How to tune up a kanna part 3

In this series I show you how to tune up/prepare a Japanese plane (kanna) so that it will be ready for use. This covers "flat" planes (smoother, jointers etc) and it is more geared towards the smoothers since they require the most precision and fettling.
This part covers the tuning the sole, fitting the chip-breaker and I show you the results of the final plane.

[@thebigredwagon]

This helped a lot. I got my blade so sharp i could shave and the sole tuned but it would not cut. The chip breaker was too tight and distorting the edge. Thanks for that buddy. It’s working perfectly now.

[@urieal]

I just wanted to say Thank You. No one goes into the detail that you do about Kanna and how to both tune them as well as restore them. Thank you again. Please upload more.

[@sumokun]

Hi, thanks for the kind words of encouragement. I will be uploading more stuff sometime in the future. I'm making my workroom right now but once that is done, I will start making some more videos.

[@user-bb7wr3wv8g]

I am very grateful to you for this lesson. As a beginner, he is very useful to me. You have shown a lot of subtleties of setting up the plane. Thank you again, health and well-being.

[@apophysis2]

Best video series for tuning up a Japanese plane found on the net. Thanks for sharing.

[@chriscas-ToolAficionado]

What a great series. Thank you very much for all the insight you've provided!

[@sumokun]

Glad you found it helpful!

[@timecowx]

Many thanks! This was a wonderfully detailed and informative series, and I look forward to your future videos. Great job!

[@sumokun]

Thanks! There should be more random videos coming soonish.

[@ytctrb]

Thanks heaps for this in depths treatise of Japanese plane fundamentals and tuning. I've learned a lot. You are a great teacher!

[@55ATA3]

Thank yo for taking your time to make this the videos on the kanna, I had to watch a few videos before yours and you made it very easy to follow so I could get a kanna in tune.

[@Artexmadera]

Thank you for sharing this very informative video, I am already working on a couple kanna that will benefit a lot from your teaching.

[@andreasloher6340]

Thanks a lot for this great videos . my kanna just arrived from Japan - I think, I´ll watch Vour videos a hundred times, before I´ll start to tune it up - thanks again for Your great work :)

[@berinnelson1133]

Thankyou so much for this series, I have really enjoyed watching you at work and sharing your knowledge. I am obsessed with Kanna and have always been amazed there has not been more instructional content on the web for enthusiasts. You have done a fine job in correcting this!

[@landraven0404]

Stil sharing and re viewing your videos. Japanese job ! :) Thank you again and again !

[@mitchwoodwork]

Good series of videos with a lot of information, thanks. I recently received my first kanna, and spent a few minutes today preparing the sole. looking forward to achieving some fine shavings like yours after a bit more work.

[@sumokun]

+Mitch Peacock - WOmadeOD Hi and thanks for the compliments. Its not too hard to get fine shavings so keep at it. I'd love to see a video on how you get on ;)

[@Digitalsnapp]

Thank you. I received my first kanna today. I am so glad you have shared this.

[@sumokun]

Hope the video can help you :)

[@ronin4711]

Years ago I got me a Kana for the life of me I could never bring it to a level of shaving like yours, actually I would just accept it to a level of a Stanley plane, your video shows a deep level of Japanese Craftsmanship, which I highly appreciate and finally maybe one day I'll be able to tune my dai to cut as yours if I already didn't ruin it, I hope. Any way, thanks a lot, "wakarimas".ありがとう, ありがとうございます, 感謝します, 大感謝

[@osvaldocristo]

Great series, thank you very much! I missed a part explaining the correct montage of the chip breaker, my remaining doubt.

[@echtnice1092]

great video!

[@sumokun]

Thanks for watching :) In the US, it seems japanwoodworker and hidatools are the most popular places for kanna. Having a quick look there is a nice selection of tools there although a bit limited. Sometimes you can find Japanese sellers on that auction site selling new planes. That might be worth looking into as well.

[@sergeynikolaev1648]

Thank you very much for such tutorial, full of needed information. And very nice that you comment in on English. For me English is 1000 times better than Japan. Thanks from Ukraine. I will write you againe when will tune my kannas.

[@PeriodWoodworker]

Superb series. Thank you

[@sumokun]

Thanks for watching and its always good to hear from people that have found these videos useful.

[@sumokun]

Hi there :) General woodworking is a broad category but a standard set of Western planes would comprise of a medium plane like a No.5, a smoother like a No.4 and a longer plane like a 7 or 8. This will get you through most tasks requiring a bench type plane. Kanna are similar in that you want something for rougher work, finer work and something for jointing type work. Kanna differ though in that the variable is usually the dai. There are 2 main classes of length for a kanna; standard and long.

[@ronin4711]

Thanks, I'll try that some day, I also found out that I need to put a glass bed resin on the back of the plane, behind the blade, as I mentioned before (maybe) I was over zealous when I got it and went a bit too much. Thank you very much.

[@ronin4711]

I think that is a very good idea, actually, ideas! I'll try one of them soon and I'll tell you the result. Thanks.

[@RowdenAtelier]

really good work, one suggestion, the cabinet scraper should really give shavings if properly sharpened not dust. But I agree it could do this task quite well. best David Savage

[@j.r.tidwell3318]

Great information. Thank you

[@sumokun]

A wide mouth is an easy fix and its something you have to do with any wooden plane at some point in its life. If you have a router it makes things really easy. Ebony is a common wood I see in mouth inserts other than the white oak. Make the insert first then use it to mark out the recess and use a router or chisel to chop most of the waste and pare to the lines. Glue it in and you're done! You should be able to do it easily in an evening.

[@sumokun]

Thanks for watching. I got the Miyamoto blade from a dai cutter here in Japan. He had it in stock for a long time. I'm not sure where you would be able to find one but the best source would probably be an online auction or if you can read/write Japanese, try shopping on Japanese sites.

