These are the main processes of recorder making after the completion of the product design.
It could be broken down into more than 50 processes.
Processes are divided roughly into:
・ Preparation of the Material
・ Turning and Boring
・ Creating the Sound (Voicing)
Here we will explain about each of the main processes.

Preparation of the Material
   
1. Find the material

   
2. Sawing work
   
3. Cut ends impregnated with paraffin wax to prevent cracking


   
4. Left to dry naturally for 2 years at least
5. Artificial seasoning
6. Left to dry naturally between the different processes
　  
Turning and Boring
   
7. 　 Turned on the lathe into a cylinder shape - The processing is done in 4-5 phases, and the wood is left to dry between each session
   
8. Drilling-done in 4-5 phases, and the wood is left to dry between each session
9. Polishing (exterior surface) - several different kinds of sandpaper are used
10. Impregnated with resin (oil) - impregnated with the oil or resin in a vacuum pan for an hour
11. Left to dry naturally - for more than one month
12. Finishing the form
13. Drilling the bore - in 2-3 phases
   
14. Rough polishing - fine sandpaper and steel wool are used
15. Rough staining - left to dry for more than one month
16. Polishing - using steel wool
17. Polishing - a piece of cotton fabric is used
   
18. Staining - once or twice
19. Left to dry for more than one month
   
20. Drilling the bore - bringing it closer to the final measure
21. Staining inside
22. Drilling the joint parts (on the middle and foot joints)
   
23. Drilling the finger holes (on the middle and foot joints) - Deburring and drilling screw holes for some models
24.

Reaming the bore
25. Polishing the bore - using steel wool
26. Cork is fixed on the joints (of the middle joint), with glue
27. Final reaming of the joints (of head and foot joints)
28. Shaving off the cork on the middle joint – so that the tenons fit the joint sockets
29. Boring the head joint for the block
30. Preparation for making the windway (head joint)
31. Cutting the windway (head joint)
32. Cutting the block
33. Compressing the block
34.

Fitting the block in to the head joint
   
35.

Forming the beak (head joint)
36. Cutting the labium on the head joint
37. Mounting the rings (head and foot joints)
38. Drilling the screw holes for posts (foot joint)
39. Reaming the foot joint
40. Polishing the bore - using steel wool
   
41.

Keys are fitted and adjusted on the middle and foot joints, and checked for any leakages
42. Final colour adjustment
   
43. Joint adjustment - Cork or threaded lapping
Creating the Sound
   
44. Voicing - Creating the tone
45. Tuning - Adjusted mainly by working on the finger holes
46. Polishing the beak (head joint) - with sandpaper
47. Inspection
48. Finishing on the beak (head joint)
49. Deburring
50. Final voicing



We mainly use maple, boxwood, rosewood, ebony, grenadilla and cherry.  We are also experimenting with other types of woods now.  Blocks are made of cedar wood.  We use Florida cedar wood.
Additional materials are cork, silk thread, imitation ivory and grease.
In addition to these, there are attachments (such as keys).
Materials for the body and block

Woods used for making recorders are best hard and dense for good tone quality, and easy to work on, clear of any knotty blemishes.  On selecting woods, for example, I try striking two billets of the same material.  If it sounded nice and clear, it would be one of the possible “good woods.”

Maple is most widely used.  Canadian and European maples are well- known, but I use “Mono maple (Itaya Kaede)” from Hokkaido, which is a hard specie of maple.  This is one of the more tractable materials.  As large pieces are available, it is used for large instruments such as tenor and bass recorders.  Maple is also used for various musical instruments other than recorders, e.g. violin and harp.  Recorders made of maple have soft and clear tone.

Cherry is also a domestic product, and relatively large pieces are available.  It is quite hard, and hard on the blade.  It smells very sweet while I work on it.  The tone, too, is sweet and clear.  It is a reliable material for making recorders.  I use the wood chips for cooking – they make excellent smoking chips!

Boxwood is the material most favoured by players.  It is my favourite, too.   This is mostly a domestic product, too.  European boxwoods from France or Britain are renowned.  They are hard, easy to work on and wonderful, but unfortunately, recently they have become more difficult to come by worldwide.
Rosewood comes from the South America.  It is hard and heavy.  It is often used for marimba, and sounds very loud.  Rosewood recorders have a forceful and dominant tone.  Once I made the clappers with rosewood to use on the night fire patrol for the neighbourhood association.

Ebony and Grenadilla originate in Africa.  They are very heavy, with specific weight of 1.4.  They are used for the fingerboards of string instruments and for clarinets.  Their strong tone is popular with players, but they are difficult to handle as materials because they are hard and dense and thus prone to cracking during seasoning and manufacture.

A type of Cedar wood is used for the block.  It comes from Florida.  Block material requires resistance to moisture and to deformation, as it gets wet regularly.  The fresh wood has a distinct scent.  Insects seem to dislike the scent, so we put some pieces in the wardrobe in place of moth repellent.