Boing Boing Staging

Watch this impressive demonstration of bamboo basketmaking

駿河竹千筋細工

In this three-part series, artisans show how bamboo is harvested, cured, and processed with specialized tools to make intricate baskets and other household items.

Via Woodworking Enthusiasts:

After one year of growth, the thickness and height of a bamboo do not change, but with age the color and hardness change; bamboo aged 3 to 5 years is the best for bamboo ware. In November and December, the best time to cut high quality bamboo with little insect damage, enough bamboo for a year is cut with a bamboo cutting saw. The bamboo is cleaned up with a scouring brush to remove dirt before splitting. The bamboo is split to 1 cm or so in width. Since bamboo has strong vertical fibers, it is easily cut with a hatchet. Round strips are made from a tough layer close to the outer layer. The strips are shaved and thinned by hatchet, then a tool called Sendai trims the thickness. A small knife is used to make a fine slit in the bamboo, which is then split further by a push of the hand. The tip is thinly shaved to a point. The shaved bamboo strips are made round by pulling them through a series of ever diminishing holes in an iron plate; from large to small, and from a coarse finish to a medium and then a smooth finished fine round strip.

Below are part two and part three:

Ancient Technology of Making Bamboo Crafts (YouTube / takekumiai
)

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