[@severynbarabakh1979]

Finished setting up the 42 ml. kanna white steel blade it is amazing from corners of teak wood I am able to shave almost hair size, now will work on the 70 ml blue steel. I was so happy once I got the pin out much better to reach places, and used the blade itself to scrape under I used 70 with gentle scraping motion both ways it worked great now will use small to tune big one I am grateful for your videos really detailed and clear I will definitely stay in touch 👍🔱

[@sumokun]

Good to hear you got it working! As a tip for the future, if you have some old, flat metal working files on hand, or even an old chisel you don't need anymore, grind down the end of it to a flat tip and it will work well as a scraper. This lets you get under the wedge-shaped cutouts where the blade sits and allow you to better fit the blade into the body. Using a kanna blade to scrape will not let you access the tighter areas which you need to get a good fit.

[@severynbarabakh1979]

For the wedges, I used the special wood file it worked perfectly. I used 70 ml Kanna blade holding straight up and gently scraping the curves on the heal to make the 3 spots for control until it could gently spin around I had a knife as well but blade had more control. Thank you once again.

[@jonazanteo]

Hi Sumokun, am having some doubts with regards to how far the blade edge should stick out from the mouth. Initially it was too far out for me and that caused the kanna to gouge out the wood. Now that it is not too far out, I get jamming by the shavings instead. Will definitely refine my setting technique, your video series has been helpful.

[@JontoDickens]

"Check the state of your soul". Deep, man.......

[@sumokun]

The blade usually stays the same width. For rough work you just take a standard hira-ganna and tune it for rough work i.e. put a radius on the blade and open the mouth a bit. The blade maybe slightly narrower to make it easier to pull. For smoothers, its basically the same plane but with a tighter mouth, less of a radius or no radius and a slightly different sole profile, like in this video. Jointers are basically same as the others but with a longer dai.

[@DaveBardin]

First you have done some great series on planes. Thank you. Second is there a good aveneu for me to purchase a quality Kanna here in the States? Thank you for all you do and keep up the good work.

[@sumokun]

Hi, thanks for watching! It sounds to me like your breaker is too tight. Try tapping the corners down to lower the angle of the wedge shape and make sure the slot in the dai is wide enough for the breaker to fit and not bind up. The breaker should only need minor taps to move. The other potential problem is the blade being too loose in its mortise.

[@colynhypnotist]

Thanks for your reply I will try tapping the corners down more - the slot in the dai is wide enough

[@sumokun]

Hi, thanks for watching! I was planning to do a video on basic rip and cross cut saws sometime. I guess I'll try and get it shot sooner rather than later. Saws are kinda out of my league but there are a few things I think you should keep in mind when buying a Japanese saw. My simplified view is unless you are experienced at sharpening or have someone sharpen it for you, get a disposable saw.

[@sumokun]

They will be your basic set of planes but with kanna it is typical to expand with different bedding angles and different steels depending on the wood being cut and different widths of blade depending on the size of work. Search for "江戸指物" in youtube and you can see he has a bunch of what look like hira-ganna in many different sizes at around the 4:40 mark. Of course in both worlds there are a ton of speciality planes ;) Hope that helped and feel free to ask any more questions :)

[@sumokun]

A properly sharpened scraper should definitely take coherent shavings. The one I was using was a little dull and I wasn't putting much pressure on it. For a very fine finishing plane, the hollows should be really shallow. A single swipe of a standard plane should remove all the hollows so you need to be a bit careful when removing wood.

[@dwayne_draws]

Thank-you so much for this great series. I have learned a lot. I inherited some tools from my great-grandfather-in-law and on one plane the iron is very tight. I'm almost afraid of breaking the plane taking it out. I think I will have to watch the video's again and see if I can get it serviceable. Unfortunately at this point I don't know if my problems are me or the plane :)

[@sumokun]

Hi, thanks for watching. Some irons can be very stuck due to shrinkage of the body and rust. To get it out, just whack on the back of the body at the same-ish angle as the blade and alternately on the left and right sides. Don't keep whacking in the middle as you might split the body. I've never come across a kanna that wasn't visibly super rusty that I couldn't take apart with this method. Just make sure your hammer or mallet hits the body squarely (i.e. not the corner of the hammer head) and the body shouldn't crack. You might need to give a good few hard whacks but it will come out.

[@dwayne_draws]

Thank-you!

[@colynhypnotist]

great Videos-I do have a question regarding set-up I followed ALL your suggestions in preparing the Kanna - ONLY and Major problem I have though is everytime I set the breaker by lightly hammering it down - IT pushes the BLADE behind it UP so it is impossible to use - If I do manage to get one shaving - the blade retracts up - ANY Suggestions

[@sumokun]

Thanks for watching and I'm glad I could help.

[@sumokun]

Hi, thanks for watching! I'm still alive and well but woodworking has been going slowly recently due to work and family commitments. I have a whole bunch of videos I want to do but its just taking me time to get round to doing them. I am slowly working on it though so stay tuned :)

[@johnchung6900]

Great tutorials on Kanna. Which online stores carry the kanna you mentioned? Is there any equivalance chart between Kanna and Western planes?

[@kmac9748]

Kmac Thanks for the very instructive series of videos on the Kanna, I found them most enjoyable and will be re-watching parts of them. My first attempt at sharpening and tuning a cheap manufactured kanna was enjoyable and reasonably successful. At the moment I am considering purchasing one of two new/old kanna (both about 40yrs). One is by Uozumi Fukusaburo in Tamahagane steel and the other is by Kyosho in laminated steel with a square section chip breaker pin (Osea-bo), why square? Can you provide any guidance for me on either of these kanna? Thanks again.

[@sumokun]

Hi, for the Fukusaburo,it is likely it is a lower mid level kanna. If it says tamahagane on the blade, it is pretty much guaranteed to not be real tamahagane. I am also not 100% certain, but I don't recall Fukusaburo making any tamahagane blades. As for the Kyosho, I am not familiar with the name (would need to see the markings) so I can't really judge the quality. The square section pins were common back in the day. They were just another style of pin. I prefer the look of them however functionality-wise they are a bit inferior to the standard round pins. The reason being they need to be fitted properly to match the angle of the CB and they also have the potential to wear loose from the corners of the pin wearing the typically round holes they are inserted into. They are both minor points so I wouldn't have any problem with buying a kanna with square pins however they wouldn't make or break a deal for me.

