SOTW #9 - Lacquering an Aikuchi Tanto Mount (Historical Knifemaking)

The final stages of finishing the aikuchi tanto. This is a collection of clips documenting the steps and sounds involved at most every stage of the process of hand lacquering a traditional aikuchi tanto mount made from reclaimed driftwood. Several of the layers have been omitted from the video when they were exact repeats of the previous ones. The process spanned a month and a half including curing and drying time in between each step. Each layer is allowed to cure in a warm, humid box for two to three days and then polished with charcoal and water before the next is applied.

Students may watch the longer edit here: https://youtu.be/tgAbFssvc70

Urushi is traditional Japanese lacquer made from the sap of a specific tree. The natural colour is a milky brown that oxidizes to deep chocolate and the black colour is created through a reaction with red iron oxide. The lighting was not optimal for several of the steps here, but at least the general process is demonstrated.

Read more about the process of making this work on the photo essay page:
http://islandblacksmith.ca/process/making-aikuchi-tanto-kuro-urushi-koshirae/