Japanese Planes: Smoothing Planes, Jack Planes, Jointer Planes, Yarri Kanna
Japanese planes are not ready for use. They require some tuning before you can start planing. Detailed instructions how to tune up a Japanese plane you find in Toshio Odate’s book: Japanese Woodworking Tools. Click on the images to see a magnified view!
Click pictures for enlargements!
with chip breaker
Economy grade. The ideal plane for the beginner! Blade is bedded at an angle of 40°.
Blade width: 50 mm
Size of body: 235 x 62 x 34 mm
Order nr. 310438
Price € 46.50
Bench Plane with White Oak Body
with chip breaker
Economy grade. The ideal plane for the beginner! Blade is bedded at an angle of 40°.
Blade width: 65 mm
Size of body 273 x 81 x 36 mm
Order nr. 310436
Price € 57.90
Click here to see a translucent chip made with this plane.
with Red Oak body
and Blue Steel blade (Aogami).
"TORYO HOMARE" means: "Honor of master carpenter".
This plane was produced by master smith Takeo Nakano in Yoita, Niigata Province. The iron is a laminate. The cutting edge is made of the very hard "Aogami" steel, with a softer iron, "Nama-ji", welded to it for strength and to ease sharpening. Nakano used iron from a 19th century bridge for the "Nama-ji".
Master Nakano has been a blacksmith all his life. He is not interested in technical tables on proper working temperatures for the various kinds of steel: he works only from experience and feel. For example, he believes that the weather strongly affects the properties of the metal he is working, and he likes to work at night, so as to better judge the forging process by the color of the glowing iron and steel.
Comes in nice wooden box
Body size 288 x 89 x 35 mm (11-3/8 x 3-1/2 x 1-3/8 in.)
Iron thickness at butt end: 9 mm (3/8 in.)
Iron thickness near edge: 6 mm (1/4 in.)
Width of iron: 70 mm (2-3/4 in.)
Order nr. 310800
Price € 329.00
with White Oak body
and Blue Steel blade (Aogami).
Same as above but with White Oak body.
Comes in nice wooden box
Order nr. 310802
Price € 279.00
with White Oak body and hand forged blade.
by Master Tsunesaburo
Size of body 600 x 85 x 37 mm.
Blade width: 65 mm
Weight 1700 g
Order nr. 310470
Price € 359.00
The "Yarri Kanna" - spear shaped plane
You may be surprised to find this unusual-looking tool among planes, since it does not at all resemble one. Because it looks more like a sculpturing tool, you might even suspect that it might have been mistakenly included with the planes.
In fact, it is a plane, in its earliest, archaic form, used in Japan since about 1000 A.D. You'll be amazed the fine shavings that this tool can produce, in experienced hands and properly sharpened!
Just a museum piece and of no practical use today? Wrong! Many woodworkers have discovered the Yarri Kanna and consider it indispensable.
The furniture restorer can reduce inlays to the proper thickness without damaging adjacent surfaces. The sculptor can smooth the surfaces of his work without roughening the grain with sandpaper. This tool opens a wealth of possibilities for surface treatments for the artist and the designer, by filling the gap between the scrub plane and smoothing plane. Take a look at the enlarged view of the Yarri Kana, which also shows the tool in use.
Damascened steel blade
Total length 480 mm
Blade length 80 mm
Order nr. 313041
Price € 284.00
may be used one- or two-handed
Total length 220 mm
Blade length 60 mm
Order nr. 313042
Price € 69.60