[@edisoncarter5134]

Hi Sumokun!! Some people have many and some few planes. How many and what sizes of planes constitutes a true set a craftsman could be expected to have to do general woodworking? Your Jointer plane video was excellent. They are all excellent actually. I know so little about japanese planes. Tx in advance for your answer. Ed

[@sumokun]

If it still happens then the blade is most likely too loose in its mortise. Does the kanna work OK without the chipbreaker?

[@michaelb9481]

Thank you! This is very informative and inspiring. I have some questions.. I'm tuning up an old kanna and you mentioned something about adding material if the blade is too loose. My blade extends slightly out of the dai bottom when fit by hand. I know I should probably buy a new dai, but I wanted to see if I could fix it first. What type of material do you suggest adding for a tighter fit? Should this be done before all of the other adjustments as shown in your tutorial? Any tips on how to go about this would be appreciated... I was thinking about gluing some type of paper to the bed~

[@sumokun]

Thanks for watching! If the blade is only extending a bit when fit by hand, then you can easily patch up the bed with some material. It would be a waste to cut a whole new dai unless you are really finicky about that kind of thing. Patching up is a pretty common thing to do. The material I prefer is either a thin veneer of solid hardwood (no paper backing). I prefer woods that are durable on the face of the wood since that is the surface that is in contact with the blade. Normally the end grain is contacting the blade but since you can't really laminate a piece of end grain onto the bed, you need to use something hard. I like the harder rosewoods and ebonies. Stuff like padauk and other exotics should do fine as well. I get a lot of these thin slices (about 2-3mm thickness) of wood as offcuts from guitar building but I appreciate that you may not be able to get such thin material. In that case, one thing you can do is to cut away even more of the bed and make it flat instead of curved. Then you can use a thicker piece of wood to laminate on. My second choice would be to take thick shavings from a dense hardwood and glue them to the bed. If you can't take a single shaving wide enough then take a few narrower ones and line them up side by side. You can build up multiple layers too if you can't take a thick enough shaving. If all that is too much trouble then my third choice would be to use paper. Washi, or Japanese paper is the best choice because it is tough. You should be able to get it in arts and crafts shops. Failing that you could just use newspaper. Watercolour paper is probably a bit too thick and spongy for this purpose. For glue, I always use fish glue. I like fish glue because it has a long open time, it dries very hard and it is reversible so you can redo the lamination at a later date. Titebond would work just fine though. This patching work should definitely be done before tuning up the rest of the plane. Good luck and feel free to ask any more questions if you get stuck.

[@missionron]

Ive got the right side comi g through the mouth first..a teeny bit..but it must be corrected! The blade has NO side to side movement to adjust it out...should i widen the guide slot/s? Great videos! Thank you for putting all this together!

[@sumokun]

Hi, be very careful when widening the slots. They should be pretty tight with maybe a tiny amount of room (like

[@sumokun]

Most of the kanna I have are bought from Japanese auctions or direct through a dai maker (the Miyamoto plane I'm tuning). I have some also from Japanese tool dealers. Its hard to make a detailed equiv. chart between kanna and planes. Planes are generally classified using the sole length where work size generally determines kanna sole length and width. Sole profiles pay a biggish role in a kanna where in planes its flat or nothing :p Any sizes you want to know an "equivalent" for in particular?

[@sumokun]

The kanna equivalent to a jack or scrub would be a narrow plane like a 48mm or even 36mm with a sole length of your choosing. Like a Western plane, you'd need to open up the mouth and put a radius on the blade, so its pretty much the same thing as a Western plane. I personally bought a really cheap hardware store plane and turned that into my roughing plane. You can also buy a really cheap plane off an auction. Its probably not such a good idea to get an expensive plane for rough work.

[@johnchung6900]

Is there an equivalent to a jack plane or scrub plane? I could skew a plane blade (on a jack plane) to somewhat become a scrub plane but I am not sure if that is appropriate for a Kanna.

[@simonspring802]

Thanks for the great videos. I just gut my first kanna. I’m a bit confused cause my Kanna came with a moth opening of about 2mm. That means I can not do the fine tuning like you’ve shown it with the chisel. Do you think I should return it to the shop or am I still able to get a good results with the others tunings? How importantly the small mouth opening?

[@sumokun]

Hi, a mouth opening of about 2mm is quite large and although useable, I would patch it up. This isn't really acceptable for a new tool but for a used tool, it is quite common. A small mouth opening helps to control tearout and also makes the kanna more stable.

[@rbs52guy]

Sumokun-San Very much enjoyed all of your kanna videos, especially those on setting up a either new or acquired used kanna. My question is if you have any knowledge of Ha-ganna planes? If you know of makers of dai and steel? Thank you Richard

[@sumokun]

Hi, thanks for watching. Ha-ganna are quite rare even in Japan. They do show up now and then for sale new but they are pretty expensive, being speciality tools. Ha-ganna are incredibly finicky to set up and they need to be set up properly to perform their job of cutting precise grooves of an exact dimension. You can most likely get them specially made by one of the makers here but to get a full set is going to be a significant expense (~$300+ each) and wouldn't make sense unless you are a wealthy hobbyist or are hand-making Shoji on a large scale. The idea of a ha-ganna is pretty simple. It is just a blade that is ground to cut a certain size/angle of groove held into a block. Usually the blade resembles a piece of angle iron and is held in a similarly shaped mortise but you could make your own version that is wedged in place to simplify construction. The blade is the bigger problem and I have suggested this in the past as well but something like what Roy Underhill describes in his thread box episode might work. Unfortunately the problem for ha-ganna today is that most shoji making is done using machines. As I said above, ha-ganna are very difficult to set up and maintain and in a working shop where the number of shoji you can put out per day determines your income, you don't want to be wasting time fiddling with your tools. Anyway, hope that helped and feel free to ask if you have any more questions!

[@davechalk5590]

I was wondering about your experience on how long the blade stays sharp. One of the books I'm reading on how to tune up a kanna says not to use sand paper because the grit could get stuck into the kanna, coming loose as you use it dulling the blade.

