Japanese knife edge shaping tool - GIF

[Altair]

Traditional Japanese knife edge shaping tool called sen.




Previously:

Japanese swordsmith quenches sword blade - GIF
1514 Japanese kusarigama - photo
Knife making billet divider - video
Homemade blacksmithing guillotine - GIF
Forged blacksmith's knife - video
Vintage treadle wheel powered knife sharpener - photo

[Ed]

Looks like an effective way of doing it without the use of powered tools, but I suspect it would be hard going, that guy probably has built up a decent set of muscles doing that sort of work.

[cmarlow]

I wonder how long his scraper lasts and how it is tempered. He is getting a pretty thick shaving off the blade.

[NeiljohnUK]

I wonder how long his scraper lasts and how it is tempered. He is getting a pretty thick shaving off the blade.

3:30 in for more

[daniel82]

I believe I have one of those. It was in a pile of tools I got from friends whose Japanese grandfather was a florist here. Had no idea what it was. Now...where did I put it...?

[Philip Davies]

I wonder what proportion of apprentices impale themselves - involuntary seppuku!

[KustomsbyKent]

I'm thinking that the knife blade that he is carving has not been hardened yet, hence the "fairly easy" shavings he's able to do. Once that shape is close, then they probably hardened, and then continue with the stone to get to the final sharp and hard edge.

[cmarlow]

I didn't say "fairly easy," I said "pretty thick." There is a difference. His sen looks to have a fairly low angle which would make it slice nice but unless he has some special steel in his sen I think making the sen steel hard enough to slice mild steel would make it too brittle to survive at that thin of an angle. Even my triangular scrapers are angled at a higher angle than his sen, and they only take thin shavings.

[marksbug]

totaly awesome.