Getting The Most From Your Kanna

Perhaps more than any other tool, the kanna—the Japanese hand-plane—symbolizes the tradition, pride and skill of the Japanese craftsman. Over the years many myths have been spread about the difficulty of using this temperamental beast. Most of these myths have grown out of simple exasperation and frustration, largely due to a lack of clear, step-by-step information about how to set up, tune and maintain the kanna.

In this book, Des King details the kanna anatomy, including the blade and chip-breaker, describes the four most commonly used kanna (hira-ganna, dainaoshi kanna, kiwa-ganna, and kakumen-ganna), and gives detailed step-by-step instructions on adjusting a new plane—dai, blade and chip-breaker. He also explains how to keep the kanna working at its peak.

Tapping out a Japanese blade (ura-dashi) can be a terrifying procedure that many new to the kanna dread, but in fact it is no more difficult than tapping a thin nail into a piece of wood. This book explains the need for tapping out, what happens if it is not done properly, or at all, and how to avoid the mistakes that can ruin an expensive blade. It also covers in detail faults that can occur in the second part of this procedure—flattening the back (ura-oshi)—and how to avoid them.

If you have recently bought your first kanna and are not sure about what happens next, or your kanna is not performing as you know it should, the clear and comprehensive explanations and 75 diagrams and photos in this book will give you all the information and knowledge you need to get the most out of this exceptional tool.