[@sumokun]

Hi Dave. The blade life really depends a lot on how well it was sharpened in the first place and also how and what woods you use it on. As a really general idea, I feel a decent kanna will last maybe up to 50% or so longer than a typical Stanley. I feel I can get away with a duller blade on a kanna on easy to plane woods too since a kanna is easier to pull over the work piece compared to a metal sole. As for not using sandpaper when tuning a kanna, it is a good idea to avoid sandpaper where possible for the reasons you state however grit that is trapped will not stick around for that long and after a few scrapings with a cabinet scraper or scraper plane, you will have pretty much removed all the grit.

[@vartotojaspenki]

Hello and thanks a lot for this informational video. I'd like to ask if You could tell a little about size and form of kanna? Why it does not have any handles to hold ? What is the history behind it? Maybe You already told this in one of you videos and I skipped it - in this case could You give me link to it. ありがとうございました

[@desarrollojava]

25:00 The chipbreaker should be almost aligned with the blade? I mean separated only by a half of a millimeter? BTW, excellent tutorials. This helped me to understand far more kannas.

[@sumokun]

Yes, the CB edge needs to be parallel with the blade edge and set back a small amount depending on the depth of cut.

[@sumokun]

Before trying epoxy resin (is that what you mean?) try using wood glue to stick some sheets of paper or wood shavings onto the bed. Epoxy is much harder to scrape away and it can make a real mess. If you are feeling adventurous, coat the back of the blade in oil or some release agent and cover the bed in epoxy. Then stick the blade in, wait for it to set and voila, you have a near perfect bed. You need to be careful though or you'll end up with the blade stuck in the dai forever.

[@ricardozorio7751]

very delicate work! I almost feel like a caveman

[@sombu65]

thank for your demo, sir i want to ask you how get that kind of blade im here in doha qatar. help me how i can buy that blade thank zaldy

[@highwoodsironworks902]

Hello , im just getting into japanese hand planes . And i have a question : do i first finetune the fit if the blade in the plane bed and then the fit of the chipbreaker or the other way around ?

[@sumokun]

Hi. You definitely want to be fitting the blade first since if you don't do that, you won't be able to seat the chipbreaker properly. To be more precise, the order you should do things is mate the blade and CB together (show in the blade prep video). Then fit the blade but stop slightly short of final fit. Just get the fit close. Then start fitting the CB. You only really need to concentrate on the width of the CB area on the dai. The tightness of the CB against the blade should be pretty close as is. If it isn't, then hammer on the ears of the CB to adjust the tightness. It doesn't need to be super tight since it is not getting much force from the shavings. As you adjust the ears, make sure to check the fit of the CB against the blade so that it doesn't rock. After you can get the CB tapped down the dai and sitting about 0.5mm from the edge of the blade, go back to the blade fitting and finish it off. The CB should be able to be adjusted to final usage position (about 0.1mm or so from the blade edge) without affecting the blade fit etc. Then you can continue on with the sole etc adjustments. Hope that makes sense!

[@highwoodsironworks902]

@@sumokun Wow , this is super helpful ! Shōsaina setsumei arigatōgozaimasu !

[@mapblahblah3061]

Are there Kanna for particular tasks like western planes? Like smoothing, jack or jointer planes. Or is it just the length of the body and how you prepare the blade?

[@sumokun]

Hi, there are kanna for different purposes but not to the extent of Western planes. The workhorse is the standard length 70mm kanna and that is used for almost everything. There are longer bodied ones used primarily for shooting rather than flattening. The smaller sizes like 54mm and down are mainly used for much smaller scale work. Even for things like small cabinets etc, the 70mm is the usual choice. It mainly comes down to efficiency. The setup is important, as you say. Normally when you buy a kanna, it will come with a tight mouth and if you paid good money for it it doesn't make sense to open it up for roughing work so roughing planes are usually created from the worn out smoothers.

[@mapblahblah3061]

@@sumokun makes sense, thank you!

[@marinkogospic8901]

masters Sumokun :)

[@ambertch]

Hi, what grit sandpaper do you use to level the bottom of the plane?

[@sumokun]

Hi, I think here I was using 800 or 1200 grit. If you have a lot of material to remove use a coarser grit first and then finish up with a finer grit. Another tip is to use a scrap peice of wood on the sandpaper first to dislodge any loose grit first in order to minimise the amount of grit getting embedded in the kanna sole.

[@theeraputh]

Thank you very much Sumokun, I have been watching several of your videos and learn so much. I just started with wood working and highly interesting in Japanese way of wood working. I am now have my kanna tuned, I don't think I got it perfect as in your video but as much as I could. I used my kanna to plane a piece of redwood, and I had good continuous shaving our of the plane, however, it left tear marks on the wood. When I tried to plane harder red oak wood, the plane became hard to pull and sometime skipping. I am wondering if you could advice what to check for to solve this problem?

[@sumokun]

Thon Hi, thanks for the kind comments. Three things come to mind regarding your problems; sharpness setting of the depth of cut and chipbreaker setting. I would address them in that order. First regarding sharpness. Make sure your blade is sharp. For softwoods, a sharp plane is a must for a fine finish. Hardwoods can be planed with a less sharp blade but a sharp blade helps to reduce pulling resistance. A skipping plane in hardwood usually indicates the blade isn't sharp enough. Second, depth of cut. You may be taking a cut that is too thick. Try backing off the iron a bit. Too thick of a cut will make the plane hard to pull and give more tearout. Third, the chipbreaker may be set incorrectly. You could have it set too loose, in which case tearout is more prone to occur, or too tight in which case the plane becomes very hard to pull. For finish work in troublesome woods, the chipbreaker should be set very close to the edge and the plane set for a very fine cut. I use the reflection off of the blade back as a guide for how the chipbreaker is set. There should only be a very tiny line of light reflecting. Skipping of the plane and tearout is not usually caused by bad tuning of the plane. Correct adjustment however is essential to a good performing plane. Give the above a try and if you still have problems let me know :)

[@thonm9966]

Sumokun Hi Sumokun - Thank you for very awesome advice. I removed the blade and sharpen it again. I also adjusted the depth of cut to minimal and make sure that chipbreaker is very closed to the edge. The plane didn't skip anymore if I planed on the thin side (1/2 inch), when I tried to plane on the wider side (about 2 inches), it is still skipping on the left side of the wood. If I tried to plane on the right side, it cuts cleanly. Is it because I didn't sharpen the blade evenly? (It looked very sharp though :)). I also noticed that the blade is a little bit convex evenly across the width. Thanks again.

