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I'm not certain this is the correct place for this inquiry, so admins feel free to move it to the appropriate place.
I'm wondering if any of you Canadians know of a source for cashew lacquer that's not too crazy expensive? The only place I can find is an Etsy store (https://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/8275...ery-1-11&frs=1).
Thanks in advance!
In case anyone is interested: in my search for cashew lacquer, I stumbled upon a source for urushi in Canada. It's a Toronto-based artist who imports it from Japan on a regular basis.
I did a bit of googling when I first saw your question and fell into a lacquer hole. Bloody hell, folks take their finishes seriously! :)Quote:
Originally Posted by joelkerr
I'm curious now - what are you planning to use it on?
In a hone/honing context it’s used to seal the sides and/or back of Jnats.
That's the first thing I thought of too, but would that require a specific type of lacquer? Please note as someone without any Jnats and with no experience with lacquer whatsoever, that question comes from a pretty pure state of ignorance. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve56
Hon urushi (the toxic lacquer) and cashew lacquer are traditional in Japanese culture for this purpose. They used what they had in the late 1800s/early 1900s, they didn’t have synthetic products. Marine spar varnish also works well. Urushi is also used on a lot of higher-end fountain pens, and all of that black finish on asian products is urushi unless it’s a cheap plastic knockoff.Quote:
Originally Posted by Cangooner
Steve56 is right, it’s to seal a Jnat (I’ll be posting to the Jnat Club thread soon). There are many ways to do it, but urushi is the traditional way - cashew lacquer very closely replicates the look, feel and curing process, though. I’ve never done it before, but I’ve been doing a lot of research into it lately! It seems to me that the main reason people go for alternative sealants rather than traditional is that cashew lacquer and urushi are very difficult to find in North America - also some people get allergic reactions to uncured urushi.
Personally, I want the traditional look and feel, so I’m willing to put in a bit more effort to get that.
Cool - thanks guys. :tu
If you are using cashew I would recommend the clear or neoclear, No51 and 48. The neoclear is the most transparent you can get.
I used to seal all of them but lately I am leaving them alone. My evolution was, seal sides and bottom. Then I regretted sealing kawa bottoms so I started sealing sides only. The one benefit of having the sides sealed, the look permanently wet and it makes the color pop. Now I go stone by stone, some I seal some I dont, depends how I feel they will look aesthetically. Of course if there is any question about stone stability then full seal but honestly I dont abuse the stones the way a craftsman using them for daily work would. They sit in a near constant temp year around. They only get wet wet for lapping and quick wash of slurry. Who knows. Maybe 6 months down the road I will be changing my mind again. I know this wasn't the question asked just wanted to share some thoughts :)
Yea, I have been down that same road, have sealed some, just the sides and some not at all. My stones go from a rack or drawer to a holder on the bench, so the need is questionable.
I have used a variety of finishes, Craft water-based varnishes, PVA glue, and Mod Podge, they all work and can be tinted to look and feel like cashew.
A bottle of craft varnish is $2 easy to apply, clean up and multiple coats can be applied in a day. I doubt anyone could tell tinted water-based varnish from cashew, more importantly, do the same thing.
Years ago, when I looked into it, there was a guy in Northern California importing the stuff, it was pricy then and out of stock at the time.
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I bought this Aiiwatani from JNS last week, it arrived yesterday. Nice big stone (8" x 2.5" x 1+"), but a little bit on the plain side apart from the kawa on the back. I want it to last a long time, of course, but I also think the traditional lacquer would make it look amazing. And it really doesn't seem difficult to do it the traditional way, except for finding the urushi/cashew lacquer (which I have found and is on it's way).
It came with this tomo nagura. I was blown away when I opened up the package. It's huge for a tomo - around 5" x 4.5" (although the working surface is more like 4.5" x 4"). I don't know what it is, I'm going to email Maxim and find out. It seems to have some inclusions, so I would want to seal it so that it doesn't fall apart on me.
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Max is awesome... the tomo are what others would sell as a koppa. Great customer service too...
Yea, sealing tomo is a good idea especially if it has Kawa or inclusions.
I round off one corner aggressively, in a large arc, then just use that corner rolling around that radius. Make about a ½ inch bevel then knock off the corners for a large smooth radius, with a diamond plate or 220 wet and dry. Remove all sharp edges.
On your tomo, I would cut off that piece on the top of the first tomo photo, squaring off the large tomo. A hacksaw will do it easily.
Cut off the inclusion about a ½ inch left of it, lengthwise, (well clear of the inclusion). Then split the remaining 3X4 piece, so you end up with (2) 2x3 inch pieces that are clear.
Seal the kawa on all three pieces. I get wanting to use the lacquer. It all works.
I was wondering if it would be a good idea to cut up the tomo into smaller pieces. I also want to give a piece to @ibsenheck. I’m convinced!!Quote:
Originally Posted by Euclid440
Out of curiosity, I checked amazon.ca and found
Toho, Inc. Japanese Lacquer of Special Make Mat Black https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B002OAPRYS/..._KDJbFbG8K5EZD
Seems too easy, so I suspect it’s not what you are looking for.
That would appear to be urushi, based on the skin rash caution, but usually flat lacquer isn’t seen on jnats, though you do see some different colors used on them in Japan. Small quantities come in a tube like that.
It's also used on watch faces in Japan and some artists in the states use it as a different kind of lacquer.
From what I have read urushi requires specific temp and humidity to cure. I bought a naka kiita from Maxim few years ago and it was on urushi sealed wooden base. Old stone. Interesting smell that urushi.
A very difficult medium to work with. It requires special skills from handling to execution.Quote:
Originally Posted by alex1921
It seems like there is no end to the rabbit holes in this hobby.
I've been slowly working on sealing my Jnat, and I'm happy with the progress so far. There are some photos of the stone after 2 coats of urushi.
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Sorry I always forget that the photos are landscape format by default here.
