Repairs

Example: Old 1.8 shakuhachi, before repairs.

This shakuhachi had several problems. It was cracked all the way to the bore in several places, and wouldn't even make a sound. It had some bug-eaten areas on the bottom, and the mouthpiece was chipped beyond being playable. It had also been haphazardly repaired, with old ji cracking and falling out of the cracks, and scraping marks marring the surface of the bamboo.

Shakuhachi Shakuhachi Shakuhachi

After repairs

After cleaning out the old ji from the old repair job, I lightly sanded off the old scraping marks. The cracks were bound in six places then finished off with an antiqued rattan binding. The bug-eaten areas on the bottom were lightly sanded down and then cut out around the end hole. After inserting a new water buffalo horn (reclaimed) mouthpiece, I refinished it with several ultra-thin coats of Japanese urushi, and retouched the red urushi on the inside as well.

Shakuhachi Shakuhachi Shakuhachi

Repairs

This is an example of what I do. A cracked or chipped mouthpiece is removed, and replaced with a new one. Cracks are bound, covered, and finished off with a rattan binding that protrudes just above the surface for older style flutes, or flush with the surface for ji-ari flutes. For older shakuhachi, the rattan binding is antiqued with a light coating of urushi. I have also refurbished old shakuhachi with extensive surface damage by lightly sanding the outer layer and then coating them with extra-hard Japanese urushi, which has the added benefit of making them less prone to damage caused by sudden changes in humidity. This is a translucent laquer that adds a reddish brown tint with a beautiful lustre to the natural look of the bamboo.

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