Blade forging the old Japanese way is something not many people have ever seen, nor will ever see in their lives. I had the luxury of witnessing a demonstration right here on Calgary’s streets at the beginning of this month. Here’s my (somewhat late) coverage of the event.
The brothers look mecha かっこいい
You can read an archived version of my article, Street Samurai, on the Print Publications & TV section of this website, or online at the FFWD Weekly site.
If you’d like more pictures from the event hit the jump below for my gallery of pictures from Inglewood Sunfest.
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- Toru does a little work to fix up a few tools
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- Shiba-san starts the forge
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- The charcoal catches
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- Kato-san inspects the forge to ensure it is up to standard
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- Everyone taking a break before it starts getting really hot
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- There’s a lot to be done to prepare for the demonstration
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- Not quite as lax as everyone thinks
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- The makeshift forge to heat the metal to over 1300C
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- The brothers look mecha かっこいい
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- Master Hiroshi Kato relaxes
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- Master Kato is 73 years old and still quite active
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- Master Kato is 73 years old and still quite active
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- They get some practice in before the proper demonstration
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- The knife still needs further work to get a uniform thickness, refine the shape, finish the blade, and hone an edge
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- They will be sent back to Japan for further work and finishing
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- Already, some of the details are starting to shine through
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- [L to R] Takumi Ikeda, Toru Tamura, Hiroshi Kato, Makoto Kurosaki, Yu Kurosaki
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- The anvil used for the demonstration
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- Before the forge is lit
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- Uniform sized charcoal is used to control the heat
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- Kato-san uses ash to insulate parts of the metal to ensure even heat distribution
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- [L to R] Andy Samek (SAIT), Toru Tamura (Apprentice), Makoto Kurosaki (Apprentice), Yu Kurosaki (Apprentice), Takayuki Shibata (Master Sharpener)
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- SAIT instructor Andy gets a shot at it as well
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