[@sumokun]

Theeraputh Mekathikom Hi, it could be a sharpness problem. Its hard to determine if your blade is sharp enough over the internet but you can probably run some quick tests. shaving hair off your arm or other body part is a bad test because it is easily passed. Try comparing the edge to something like a razor blade or other known reference of sharpness. Try slicing some paper. It should be smooth and not catch or feel rough. You should be able to compare to the razor blade very easily using paper slices. My personal test is to hold a hair out and try to cut it about 1cm or so from my holding finger with only the weight of the hair on the blade. You should be able to slice the hair (I go to about 12k grit for the fine side of sharpening). The convex edge might also be the cause. Is the blade set to take an even shaving from both left and right sides? If it is, then the middle could be taking a much deeper cutting than you expect so check that as well with a thin piece of wood. I like to sharpen my finishing blades flat across with only the very corners slightly rounded off to prevent tracks. Let me know if that helped :)

[@thonm9966]

Sumokun Hi - thanks again for advice. I tried to sharpen the blade again, and adjust the blade. It is sharp comparable to razor (it cut through paper smoothly), but it didn't cut hair with its own weight :). I only have King 6000 for my finest but I will look to get the finer one. I think it was cutting too deep, now it did much better though it still left some scratch line and some tear out once every few stroke. I guess, I need to some more practice.

[@sumokun]

Good to hear you are making progress. King 6000 should get you to a pretty good edge that will handle most tasks. With some woods you will need to go higher but with something like redwood, it should be OK. Try setting the blade even finer and make sure you are planing with the grain. Otherwise you might have to try the chipbreaker. A good cheap way to get a finer edge than 6K is to get some paste metal polish and put some on MDF and use that as a strop. Use only pull strokes to prevent digging in to the MDF. You should be able to get a very fine edge with that.

[@sumokun]

Hi, thanks for watching. One of the aims of the video was to inspire people like you, who already have a kanna but are not satifsied with the performance, to go and tune it up. Most mistakes you make can be fixed up some way or another so give it another go :) The only mistake which can be problematic is if you altered the front side of the channels where the blade wedges against. I think all other mishaps can be fixed. Let me know if you need help ;)

[@AlpineWarren]

On a 3 touch plane I've read the center point should be slightly lower than the two end points? What are you thoughts?

[@sumokun]

I've seen this recommendation as well from English language sources but from all the Japanese language stuff I have read over the years, there is no mention of the practise. Everyone here recommends you to make all the points lie in a single plane. Its an easy thing to try though and it is worth giving it a go to see if you like it set up one way or the other.

[@AlpineWarren]

Okay thanks so much - New to the Japanese tools in the last few weeks so I appreciate your reply and your videos! :)

[@sumokun]

The history is quite long to put in a comment but basically they started as single bladed tools and only from the early Showa period or so did chipbreakers become popular, although they were known of long before that, because of a building rush so lesser trained people could use a kanna without too much tearout. I'm not sure why there are no handles but I guess its just because they didn't need them. Previous to kanna as we know them today there were yari kanna and other more primitive tools.

[@TheMorphines]

Hi. Thanks for the videos. It helps me alot to setting my new kanna. I saw you flatten the surface of kanna. But mine, the surface is not flatten. Rear surface higher than the front. My kanna is k*akuri brand. Is that ok or i need to make it flat? Thank you

[@sumokun]

Hi, the sole of the kanna must be flat all over otherwise it will not work well. After getting everything flat, you will need to scrape the shallow hollows into the sole like I show as well or the kanna will be quite difficult to use. Kakuri is a brand more for basic DIY type work rather than fine woodworking. The fit of the parts and finish quality are not so good and although they can be made to work, I typically recommend avoiding them because they require quite a bit of work to become usable. Perservere though and you should be able to walk away with a uasable tool. Good luck and let me know if you have trouble!

[@TheMorphines]

Sumokun Got that. Thanks for the answer. Stay sharp.

[@adamunderwood3337]

I bought my first kanna recently, and have tried to set it up best I can. I did start with a fairly cheap one so as to learn the process before buying an expensive one. I set it up as I said, but find that its really hard to pull and leaves track marks in the wood. What am I doing wrong?

[@sumokun]

Hi Adam, First, if its hard to pull, and assuming the blade is properly sharpened, it means you are taking too aggressive of a cut. Your "leaving track marks" comment also indicates you are taking a pretty hefty cut. Back off the blade a bit and you should find it easier to pull. This is fine if you are trying to hog off a load of material but for finishing work, it is not a good idea. Also slightly round the corners of the blade when sharpening to ease the edge of the cut into the remaining wood. It will take a bit of practise and a lot of trial and error to adjust the blade to a good cutting depth so keep at it :) An easy way to test without taking shavings off your work piece is to get a thin piece of wood and run the narrow edge of it over the blade at various points to make these little curly strings of wood. Take a look at them and see if they are consistent in thickness across the width of the blade and also make sure they are thin. They shouldn't be so thick as to be able to "snap" them or feel "crispy" when you bend them. They should just fold over even when making a hard 180 turn and pressing on it. Once you get to that level of thickness there shouldn't be much resistance when pulling in softwoods.

[@adamunderwood3337]

Thank you so much! This is really helpful.

[@ronin4711]

Hi I checked my Kanna and found out (unfortunately) that my Kanna is "beyond repair" according to your instructions because I opened the mouth way too big for fine shavings like you show in your video, I may be able to put an "Insert" of some real hard wood, any way, maybe one day I'll fix it if I feel really ambitious , thanks for your response.

