Cutting a (210 mm) Japanese Scarf Joint (金輪継 or Kanawa Tsugi) - for a Structural Beam

In this video, I work through the process of cutting (Kizami - 刻み) a Japanese Scarf Joint (Kanawa Tsugi - 金輪継). This is one of most common joints found in a Japanese house. Perfecting your skill in cutting this joint is important because on a typical house you may have to cut this joint 50 times or more. For a Kanawa Tsugi joint, the attention is in the details. Slow and careful cuts will prevent unnecessary repeating and waste. This beam is relatively small considering some of the bigger beams planned for this Japanese house. However, the cost of this beam is still significant and can be a tough financial lesson to learn if you make a mistake. At Fujimoto Koumuten, we are asked to work slowly as we do Kizami. This joint would take an average carpenter an hour or longer to cut if done accurate and well. Some more experienced carpenters can cut this same joint in 30 minutes or less. Hope you enjoy this video.