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Thread: Chinese Hand Tool Woodworking

  1. #1
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    Chinese Hand Tool Woodworking

    I came across these on another forum, or at least a link to one or two of them. Given the discussions in other threads, I have a serious preference for watching professionals do woodworking vs. the kinds of things that we've been talking about lately. Most of the stuff aimed at beginners gives no reference for pace of actual woodworking when a seriously competent woodworker is doing daily tasks (vs. camera close-up ready stuff).

    This guy's name, or the name of the guy taking videos - is GE Hong. Just about everything in his videos is work by hand, and there is a ton of sawing and mortising, and not a lot of fiddling.

    mortising starts around 6:00 in this video.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctBg8tmZGaU

    If you're going through these videos and see something interesting, please post the link to it and describe what's going on in it. I haven't got any chance of figuring out what any of the titles are without dragging them to google translate.

  2. #2
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    Making a chinese handsaw (nice filing pace in the last video. Different mindset than the boutique saw places, though one that in my experience is perfectly appropriate for actual woodworking - you have more leeway to file like this when it's your saw and you won't have a customer telling you how they couldn't saw with it)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGaWtJntNtw
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FW337gYYvA
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0J_INk7dSMw

  3. #3
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    It's hard to watch with all that talking... the saw making is very cool! love his marking gauge, brilliant!
    Last edited by Matthew N. Masail; 04-17-2014 at 2:23 PM.

  4. #4
    Quote Originally Posted by Matthew N. Masail View Post
    It's hard to watch with all that talking... but like you said it's nice to see real woodworking. love his marking gauge, brilliant!
    I enjoyed it more not knowing what was being said lol but I am left with the feeling that I'm being yelled at like I'm listening to German.


    Its really cool seeing all the different techniques.

  5. #5
    Interesting how he levers and hits the chisel at the same time. Also he has often started the swing on his axe prior to the chisel being back in position to hit.
    Last edited by Doug Bowman; 04-17-2014 at 2:24 PM. Reason: clarity
    " (not that I'm judging...I'm all for excessive honing) " quote from Chris Griggs

  6. #6
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    Interesting, I'd love to see the final result. Thanks for posting it up.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Brian Holcombe View Post
    Interesting, I'd love to see the final result. Thanks for posting it up.
    It'd be easier to figure out what's what if we could read the titles. I think he shows the saw at the end of the saw video, but the other stuff, it's hit or miss trying to figure out where the actual item being made is, and compared to things we make, some of the stuff is fairly odd looking. But there's no doubt when the guy cuts a double through mortise and pops the joint together, he's not just making junk.

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    If it's mandarin I can ask my wife to translate the titles.
    Probably a traditional style piece, from what I understand traditional pieces are not without complicated joinery.

  9. #9
    My few japanese mortisers couldent handle that kind of abuse. Any idea what kind of steels the chinese would use traditionally for mortising chisels?

    I would guess they use a high carbon like the japanese but prying like that I would chip my japanese mortisers pretty fast. They're not very highend though.

  10. #10
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    High end japanese mortise chisels tolerate that kind of work easily. The least expensive chisels I've used that will, though, are miyanaga, and even those (while not being super high end) are not inexpensive.

    Ray iles chisels tolerate that kind of stuff well, too. Chinese tool stuff is hard to gather. They look like they're made similar to japanese chisels but with a bigger socket. I would assume that if they are traditional, they're carbon steel, because the guangxi finish hone that's all over the place (blue slate) is not a fast stone, and I know they don't have the same fetish the japanese have with synthetic sharpening stones, because most sythetic chinese sharpening stones are junky - with the possible exception of some of the expensive sintered hones that they make.

    At any rate, the guy in the video doesn't baby his tools and they tolerate it well. It's clear that they're not dull when he's using them.
    Last edited by David Weaver; 04-17-2014 at 3:43 PM.

  11. #11
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    I couldn't get past the mortising. Notice how he rapidly walks the chisel so it is between the lines.

    I do not strike my chisel handles with steel hammers(axe),but many do in the Orient,I guess.

    His hand forged claw hammer head is EXACTLY the same as the 18th. C. hammer heads we used in Williamsburg. They were not designed for nail pulling,but were for pulling wooden pegs. Pulling nails without the longer"Adze eye" type modern hammers would very quickly break the handles.

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    I found it interesting because I also walk the chisel like that, but half that speed at best.

  13. #13
    There are times when he stops working and starts talking and pointing, I sure wish I knew what the guy was saying I feel like I'm missing out on a ton of wisdom.

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    Quote Originally Posted by george wilson View Post

    I do not strike my chisel handles with steel hammers(axe),but many do in the Orient,I guess.
    I remember seeing elsewhere that the hatchet used as a do-all is common (maybe even standard is appropriate), and that if you want to do something light, you hit with the side, and if you want a forceful very direct strike, you strike with the poll.

    I think when he points to it a couple of times in the middle, he might be saying that, but who knows?

  15. #15
    I think he is easier on the tools than it appears. It looks like he is sticking the tool in twisting it around, but I don't think he is really levering so much as repositioning the tool. All that fast gyration disguises what is going on.

    As George says he walks the chisel to position it, resting it on one corner than the other and twisting it to walk it to the proper spot to hit. It takes some skill to do this easily. He does it so confidently that it arrives at the new position just in time for a hit.

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