Time for more plane restoration.
Back to the Japanese planes...

Ebony mouth is working well now.

I have spent most of the day working on planes today.
Ura-Dashi (tapping out the blade) done on 3 blades.
Lots of practice...

Working on achieving ito-ura.
This is the Shokunin's mark of skill in Japan.
How well maintained is the ura? The back of the blade.
The Uraba (front edge) should be ito-ura - ito means thread - so thin as a thread, with the Ashi (edges) being thin and even as well.
Considering I inherited this blade in poor condition I am getting there...

Tapping out on a slightly rounded edge of a vice.
I locked it shut after this photo!
Desmond King used to use metal edges - but has gone back to the rounded edge of his workbench. He was trained in Japan (he is fluent) and if I remember was the first westerner to do the course to be a Shoji Screen maker. I find him very inspirational. Done all 3 blades this way and will try my next blades on the workbench to see which I prefer.

Working through the grits:
100 Grit (had about 1mm flat on the edge!)
800 Grit (as pictured)
1200 Grit
6000 Grit
8000 Grit
Then I built up various slurry's on the 8000Grit (although this Akatsuki stone is supposed to be more like a 10,000 Naniwa from the reviews I followed prior to its purchase) using Nagura varying from 12000 Grit and up to a natural which built up a polishing slurry which worked very well. Still learning but this is a new trick I am trying of using the same stone but with 2 or 3 different (increasingly finer) nagura.

Messy business using all these stones and having to clean up between grits to avoid contamination. Next workshop will have a sink and sharpening are very close to it!