Dear Jesse,

Check out "The Genius of Japanese Carpentry" - an account of a temple's construction by S. Azby Brown.
Published by Kodansha International.
ISBN 0-87011-897-8
Price $27.00

All the basic are included therein including tools, designs, joints, custom & practice. Its written in English by an American who worked for a Japanese temple builder.

Regards

Ken Hume