# Help with restoring/tuning a Japanese plow plane "Kikai Shakuri Kanna"



## siavosh (Apr 11, 2013)

I've seen a lot of information on how to adjust/condition/use a Japanese Kanna or smoothing plane, but I haven't seen much on their more specialized joinery planes. I just got a Japanese plow plane on ebay, and before diving in and playing with it, I was wondering if anyone had any information on conditioning it's body and blades? Also it reeks of tabacco, any tips on eliminating the odor?

Pic below.


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## djwong (Aug 2, 2009)

I started to rehabilitate a Japanese plow but set the project aside. The sled portion was a little loose, so I decided to take the plane apart to address the problem. I found the plane to be very cheaply constructed. While disassembling the plane, I broke off 3 small brass screw. I'll drill them out and replace them later when I put the plane back to together.


















The plane body is made up of 3 layers of wood. Some of the pieces in the middle layer are held together with common nails. Surprisingly, the two rods holding the blade in place are nothing more than larger nails.


























I am disappointed by the cheap construction of this plane, and will try to upgrade the parts when I get a chance.

Good luck with your project.


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## siavosh (Apr 11, 2013)

Thanks for posting David. I ended up finding a descent primer on taking the plow plane apart here, http://www.fine-tools.com/kikai-shakuri-kanna.html. I avoided unscrewing all the side screws as I was worried if I'd ruin their threads and end up with a hunk of wood and not a plane. After a lot of hammering, I got out my three blades, soaked them in vinegar over night, and cleaned them up. sanded the fence and bottom grooves flat, and put on a coat of wax. After sharpening the blades, it ended up pretty well. I haven't tried to use them with any precision, but at this point I'll keep fiddling and hope my skills will be the limiting factor.

I posted some after pics here:


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## djwong (Aug 2, 2009)

Siavosh, thanks for pointing me to the write up at fine-tools. The "secret sauce" in all japanese tools are usually their blades, so I am hoping that despite the cheap construction of the body, my plow will perform well. The liberal use of nails really got to me. I may just scrape the existing body and start over.

Glad you got your's working.


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