This image is from an extensive article on wiring in Bonsai Today issue 1.
Turning a how-to wiring lesson into a game
The photos below show how to wire a primary branch and five secondary branches without crossing wires; presented as an interesting and instructive game. BTW: if you need any wire for your own wiring games…
Wait! Before you go any further, see if you can figure out how to wire all five secondary branches (a-e) without crossing any wires.
Step one. Start with b and d. Top view.
Step one, bottom view.
Step two. Wiring c and e in process.
Step two, c and e finished
Step three. What about branch a? How would you do it?
Anchor on the trunk.
Wire branch A to the small unwired branch on B
to the sub-branch on ‘b’
Whatever Bill says is good with me.
Yeah. Bill Valavanis came up with the same solution.
Being a novice at wiring (which some may consider a gross exaggeration) I am having a hard time understanding how Bill gets the wire around the primary branch for at least one turn without crossing the larger wire on that branch? The only other option I see for that scenario would be to run the wire along the primary branch from branch a to branch b and in between the large wire on the primary and the branch b / d wire. Visualizing that scenario in my intensive training class, I can hear my teacher Boon saying “wrong, wrong…take it off and do it again”!
My resolution – tuck the small branch “a” wire under the primary branch wire to anchor.
Hi David,
Thank for your detailed explanation and for letting us in on your personal experience as a student of Boon.
However, I just took another look at it and I agree with Bill. You should be able to avoid crossing the heavier wire on the primary branch. In other words, the small wire you place should be able to depart branch b and run along next to the heavy wire on the main branch for almost one full turn and then run out branch a. Am I missing something?
Me again. I just took another look and I see how it might be confusing. However, I still think Bill’s (and Aussie’s) solution works if you make sure that the new wire comes off of branch b in that almost non existent space between the heavy wire and the wire that run from branch b to branch d. Capice?
Capice? Not exactly. And yes I think you are missing something. What I do understand now is why it seems impossible to wire branch a to branch b without crossing wires based on the details you have provided. You have used the incorrect bottom view (3) from page 30 of issue #1. You should have provided Fig. (5) from that same issue as the bottom view. Reviewing this exercise in Bonsai Today issue #1, their solution is to follow the large wire on the primary branch back towards the trunk – Fig. 3 on page 31. I see they also show how to connect a to sub branch b in Fig. 4 on page 31 but they used the correct wiring of branch b to branch d to achieve that. Capice?
I just took another look at this exercise and realize that branch c CANNOT be wired to branch e. In the last detail on this blog, it is obvious that wiring is crossing the top of the guide wire on the primary branch. Here is the proper wiring sequence: after the guide wire is applied to the primary branch, wire branch b to branch d staying tight to the guide wire. Then wire branch e to branch d. That allows you to wire branch a to branch c without crossing any wires.
The wiring game in Bonsai Today issue #1 is confusing because they use more INCORRECT details to show you what NOT to do than correct ones. Of the details posted on this blog, only the first detail with the primary wire is a CORRECT detail. Wayne has verified Bill V.’s and Aussie’s solution with detail 4 on page 31 in this issue. That detail has two locations where the branch wire has crossed the guide wire – branch a to sub-branch b and branch c to branch e. Detail 3 on page 31 verifies the CORRECT way that I detailed above. Sorry to steal your thunder there Wayne but Bill V.’s and Aussie’s solution do NOT work. Is that explanation worth a better discount on Peter Adam’s – Bonsai With Japanese Maples? :)
David, I am in awe of your perseverance. When I get chance I’ll go back and take another look at the original photos in BT #1. However, there are mistakes in the translation and layout in issue 1 that might that require some more of that perseverance to untangle.