Many of us have seen videos of Japanese hand planning competitions where the contenders are competing which individual (in some cases its a team) is capable of producing the widest,...
The road to enlightenment is paved with lots of little strips of wood. I am not by nature organized or detail-oriented. When I was young, I was the guy with...
Many countries have their own woodworking traditions, which are often a combination of mythology and ideology. The Japanese are no exception, and those traditions are part of the foundation of...
All these years, my assistant, Laure Olender, has not only been working with me doing woodwork, she also takes photographs (including those in this article), edits my articles and assists...
I really like Japanese style saws and I especially appreciate their contribution in the classroom. First, thanks to their ingenious tooth geometry, and the fact that they are so thin...
A couple of years back Popular Woodworking Magazine had the chance to visit renowned sculptor, author and teacher Toshio Odate at his home. While there, we had a wonderful opportunity...
A frequently heard argument about Japanese planes is that they are harder to set up than Western planes. Recently, we filmed “How to Use Japanese Woodworking Tools” with Wilbur...
Most of last week, I was in Connecticut to film a video with teacher, sculptor, author, artist and woodworker (also, excellent chef) Toshio Odate, along with our video editor, David...
From mastering hand tools to router basics, 18th-century joinery to Japanese hand tools and joinery, you’ll find it all among the five new DVD selections now available to order at...
If you were one of the 450 people at Woodworking in America 2011, then hopefully you were able to fit in one of Jay van Arsdale’s sessions on Japanese tools...
Our friend Jay van Arsdale sent us this link from what looks to be a Japanese woodworking event similar to Woodworking in America. Do you have a plane that can...