Mujitsu and Tairaku's Shakuhachi BBQ

azul · 2010-05-13 21:35:52

I am ready to start making middle joints. does anyone know what tools I can use that can be bought a hardware store? Also If I am making a perment joint do I need the male and female parts, or can I just cut the bamboo in half? Any help helps! Thanks to all.

Itamar Foguel · 2010-05-14 21:30:55

why make a permanent joint??? just make the flute a nobekan (one piece) with no joint. and about joint making...its kinda complicated but you can try and use the search option here on the forum and also have a look here (mostly at the pictures of the joint making):
http://shakuhachiforum.com/viewtopic.php?id=4536

Toby · 2010-05-15 02:43:44

Joint making is tough, but is often the only option if your culm is the wrong length. You need a turned bamboo sleeve insert for a tenon, and you need to carefully glue it first into the bottom part of the body, and then very precisely match the inner diameter of the upper part with that of the outside diameter of the tenon sleeve. THis is one of the most difficult tricks in the flutemaker's art: making it round and tight so that it doesn't wiggle without binding. There are specific tools for doing this, and it is also important for the sleeve to be the correct length, without a gap when it is assembled, and then you should reinforce both sides where the insert rests so that the pressure of the sleeve does not split the bamboo.

Normally there is no "permanent joint". I assume you don't want to go to the trouble of making a normal sleeve and tenon joint. I doubt that even with the strongest epoxy, the small area where the cut surfaces of the two halves joint will be strong enough to resist forces across the length of the bamboo. Perhaps in this case you still need to get an inner sleeve, but then if you intend to permanently glue the two halves together it would not be necessary to craft a finely fitting joint, as long as it is air tight and there is no gap inside the bore.

Toby

Last edited by Toby (2010-05-15 02:45:06)

Mujitsu · 2010-05-15 11:33:57

azul wrote:
I am ready to start making middle joints. does anyone know what tools I can use that can be bought a hardware store?

If you check out the joint making tools section of Mejiro's site, you'll see some helpful tools. An important one is a line cutter. Another is a small curved chisel. I'm not sure how common these are in hardware stores. Most of the other tools are specialized but with some ingenuity can be made at home.

Joint making notes:

Add recessed binding outside each end. This prevents cracking while fitting the bamboo insert. Chisel out the bottom end until the bamboo insert fits snugly. Don't glue this end in yet. Chisel out the top end until the insert fits snugly. Make sure to insert a thin bamboo ring first. This ensures a clean edge. Glue the insert into the bottom end while making sure the the flute is straight. Add bamboo pegs for more strength. Paint the insert and top end cavity with a few thin coats of ursuhi. Fill the recessed binding area with ji flush to the bamboo walls. Cover with rattan or other material.

Carl Abbott has some step by step notes in his book, "Blowing Zen."

azul · 2010-05-19 00:04:51

why make a permanent joint???.......................
I would make a permanent joint so I could still get the flute in a key without the room for error of the traditional joint.

Thanks to everyone for the info.

edosan · 2010-05-19 00:32:24

azul wrote:
why make a permanent joint???.......................
I would make a permanent joint so I could still get the flute in a key without the room for error of the traditional joint.

Thanks to everyone for the info.

Some makers will adjust the length of the culm for proper pitching by making a joint right below the blowing end and wrapping it with rattan.

Monty Levenson often does this, and you can see what it looks like by visiting his site (www.shakuhachi.com). The joint still must be well made,
but you needn't make it look like a traditional nakatsuge, and, since the joint is near the end of the shaft, the forces tending to damage it
will be less than if it's in the usual place near the center. You can also use PVC tubing for the tenon.

Itamar Foguel · 2010-07-18 16:01:45

How do you make the bamboo pegs at the joint? whats their shape and how you insert them?

Mujitsu · 2010-07-18 17:43:00

Itamar Foguel wrote:
How do you make the bamboo pegs at the joint? whats their shape and how you insert them?

One way is to drill through the bamboo wall and bamboo insert, fill with urushi or glue, then insert a matching thin, wood dowel or homemade bamboo dowel. Push, or tap it all the way through. Make sure it fits snug. File off the protruding ends. (inside the bore and outside the flute)

Mujitsu and Tairaku's Shakuhachi BBQ

#1 2010-05-13 21:35:52

questions about joints

#2 2010-05-14 21:30:55

Re: questions about joints

#3 2010-05-15 02:43:44

Re: questions about joints

#4 2010-05-15 11:33:57

Re: questions about joints

azul wrote:

#5 2010-05-19 00:04:51

Re: questions about joints

#6 2010-05-19 00:32:24

Re: questions about joints

azul wrote:

#7 2010-07-18 16:01:45

Re: questions about joints

#8 2010-07-18 17:43:00

Re: questions about joints

Itamar Foguel wrote:

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