Making a 'Hakobi'

Making the 'Hakobi' - Part Two (by Himi and Fumi Bull)

Now you start tying the string.

We know an interesting way to tie it, and Dad says that it is the same way that people tie 'flies' for fishing. You make a loop in the string, lay this on the bamboo, and then start rolling the string around and around. (If you put a knot on the end of the string, it will be easier to pull it later on.)

Each time you roll once, the loop gets more and more covered up. You really have to wrap tightly!

When you've rolled enough, hold everything in place with your thumb, cut the string away from the hook on the bench, and put that end through the loop.

Then pull the knotted end to close the loop. If you've done a good job rolling very tightly, then you might need pliers to pull the loop all the way closed. Once it's closed tightly, trim off the left-over ends of the string.

Now comes the noisy part! Dip the bamboo back into the water again for a moment, shake it to remove some water, and then start banging. We do this on the end of a woodblock. When you bang, the bamboo splits up. The skin starts to come off, and the fibres are left behind.

You can see here what happens. Here are a few pointers:

Don't bang too hard.
Don't bang over the sharp corner of the wood.
Roll the hakobi, and move up and down while you bang.
Be careful not to bang the stick inside.

Stop sometimes and comb out the little bits of loose skin. Do this gently and try not to break the fibres.

Here is a finished one.