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Hi all,
I know its a strange question, but i was just wondering if anyone on here has heard of any makers of Japanese laminated blades to fit Western planes?
A quick search reveals Tsunesaburo makes a couple of sizes of laminated blades to fit Stanley planes - also curious if anyone on here has used them and what you think of them?
Quote:
Originally Posted by fudo133
I have seen them and I think of them as a kind of oddity
I think that the value of a Japanese kanna blade is its mass plus the steel, just having the steel is like having the fruit skin without the fruit.
With a few after market choices available today for Western planes I do not see the point of Japanese laminated blades to fit Western planes.
Tasai do them, too. I have no personal experience with them.
Good Morning ThumbsuckerQuote:
Originally Posted by thumbsucker
Have you ever sharpenned a Japanese blade?
I visited a small foundary in Kanazawa, Japan last October and watched steel being laminated, blades being forged and polished, and (next door) chisel and knife handles being made and fitted. Bought two kitchen knives and watched my knives being sharpened - sharpening is an apprenticeship trade! Talked to sharpener for about an hour - very enlightening.
The lamination in my knives is quite obvious - different coloured steels. About 0.4mm hard cutting steel laminated between two sheets of stainless steel each about 1mm thick. He said that the cutting steel was similar to high speed steel and about 64-65 HRC and the stainless was much softer - similar to SS 320.
He said that the western chisels were "very strange". The cutting edge was "too soft" and the bevel at 61-62 HRC was "too hard" and made sharpening much slower. He also emphasised that a truly sharp blade should "glide through" whatever is being cut. If the blade has a micro bevel then that will send "false signals" and the cut will be less accurate.
To appreciate what "glide through" really means, then just watch a sushi chef in action, slicing a cucumber, tomato or even a piece of fish.
My new knives are much sharper than any other knife I have ever used, seem to hold their edge longer, cut far better and are much quicker to sharpen. So far I have not chipped the blades; something the hardness made me conscious of.
I think that there could be real advantages with Japanese style laminated blades in western plane irons and western chisels. It certainly works very well in my 200mm German style kitchen knife and in my Japanese style knife.
Fair Winds
Graeme
Nah never - I am just not that into Japanese thing’s. :;Quote:
Originally Posted by GraemeCook