[@randykobashikawa5888]

Aloha Sumoku, Good job on the explanation! So at that point of fine tuning a new dai, would the blade be to tight to hit the dai on the front? Also would you be able to point me in a direction of Ha-Ganna 60, 45. 30, 15? Aloha Randy

[@sumokun]

+Randy Kobashikawa Hi, thanks for the comment. At the tuning level at the end of the video, the blade is tight but it protrudes enough to make a fine cut. If you need a deeper cut, just open up the mouth a bit more and make the fit a bit looser. The tightness of the blade is a personal thing and some people like it tight while others like it a bit looser. Its always a good idea to leave it a bit tight, use it for a bit, then re-evaluate the situation. For Ha-Ganna, you are going to have a really tough time finding new ones. They are not really produced en mass anymore and they are pretty expensive, not to mention possibly the most finniky planes to tune due to their requirement of high accuracy. I would recommend making your own using a lamination method.

[@randykobashikawa5888]

+Sumokun Hi, Ok the blades are going to be hard to find if they're not being made. Mahalo!!

[@sumokun]

+Randy Kobashikawa Hi! The blades are the main problem but you can try making them yourself from bar stock similar to how Roy Underhill shows when he makes thread box cutters. Its basically an angled cutter but again, even if you do manage to make one, you will have a real nightmare trying to keep it sharp and precisely at the required angle. Unlike with a thread box cutter, "close enough" is not good enough in this case as you probably know. The blade will also get a lot of wear since it is cutting cross grain albeit in usually softer wood. The better option if you want to make Kumiko is to just investigate the myriad other methods available. There are power tool methods as well as hand tool methods which are in use today. The Ha-Ganna is the most efficient way using hand tools to make the pieces once everything is set up but I assume you are not working in a mass production environment and have the luxury of time.

[@randykobashikawa5888]

+Sumokun Thanks for the reply, however if I can't get the ha-ganna then I'll keep using my kanna and shooting board method. But it takes so long to do it that way. Different shooting board for the various angles. The blade is the hardest thing to get making the dai, and fence can be done, having the blades would be the best way. Thank you very much, and I'll be looking at more of your videos too! Aloha Randy

[@sumokun]

+Randy Kobashikawa Yeah, looking at other people making Kumiko by hand, they just make do with a shooting board. For the blades, maybe you can get a local blacksmith to make some for you or even maybe look into repurposing a moulding plane. I am not sure how well a flat blade like on a moulding plane would work, but it might be worth a try. Good luck!

[@michaelandersen5453]

Well I just got a 65mm plane that I paid $250 for and a 38mm plane for $85. I was surprised how much toning it will take to get the expensive one toned. I checked the bottom and everything touched the straightedge other than the points that are suppose too. The cheaper one was flatter. The chip breaker on the one that is expensive doesn’t even go half way down. This one is suppose to have a blue steel blade. I’m not sure if I got that. Bought from Japan woodworking. I’m thinking I’m glade I did not spend anymore than I did. Is this just normal and all need this extensive toning no matter how much you pay? I am so happy I found your site. P.S. I see 8x10 film holders in the background. Your a large format photographer. Regards mike

[@sumokun]

Hi, kanna will always need some tuning when you first get one. The bodies are made of wood so they *will* move over time. This is why I recommend staying away from so-called "ready to use" kanna. Rarely are they tuned well enough in the first place and once they arrive after all that time in shipping through various climates, they will have warped enough to need more tuning. This is true regardless of the cost of the kanna. In fact high-end kanna are almost never offered "ready to use" because the user is expected to know how to tune it up to their liking if they spend that kind of money on a tool. The chip-breaker not going all the way down is a common problem in cheaper kanna. The solution is to just shave a bit of wood from the side walls. As long as the blade fit is not loose, you should have enough material left on the bed to fit the blade properly. This is quite normal. The sole not being flat is also common. After you fit the blade, the pressure from the blade will slightly distort the body anyway so leave the final flattening and scraping step till last. If you have any more questions feel free to ask :) ( yes, they are 8x10 holders... you have a keen eye ;) )

[@michaelandersen5453]

thank you so much for your reply that givens me a better insight to these tools. 8x10 has been my passion for the last 30 years.

[@pmjcdteam]

Hey can you show marking, plough plane, molding plane, concave convex and the ink line and marking technic?

[@sumokun]

Hi, Japanese marking (assuming you mean in timber-framing like you see in most videos) is a very specific thing and is a huge topic. It is something I haven't really explored in detail since it doesn't apply in the work I do. For general furniture type projects, the techniques used are pretty much the same as in Western woodworking as far as I know. Plough planes are something I want to cover in future videos including how to restore or repair them. Moulding planes are actually not very commonly used in Japan. Apart from the pulling vs pushing and the design differences in the planes themselves, the usage of them is basically the same as in the West. Concave and convex planes are another big subject. Hollows and rounds are used pretty much like in the West. Compass planes and their relatives are also used like in the West and they are one of the more common type of non-flat plane you will find in use in a Japanese workshop. The setup of these is not described in much detail anywhere but as far as I know, the soles are not hollowed like on flat planes. They are used like flat planes, but on curved surfaces obviously, and are sharpened the same way. Commonly a custom dished set of stones is used for sharpening to maintain the radius at the edge. Ink lines are again a timber-framing specific tool. They don't have much if any use in furniture type work. The benefit of them is of course that they can draw long, straight lines on irregular work. This is again something I have yet to explore in detail but the gist of it is you pin the free end of the line on the end of the work and get the line on the start mark. Then you take the pot to the other end of the work and pull the line tight while aligning on the end mark. Then pull up on the line and let it snap against the work. It's not quite as simple as I make it out to be as you have to take into account all sorts of factors. Anyway, hope that helped shed some light on your questions :)

[@turnercarl]

hi Sumokun, good wishers how are you i am one of you viewers not seen you for a while . and how have you been .

[@severynbarabakh1979]

So to follow the old traditional way I don't need chip breaker at all, It seems like extra weight that can have a much more negative effect on precise work. That is great to know

[@sumokun]

The super old traditional way uses no chipbreaker but you would "need" a body made specifically for that task. It is not really practical these days to go without a chipbreaker unless you work only with easy to plane woods. The chipbreaker adds extra pulling resistance but they do provide effective tear-out control. The weight is not too much of a concern.

