Kezuroukai, Planing Competition Finals 2012

[Brian Kent]

In everything we do where quality is a concern, you need a few people who will take things to the farthest extreme. It is fun to see and their experiences raise the standard for all of us normals.

[John Lanciani]

They wouldn't move on, they'd become an internet honing guru.

Or an internet curmudgeon...

[David Weaver]

They wouldn't move on, they'd become an internet honing guru.

Well, as long as it prevents the narcissism that's present in folks who use dull tools.

[Charlie Stanford]

Well, as long as it prevents the narcissism that's present in folks who use dull tools.

We need a closeup of somebody shaving peach fuzz with an iron out of a no. 7. You game?

[paul cottingham]

Ian makes a good point. but as far as the competition goes, and I might get bashed for saying this - It's one of the dumbest things I have
ever seen.

I don't see it as any different than people's obsession with how tight their joinery is, or (my personal pet peeve) how tidy and organized their shops are.
To each his own.
Be interesting to see how fine a shaving could be made with a no.4.

[Frank Drew]

And then there's the stock selection - it's like a karate board breaking demonstration where they use perfectly straight grained clear and homogenous pine that my 85 year old mother could break. If they could raise that sort of shaving on elm or an old piece of chestnut I might be impressed.

Some people here need to get out more; a well-tuned Japanese plane (or any good plane, really) can nicely handle even the gnarliest woods, crotch walnut as a good example.

[David Weaver]

Nobody who has actually used a japanese plane would describe it as something that doesn't work with figured or difficult woods.

Experience would get in the way of fantasy scenarios for some, though.

[Charlie Stanford]

Some people here need to get out more; a well-tuned Japanese plane (or any good plane, really) can nicely handle even the gnarliest woods, crotch walnut as a good example.

Super, let's see them use those woods in the "competition." Or better still, you show us what one will do since you seem to be asserting that you 'get out' more than some of us do.

I guarantee you that I have a rough time with figured stock. Would be lying if I didn't admit it. I'd be thrilled to see you blokes blowing it away and laughing it off, hand planing tear out free and virtually finish ready as a daily matter of course. So, please, reach into that bottomless pile of "highly figured stock" many of you seem to have constantly to hand and have had so much experience with and show us how it's done, Japanese-style. Can't wait!

Crotch walnut, I must say, how exciting. I'm assuming in thickness too. Please clue us in as to your supplier -- I'm guessing Irion...? Obviously, folks don't buy crotch walnut to build painted Shaker wall cupboards, or God forbid just to practice hand plane tuning. Would love to see the tours-de-force (hope there is more than one!) this fine material went into, or for which builds are being contemplated or are in progress. Such fabulous stock would be wasted by my assuredly less than meager talent.

The greatest furniture commission ever: http://www.irionlumber.com/uploads/W198BI.pdf

Cheers!

[Kees Heiden]

Not me. I'm not into all that highly figured stuff at all. And I admire the makers of these reproductions a lot, but it's just not my thing. For me all the hoela around the chipbreaker is mostly about these small grain reversals, knots, crossgrained stuff etc. Usually just small bits tearing out, but it can be frustrating when you only have simple planes. Sinde I learned how to use the chipbreaker life is a lot easier.

But right now I am working on a wallnut table. The wood is a dream until now. Very easy to plane, allthough quite hard. I am curious how difficult planing the tabletop will be.

[Matthew N. Masail]

I guess if you look at it as a sport it's not that bad.... maybe I'm looking at it from the wrong angle.

[Charlie Stanford]

Not me. I'm not into all that highly figured stuff at all. And I admire the makers of these reproductions a lot, but it's just not my thing. For me all the hoela around the chipbreaker is mostly about these small grain reversals, knots, crossgrained stuff etc. Usually just small bits tearing out, but it can be frustrating when you only have simple planes. Sinde I learned how to use the chipbreaker life is a lot easier.

But right now I am working on a wallnut table. The wood is a dream until now. Very easy to plane, allthough quite hard. I am curious how difficult planing the tabletop will be.

Some folks don't like the style which of course is fine but that's world class cabinetmaking on display. Just managing a commission that large is a feat in itself I'm sure.

[Kees Heiden]

Yes I agree. I admire it a lot. Years ago when Tommy mcDonald build his Bombay chest with regular video updates on the internet, I was glued to the screen.

But in the end, I find these things pretty uggly

[Charlie Stanford]

I don't necessarily disagree though ugly might be a bit strong. I'm a fan of Alan Peters' work.

[Frank Drew]

Charlie,

Many years ago I was working on a Japanese-style house in the Northeast; this was a timber-framed structure, all interior woods hand-planed with no further finish, all sash and doors and shoji handmade, etc.; except for the scale of the place and modern appliances, this was a house that incorporated most of the traditional Japanese home design features -- I guess high-end Japanese home, though. I was the only Westerner on the project at that time (and also, I should note, the least skilled.)

A tokonoma is a small, interior alcove to display a piece of pottery or caligraphy, whatever. The materials to construct the tokonoma are carefully selected and often combine dimensioned and smooth but in-the-round elements. The floor is often a select piece of wood, and I was having nothing but trouble planing this certain piece of highly figured (crotch) walnut. One of the younger Japanese carpenters came over when he noticed that I was in the weeds; I implied that the wood was too figured to plane well (blame the material!), but he took my plane, turned it upside down to inspect the sole, grunted and politely muttered something probably about the quality of my plane tuning, then proceeded to do it to his standards, reset the blade, took a test plane on the walnut, reset the blade a skosh more, then handed it back to me and I was able to plane the wood relatively easily and, importantly, with no more tearout.

The point being, my skill might have been lacking, but the tool itself could do whatever you wanted if you could set it up correctly.

[Jim Koepke]

If only you had the skill required to do that fine of planing, you might be singing a different tune. Don't be so quick to dis something you don't fully understand.

Especially when some strive to take tear out free shavings and in so doing create a definitive video on the workings of a chip breaker.

Surely there are some who insist the chip breaker is miss named and is just there so the adjuster will work or to stiffen the cutting iron. There are others among us who found understanding of something we have played with for years.

It is these "senseless" competitions that are always at the forefront of innovation no matter what the field of endeavor.

Silly car races led us to better engine and automotive designs.

Foot races led us to better shoes.

Logging festivals led us to better saws, axes and other tool designs.

When having a competition to see whose plane can make the thinest shaving, it only makes sense to use a wood that is capable of holding together when making thin shavings.

Maybe it is time to turn off the computer and go out and enjoy the day and take some thin shavings just for fun.

jtk