Shirasaya

This page features the construction of Shirasaya.   Thumbnail images are accompanied by a short narrative.  I did notice that in the process of creating this project page that there are quite a few images involved  and that  I had neglected to detail most of the shiage stages (finish).   I will remedy this with additional photos to be added later.

My tool caddie for shirasaya.  It's portable!

The two halved pieces are planed flat.

Marking the habaki angle on the wood.

The ends shown.

Nice and clean!

A knife is used for initial hollowing boundary

Ready for yokogake

Mune is lined in and nomi is used to remove stock.

Getting close !

The end of the saya is then marked for the habaki and yokogake is used to remove stock.  Fit is checked constantly and when the proper dimensions are met the ha and mune are clean up with nomi.

Certainly,  the production of the saya is a bi-lateral process except that the ura of the saya does not get the recess for the ha as noted earlier on the omote.  When complete the fit should be just touching at the sides with the majority of the hold at the ha and mune.  Care must be exercised so as not to scratch the polished areas of the habaki.  On niju habaki, when properly made, the a set of rails created by the outer jacket  are fitted so as to create channels of hold at the ha and mune.

Once the fitting is complete, rice glue is prepared and the halves are glued.  The saya is bound with cord or rubber tubing.   The saya is put to the side for drying

The shape gradually takes form

With body being cut into the tsuka the overall shape takes a pleasing form.  This is still a shitaji stage and will progress for sometime as the lines are brought into their final form.

The joint between the tsuka and the saya is checked and corrected.

The block progresses down the saya.

A blank of honoki is chosen

The Blank is marked for center then cut in half.

The blade is placed on the wood and the position of the habaki is marked

The tsuka is cut from the blank.

End grains are planed flat.  Must be SHARP!

Fit is checked and prepared for outlining.

Sayanomi for stock removal.

Yokogake continues  down the length of the blank with the fit being constantly checked

The mune is checked for proper fit.

On the omote of the saya the ha is marked and recessed into the saya so as to cradle the edge.  This line is cut by free hand and can be tricky to cut. The yokogake is again used to remove stock approximately .5 mm below the plane of the blank. Care must be taken during this step so that the line is clean uniform or the saya will rattle excessively in the verticle plane

The cutting of the tsuka  proceeds in a similiar fashion with constant care in checking the fit.  When all pieces are complete,  the saya is bound for final fitting.  The sides are checked for flatness and the blade is oiled and inserted into the bound saya. When the blade is removed the points of contact with the blade "atari" are removed.  This step continues until all these points are remedied.  The fitting procedure can be time consuming as all points of fit have to be adjusted prior to gluing the pieces together.

Once dried, the  mouth of the saya is rough cut to the intended shape as are the kojiri and nakagojiri.

Whole lotta planin goin on!

The ji of the saya is planed so as to create a tapered effect

When the final shape is acheived with the larger planes, shiage begins with the rounding of flat surfaces using small polishing planes.  In this case, the saya is an eight sided type and the surfaces are contoured to feel comfortable in the hand

This stage is solely dependant on the eye of the sayashi.  The style of shiage used can quickly identify the maker.

Tokusa is prepared and pasted to a foundation. The tokusa is now used like a sanding block to adjust lines and for very light removal of surface stock.

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The mekugiana is marked and drilled

The mekugi is now made and the saya is powdered with ebota,  which is prepared and applied with a uchiko like ball.   Some sayashi will use mukunoha prior to the application of ebota,  mukunoha is a leaf of the muku tree and act as a very fine abrasive.