[@severynbarabakh1979]

I only plan to use it on nicer wood but understand It can be great to refinish some old recycled wood opens up new possibilities

[@sumokun]

When I mention easy to plane woods, I am referring to straight grained and softer woods like good quality pine or spruce, beech, maple etc. The surface condition doesn't really matter much. You will also run into the need for a chipbreaker if you plan on using very figured woods or woods like rosewood, ebony and other exotics.

[@superspinach5338]

Hello, I'm currently tuning up my kanna but I'm currently facing some problems with it. First, the bed of the blade is quite convex (the blade only touches the middle part of the bed) but I can't scrape too much to make the surface flat because the blade sits less than a millimeter away from the opening when pushed in. Also the chipbreaker isn't aligned at all with the edge of the blade (I put the blade in first, then tap it so it protrudes a little and finally I add the chipbreaker which gets stuck under the metal rod only after pushing it in 3/4 mm.) And I even tried to use the kanna as is but it's really hard to pull in the wood, the shavings aren't consistent and they sometimes get stuck in the opening. (I measured the thickness of the shavings with a calliper and it reads 0.2mm) What should I do to fix these issues ? I am kind of confused on what I should do.

[@StewFairweather]

For your chip breaker, if it's that tight against the rod, try flattening the protruding tips on the back of the chip breaker a little. Don't go mad, just a little, then check, then a little more until it sits sort of centre against the rod before tapping. You could also try what is suggested in the video - filing the rod itself. I imported an old plane from Japan that whoever used it there, went as far as actually bending the rod for a fit - something I wouldn't recommend - but hey, it worked. Sounds like your blade was either a poor fit to begin with or you've maybe over tuned the channels (if you've touched them at all). You could always use a bench grinder to take a mm or so off the blade, much like you would if you'd chipped a chisel or plane blade. Plenty of YT vids for this process. Means you'll have to go through the sharpening process all over again but it's all good practice. Taking a mm or so off the blade will mean the blade should sit tighter in the dai (the blade is thick toward the top), meaning you should be able to flatten off the blade bed a little.

[@superspinach5338]

The chipbreaker doesn't fit under the rod actually, the bevel gets stuck by the rod halfway through (the little tips at the back actually sit at the kanji markings height), so the chipbreaker is either way too "thick" or the metal rod is placed too close to blade. The rod was arleady bent when I got the kanna. The edge of the blade isn't sitting parallel so I removed a tiny bit of wood on one side (and its channel) but it's still not perfect as I left a bit of material ( I can make the blade sit parallel to the mouth when I tap the side).

[@sumokun]

Hi, not sure if you've figured it out but your description of the chipbreaker sounds like it wasn't designed for the kanna, or someone bent the ears on the CB down so much that it doesn't seat down near the blade edge anymore. The fix for this is to flatten the ears either by hammering or filing as shown in the video. As for the blade fit, it just sounds like it is too loose in the slots. First you want to make sure your blade back is even. Make sure it is a nice clean arc across the width of the blade and along the length of the blade. Lumpy backs make for troublesome adjustment later on. The next step is to then pad up the bed of the plane using wood shavings or quality paper glued to the bed. Once dry you can then scrape away so that the blade fits tightly again. Wood is better here because it scrapes cleanly but paper is a quick way to shim up a little bit of looseness. Also you mention the blade not being square to the edge of the mouth and in that case the first step is to make sure that the blade edge is actually "square" to the sides of the blade. You can do this by checking for an even off-square-ness from either side of the blade using a square. You need to check from both sides because the blade is wedge shaped along the length. A small amount of unevenness is acceptable because it can be taken up by the lateral adjustment leeway. Do not grind the blade back like StewFairweather suggests because it wastes the steel for no reason. The alternative to gluing on a bed shim is to apply a new sole. This is shown in my Kanna Restoration video. The idea is to laminate a sheet of wood onto the sole and open up the mouth again, thereby lengthening the blade slot at the narrow end. This will tighten up the fit enough that you can scrape the original bed down again. This is my preferred method for worn planes. Hope that helped!

[@superspinach5338]

Sumokun Thank you very much for your answer. I watched the 3 videos concerning the kanna restoration and they helped a lot (this is what i have to do to setup my kanna) but for now I don't have the time to do it. Also you used your kanna without a CB in these videos. Why and can I do the same ?

[@sumokun]

The CB optional if the wood you are planing is well behaved. The CB is there only to break the chips and prevent tear out. You don't need it in place if you are planing easy to plane woods. Having it in will apply a little bit of extra tension to the body of the plane so theoretically you should leave it in all the time but in practice it makes very little difference. I prefer to leave it out when possible because it lets the shavings flow out easier and reduces the chance of the plane clogging up.

[@randykobashikawa5888]

Aloha Sumoku, I think I'm almost there, Tomohito Iida contacted a blacksmith (Tsunesaburo) who can forge the blades, but he needs to find out if the sharpening specialist can sharpen them. If i can get the blades, do you have time to make the ha-ganna? I don't have any good pictures. Aloha Randy

[@sumokun]

+Randy Kobashikawa Ah yes, I forgot about Tsunesaburo. They can pretty much make any type of blade. I ordered a couple of blades for a Western jointer from them a few years ago. For sharpening, you need to be able to do it yourself. Ha-Ganna are among the most difficult blades to sharpen properly and no matter how well sharpened they are from the maker, you will eventually need to sharpen them yourself. For the dai, unfortunately I don't have time. They are more involved than a standard kanna obviously but I don't think they are crazy hard to make yourself, especially if you make it with laminations. If you can't make one yourself, ask the seller if they can get a dai cut for the blades. They should be able to.

[@randykobashikawa5888]

Aloha+Sumokun , I'm talking about the dai, I'm sure I can sharpen a blade like that (very carefully). Can you make a dai for the ha-ganna? Aloha Randy

[@sumokun]

+Randy Kobashikawa Unfortunately I don't have time to make dai. To be honest you should be able to make one yourself as dai are not things that last for a lifetime. The dai is basically like a standard kanna except the bed is gouged out to fit the V angle of the blade.

