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Surface Finish
Keywords: Equipment
One of the most difficult tasks when making a goban is to put the lines on it, and to make sure they stay there. Traditionally, a Katana (Japanese sword) is dipped in ink and gently rocked back and forth to deposit a straight, thin line. The goban is then left to dry and the process is repeated several times until the desired richness of colour has been achieved. Thereafter, a very thin layer of oil is added to the board. Of course, this is a bit awkward if you're doing it in your garage. The thing to remember is that the lines should be straight, and in a colour sufficiently rich to make them easy to see. This can be done with a fountain pen, Bic pen, overhead marker or draftsman pen. The advantage of the latter is that you will get a very even colour and that you can adjust the line width. In all cases, be careful so that the ink used does not drain into the wood leaving the lines fuzzy. Gobans should be matt, to reduce glare and be better to use in various lighting conditions. You must therefore be careful with what type, if any, of lacquer or varnish you use. However, using a matt varnish will give you the chance to 'correct' the wood colour and may be desirable. Make sure that your surface treatment does not dissolve or ruin the lines. This is a copy of the living page "Surface Finish" at Sensei's Library. (C) the Authors, published under the OpenContent License V1.0. |