Museum Forge Shiageba – Crossed Heart Forge

As part of the 2022 artist in residence project a temporary shiageba (finishing area) was set up for carving handles and scabbards for the knives forged earlier in the year. This was the first time that the finishing stages of traditional knifemaking were demonstrated at the museum.

Later in the season a full-sized traditional togi-dai (polishing platform) was installed allowing demonstrations of classical style sword polishing by hand using natural waterstones.

Thank you to Teppoishi~san for his generosity in assisting with the togi-dai and sharing some of his vintage polishing stones. Thank you to the other smiths who shared some of their space and also to all who stopped to watch and express interest in the work, the portfolio book, and the website.

Shiageba Workspace

The western side of the smithy converted into a temporary carving area for making handles and scabbards.

Using a kanna (handplane) to rough shape the outside of a handle carved from magnolia.

Carving a handle profile with a small kiridashi knife forged from a file.

Using a kanna (handplane) to finish the outside of a handle and scabbard carved from magnolia.

Using a kanna (handplane) to prepare a saya (scabbard) for shaping.

Finished works forged at the museum in the spring and carved and mounted in the temporary shiageba over the summer.

Togi Dai

The bottom of the togi-dai has a collection trough that drains the water out at one side into a container.

The top is slightly slanted towards the drainage slot.

An example of a typical sword polishing set up with stool, stone clamp, stone rest, and water bucket.

In operation, note that the bucket should be made from wood (and will be hopefully in the near future) to prevent scuffing the blade in the later stages.

The togi-dai position transfers the weight of the polisher to the stone and places head and shoulders above for a proper view of the process. The right foot clamps the stone down tightly.

Refining the geometry of a classical tanto style blade using a kongo-do waterstone. Water is applied regularly during polishing.

The togi-dai channels the water and stone swarf down and away from the polisher while working.

As the stones get finer and more of the visible scratches are removed, the distinction between hard edge and tough body steel becomes very apparent.

To observe a hamon properly a low, angled, and diffuse light is best.

The classical sashikomi polishing style with natural stones can reveal the internal crystal structure of the steel and show the details of the hamon in the right light.