[@randykobashikawa5888]

+Sumokun I'll try, guess I can start with the 45 degree. Aloha Randy

[@theones261]

Thanks that's quite a thin and broken shavings compare to flat and whole shavings.

[@sumokun]

Hi, yeah the shavings in the video are not ideal. They are way thinner than what is realistically required and a slight advance of the blade will produce full shavings. I like to try and get the setup for a fine finisher to be as close as possible to taking a full shaving at those kinds of thicknesses so that in actual use, I can be sure I will get a good result. I mention it at the end of the video but in order to get fuller shavings, I would need to make sure the blade was really well sharpened and the setup was spot on. It also depends on the wood too.

[@desarrollojava]

14:00 Do you recommend to do this with a sand paper?

[@sumokun]

Hi, you can do it with sandpaper but I wouldn't recommend it since the scraper method I show here is easy enough to do and it avoids leaving grit embedded in the sole.

[@sumokun]

Thanks for watching. Let me know if you need any help and good luck :)

[@ismaelperez160]

hi...normaly I use white pine or yelow I need it for smooth

[@sumokun]

In that case you have a lot of options so it pretty much depends on your budget. It is probably better to talk outside of the comments section so send me a message through youtube if you want to talk more.

[@xccude]

How far does the blade have to stick out from the dai at the bottom?

[@sumokun]

+Jonathan Foong I'm not sure what you are referring to but if you mean the amount of blade to tap out for the cut, then it depends on how deep of a cut you want to make. Tap more for a deep cut, less for a finer cut.

[@xccude]

Thanks, that's what I exactly I was asking for. So there's no right or wrong. Would you by chance have some links to good articles on kannas and how to use them? Sorry to ask so many questions!

[@sumokun]

+Jonathan Foong Yes, the amount to tap out is all down to how much material to remove. As for instructional links, there are just about no in depth articles that I know of outside of books. You could probably start with Western planes as pretty much everything applies to Japanese planes too. After you get the basics, you will figure the rest out as you use the tool. How to adjust the plane and how to hold and pull the plane is very difficult to put into words effectively and they are best learnt by just trying it out for yourself. Everyone has a different method of adjusting etc anyway so I would recommend you just try it and develop a way that you find comfortable.

[@patbassman8251]

Great videos very interesting , im a bit confused though you have an English accent then you use words and pronunciations like an American for example , Rabbit plane, did you mean rebate plane, and Gotten did you mean have.

[@sumokun]

Haha, that's probably because I've been away from the UK for a while now and just about everything in the English language around me is US-based.

[@patbassman8251]

I thought you were English, iv noticed a lot of British people these days compensating so Americans can understand , should be the other way around its our language , anyway love your videos keep up the good work.

[@zosochan21]

If you have glue on it just clean it with thinner.

[@ismaelperez160]

hi I live in El salvador and I whan toó by a khana. how much it cost? and how I do to get it

[@sumokun]

Hi, it depends on where you want to buy the kanna from. You can buy from stores overseas (mainly in the US and Europe) or you can buy from auction sites like ebay. I also have some for sale. The cost really depends on what you want to do with it and also what your budget is. Do you want it for smoothing or roughing work? also what woods will you be using it with?

[@jameslucas6589]

Will some one please finally explain what the practical use or purpose of micron shavings are? I have achieved those with a $25 Buck Bros plane. It’s great for wood show demos but really, wtf else are they good for? Woodworking needs to be practical and fast. A weekend wooodworker does not have a lot of time nor does a pro. So flattening a board or smoothing a board one micron at a time is absurd. Nice plane however.

[@sumokun]

Hi, Single-digit micron thickness shavings are not of any use by themselves. This is all purely for competition and pride. Where this all came from was the idea thinner shavings will have less of a tendency to cause tearout and leave a better surface. This is, in my experience, true. However as with any activity, people will take that to the extreme. The rule of diminishing returns applies fully here, and beyond a certain thickness, there is little to no extra benefit in a practical sense. You mention that woodworking needs to be practical and fast, and I agree, but that "practical" part is a moving target since different disciplines have different requirements. For example you won't be spending hours preparing the surface of a wooden structural member for an average house to the level of a top class piece of furniture. The furniture will necessarily require more care and attention and therefore time to prepare. Woodworking in Japan also has many different levels and one of the top fields is temple making. They have the idea that there should be no corners cut regardless of if it is visible in the final product or not because the gods are watching. There are also many other fields where a top-notch finish straight from a plane is required and it could be argued that anywhere a hand plane is still used today is where the craftsman is consciously looking for the best possible finish. I have tried with my metal bodied Western planes to produce something as thin as what people can get in competition but have yet to succeed (not that I have spent that much time trying). I am not sure if it is the geometry of the plane or the blade quality etc that is holding me back but I just can't get anywhere near as fine as I can with my Japanese planes in soft woods. The opposite is mostly true for harder woods. Single-digit micron thickness is really thin. It is much thinner than what you usually see thrown around on forums about "gossamer" or "see-thru" shavings. I'm not saying you can't but I would really like to see some really fine shavings from a metal plane. Regardless of thickness, I find that my Japanese planes will always produce a better finish than my metal ones on soft to medium-hard woods (up to something like oak and maybe a bit harder). There is a level of polish that I just cannot achieve with my metal plane and boy have I tried. There is maybe a slight burnishing effect from the body but it is minor as there is not enough pressure or passes over the wood to get a true burnished effect. And before you cry foul, I have much more experience using metal planes than Japanese ones and I am quite familiar with them. I now use both because Japanese planes have some serious benefits. There is also maybe a slight misconception that all the shavings taken with a plane are of a single-digit micron level of thickness. That would be absurd as you say because no work would ever get done. The common practice is to take these fine shavings as the last step after all the rougher work has been done with other planes... basically the same as any other country. Anyway, sorry for the long rant, but you are basically correct in your assertion that micron shavings are useless in practice however it is not quite so simple an answer and as with anything, there are reasons and I think they are worth knowing about in order to broaden one's knowledge :)

[@lonelong2349]

this guy talk toooo much telling grandmother story..

[@sumokun]

Feel free to filter out whatever bits you don't need :)