At Long Last: Honing Razors and Nihonkamisori

It's finished.

After several months of work not only translating, but trying to figure out what the heck the writer was talking about, I've finally completed my to-date magnum opus. With permission from Shigeyoshi Iwasaki, I'm extremely proud to finally make public "Honing Razors and Nihonkamisori" by Kousuke Iwasaki, Shigeyoshi's late father and founder of the Sanjou Seisakushou (Workshop), the Iwasaki forge.

This document is intended as not only a historical examination, but also a bit of a guide for people interested in traditional methods of using and caring for Japanese razors, both folding and non-folding. This book was written as a textbook for a barbering school, meaning it is aimed at people in professional training. There is a lot of information here, but some things are clearly missing--for example, the constant question of "how do I hone a Kamisori" is not specifically addressed. I think the reason is, that particular technique was probably demonstrated by the teacher, so it did not need to be addressed in the text. Or, perhaps (as the text itself hints at) the actual specific technique is less important than the basic fundamentals of honing.

Whatever the reason, you won't find references to honing ratios or the like here. You will find lots of other fascinating, and useful, information.

So please, download, enjoy, and let me know what you think.

Download Link (ZIP file with PDF and Protected .DOC versions of the English translation).