, this makes the soft part of the blade much more malleable, it also aid in sharpening, as the voids etc make it easier to sharpen, less steel I guess:dunno:

One of the interesting things they make is a Kana blade with a hole in it, the hole is from the steel from the bridge...........

Here is a great pic from their website........
holed_kana.jpg
here you can see the start, they are laminating the hard and soft steel together.

and here is the finished product.....
holed_kana2.jpg

Kind of neat.

I also learned something about the Kana blades, the backs are very slightly cupped, and after a lot of sharpening the flat spot just at the cutting edge will disappear, and the blade need to be bent back flat again. This is a hard thing to do, and only experienced carpenters will do it themselves. He told me that the most important thing is to NOT EVER try to do this in the winter, he says the blade is WAY too cold and WILL chip, unless you heat it up, like putting it on a wood stove until it is too hot to handle without gloves, he also told me that even in the summer you should heat it up a bit, he suggested putting it on a car's engine block for 30 minutes or so.

This fellow is also in Hyogo Miki city and invited me down for a tour of the shop, great news is I talked to my lovely wife and she said I should really go........... :headbang: :thumb:

What we plan to try to do is in the fall, we will try to find a Monday that the girls have a school day off, that is NOT a national holiday, and then go down early Sunday, spend the day doing family stuff around there, then on Monday go and visit the two smiths, then drive back late Monday, or early Tuesday, if all else fails, I'll drive down by myself on Sunday, and then do the factory visit on Monday, and drive back on Tuesday morning.

Should be fun, and I'll take a lot of videos and pics! :D

Cheers!
 
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very cool stu! i`m looking forward to whatever pics and video you`re able to take...there`s something to be said for making stuff the same way for centuries....the ol` "why fix what isn`t broken?"
 
Greg, I'd drive, especially if the family is going, as 4 times much. The fare one way to Shin-Osaka is 14,050 yen, ($117 USD) so times that by 4 is 56,200 yen ($470 USD). The I have to get from Osaka to Miki...?

I just checked in the toll book, and it will cost me 11,850 yen ($98 USD) just in tolls, it is 580 Km (380 miles). so if my van gets 30 Km/litre, that will be 20 litres, at 135 yen a litre, that is 2700 yen ($23 USD) for a total of 14,550 yen ($122 USD). OK sure, I'll admit that my Toyota Voxy may not get 30 km/litre, but the worst we have seen is 22 km/litre and this will mostly be highway driving.

Looks about even in the out of pocket money for one guy driving down and back, and if it is the family, WOW a huge difference, add to that the price of a hotel for the four of us compared to the price of a hotel, for just me (Business hotel.....read CHEAP) and I think I'll drive, be a good chance to see some parts of Japan I've not really seen before. The final thing is, by driving, I'll have freedom of movement, and time, if I decide to stay longer and drive back later, that is cool, or I want to go see another smith etc, I can just go.

One thing is, I'll have to buy a better map book for that area of the country.

Cheers!
 
very cool stu! i`m looking forward to whatever pics and video you`re able to take...there`s something to be said for making stuff the same way for centuries....the ol` "why fix what isn`t broken?"

Got to agree with that Tod :thumb:

Thing is, the craft has most likely dropped off some in the last 30 years or so, I'd say that in the early 40's, before the war, was most likely the peak of their craft, after the war, a lot things did not pay, so a lot of guys gave up and moved to the big city to do something else. Now, most of the smiths that are very good are either dead, or in the last years of their lives, some of them are still working in their 70s and 80s, can you imagine swinging a hammer all day at that age :eek:

There are some younger guys, but they are few and far between, but then again, the number of these kinds of tools needed in the market has also dwindled, so maybe this adjustment is for the better? Dunno.

The trip should be fun for sure!:wave:
 
Stu,
It sounds like a trip of a lifetime! And driving the van will allow LOTS of things to come home with you!!:D:D

Wes
 
Stu,

Interesting thread. I just got back from a short 5 day trip in Canada and have not checked in very much. Went to Saltspring Island while there to visit my sis. There I checked out a few woodworking studios. Seems some of the turners did a tour of Japan a while back. Tours to Japan seem to be popular. Anyway I am also interested in seeing some of the factories down in Hyogo. If possible maybe we could go together.
 
Stu, For a family trip, the van would be the way to go... I remember we took lots of trips in my Subaru Domingo... great fun. I haven't been to Miki, but anytime you get into the countryside, it's soooo different and interesting. Of course, be sure to take the camera, but also don't forget the digital video camera. When you get your Mac, iMovie (part of the iLife suite) is a great program to make movies from your video. :thumb:
 
Alex,

I had a friend in Tokyo who moved to Saltspring Island many years ago. We were both Mac fanatics, but he was very "into" several heavy duty programs. He did editing work at JETRO and then got involved with a Canadian telecommunication company. I just remembered his wife's name was Rumiko, but for the life of me his name escapes me. Tip of the tongue kind of thing...it's been so many years. I'll try to find our old address book. He bought some property there and was going to build a house. I think I talked to him only once since he moved...
 
HOLY COW!!

Greg, you mean Brian and Rumi, son's name is Lea.....?

Used to live about 50 meters down the street here from my L shop....?

We went to the same birthing classes, and their son is born on my birthday...?:D

OK, it's a small world........... :wave:
 
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