Japanese Woodworking Tools: Their Tradition, Spirit and Use: Amazon.co.uk: Toshio Odate: Books

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Product Description

This book is a complete guide to the tools used by a shokunin, or master Japanese craftsman, for both beginning woodworkers and professionals.

Inside This Book (Learn More)

First Sentence
I decided to write about the workshop in this chapter because I believe it is appropriate to discuss the work place before discussing tools. Read the first page

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Customer Reviews

8 Reviews

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

Average Customer Review

4.4 out of 5 stars (8 customer reviews)

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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Definitive reference book in its field, 31 May 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Japanese Woodworking Tools: Their Tradition, Spirit and Use (Paperback)

This book is most likely to interest woodworkers, specifically carpenters or cabinetmakers (like myself); however it might be of some use to historians or folklorists. It is principally a catalogue and users' manual for Japanese woodworking tools with very few omissions: it is encyclopedic in scope if not in presentation. The text is fairly well supported by black and white photographs and illustrations. Odate's book is widely regarded as definitive within its (small) field. See the summary below for why I agree with this opinion.

Odate's knowledge of his own tradition is obviously profound, whilst he seems largely unaware of, and even uninterested in that of the west. Nonetheless, the western reader new to the subject will find much which is familiar, which helps to debunk the mystique and confusion which has tended to arise surrounding Japanese tools. There is plenty of practical information on use and maintenance, usually in considerable depth (eg. sections on making and fitting saw handles; sharpening methods; making planes from scratch etc).

Interspersed with the practical information are lengthy sections of reminiscences, often involving the "spirit" of the title. These sections are more likely to appeal to the student of Japanese history or folklore than to the woodworker, although they are not unentertaining.

Summary. This book: 1 Is a good encyclopedia of its subject 2 Is intelligently written and clearly presented 3 Sheds much light on the Japanese woodworking tradition 4 Is, above all, a decent users' manual suitable for woodworkers unfamiliar with the tools and wanting to get the best out of them. 5 Can probably be regarded as indispensible to anyone who is sufficiently interested to buy a book on the subject: this seems as good a place to start as one could wish for. I've only given it four stars because the monochrome photos, although fairly clear, aren't fantastic (a colour section would enhance the book considerably); the reminiscences do have their longeurs, and because I would have liked to see a bibliography to go with the notes. Otherwise, no complaints.

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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Contents five stars, publisher nil, 30 Aug 2008

By

Mr. C. Tenzo (UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Japanese Woodworking Tools: Their Tradition, Spirit and Use (Paperback)

The book contents are brilliant as I was expecting from Toshio Odate.
The binding,from Linden, kept me for the first 20 pages trying to sort out a logic of the misplacement of the pages.
Looks like somebody in a rush tried to put the pages together not even considering the numerals at the bottom of them.
I will reconsider accepting in future an item in this conditions.
Again book brilliant, seller brilliant, publisher garbage.

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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book covers everything about Japanese tools., 24 Jun 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Japanese Woodworking Tools: Their Tradition, Spirit and Use (Paperback)

This book starts with the workshop description and layout. Toshio Odate uses his own unique experiences as a craftsman to show how to use and care for the tools. There are chapters on saws, chisels, marking tools, and handplanes. Japanese tools are much different than western style tools in their appearance, use, and care. All of these are covered in this excellent book.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Japanese Woodworking Tools: Their Tradition, Spirit and Use
Japanese Woodworking Tools: Their Tradition, Spirit and Use, I bought this for my husband whom is a bespoke cabinetmaker & he said this book is very interesting.

Published 2 months ago by jangl