Description
For woodworkers of all skill levels, this book provides techniques for using jigs and guides to make precise straight and square cuts with Japanese hand saws.
The author introduces both crosscut and ripping saw guides and explains how to make them. He looks at types of saws and shows his method of holding a saw correctly, noting that a straight-toothed, flush-cut Japanese saw with non-set teeth is needed for the lessons in this book.
He then describes techniques for making frames and presents projects using seven types of joints, ranging from simple half-lap joints to the more involved grooved bridle joint. Building on his framing techniques, he offers a primer on box-making, with tutorials ranging in complexity from a box made with basic rabbet joints to frame-and-panel joint boxes, as well as drawers.
The final section focuses on building various guides and jigs to support cutting accuracy, including a shooting board and bench hook, miter cutting and rabbeting guides, and a tail guide and saw blade spacer with bevel.
The text is supplemented by dimensioned drawings, detailed step-by-step instructions with color photos for each tutorial, and sequence diagrams that give a construction overview before beginning the project. An excellent resource not only for enthusiasts of Japanese tools but also for anyone interested in refining their hand-tool joinery skills.
Softcover, 8" × 10", 279 pages, 2022.
