With which you have to work, you can listen to the manufacture of a knife - tanto.
It should be said right away that the length of the knife ranges from 24 to 26 cm. Therefore, you must prepare a block of wood measuring 260x40x20 mm. The thickness of the bar can be from 16mm.
On such a length of wood, warping of the tree does not affect. This remark is true if you have chosen a dry tree. Moist can dry out.
On this bar, on the side, draw a sketch of the future knife according to the template.
In this file you will find a full-size sketch of the knife 1:1 , which can be printed and used as a template when making tanto. It looks like this:
Then apply a center line from above, which you draw along all four sides. From it you make all subsequent marks. This allows you to make symmetrical lines regardless of the original curvature of the wood block.
Pay attention to the proportions of the blade and handle!
With a knife length of 26 cm, the length of the handle is 11 cm.
With a knife length of 25 cm, the length of the handle is 10.5 cm.
With a knife length of 24 cm, the length of the handle is 10 cm.
But of course you can choose "your" size.
On the side, make small lines of marks with a pencil:
From the very edge of the knife - 7mm. and from this mark - 10mm.
Make these marks along the entire length of the knife at a distance of approximately 20 - 30mm.
From the end of the handle, from the outer edges, make marks of 7mm.
From the line of the beginning of the handle make marks:
1. - from the top edge - 7 and 10 mm.
2. - from the bottom edge - 7mm.
On top, apply the following markup:
Near the tip, from the main center line, on both sides of it, make marks of 4.5mm.
From the start line of the handle, on both sides of the center line, mark 5.5mm.
Near the end of the knife, on both sides of the center line, mark 5mm.
Do the same below:
Near the tip, from the center line, make two marks:
1. - 1mm.
2. - 4mm.
From the line of the beginning of the handle, on both sides of the center line, also make two marks
1. - 2.5 - 3mm.
2. - 5.5mm.
Near the end of the knife, on both sides of the center line, mark 5mm.
This is where the initial markup ends and figured cutting begins.)
But seriously, you should take a sharp cutter or knife and cut off excess wood along the marking lines.
Start cutting carefully, following the direction of the fibers. Depending on this, cut strictly in the direction of the fibers.
You should end up with something like this:
Point side view:
Now we need to form the blade of the knife.
To do this, you need to make the following markings on the side of the knife:
From the edge of the future blade at 7 mm, at some distance between each other, make marks with a pencil, which you connect in one line.
Point side view:
Now we form the very edge of the knife:
On the side, we draw a line from the edge of the knife at 20 mm.
From the end of the tip we apply parallel lines of 3.5 mm. from the center line.
The next step is the final formation of the knife edge. To do this, on the resulting workpiece, from the edge of the point, apply a line parallel to the line of the point with a width of 8 mm. From this line towards the center end line, you need to cut off the excess wood.
It should turn out like this:
As a result, you should get a knife of the following form:
The knife is almost ready. It remains only to process the sharp edges of the knife.
To do this, fixing the knife with a clamp to the table (or with a vice, but always through a gasket - a piece of hardboard or thick cardboard), process the edges with a file - with light movements !!!
DO NOT TOUCH the top of the blade!
Process only the handle - to give it a rounded shape and the blade - to remove protruding edges. After that, polish the knife with sandpaper.
Everything! This completes the knife making!
Only the final processing remains: polishing, staining, protective coating, etc.
Tanto attachment method for processing
Drawings of knives 10 options (st3)
Neil Roberts-Warrior knife drawing. A serious knife, this can be made for hunting or tourism.
Drawing knife Cold steel tanto. An interesting knife, very reminiscent of a Japanese katana, perfect for the kitchen.
Drawing of a Browning Xtreme knife. An interesting knife, probably more used as a small hatchet.
Drawing knife Mat-tanto. Nothing like a knife, you can do it for the kitchen.
Drawing knife Menem-M9. Cool knife, but also good, like a small but dangerous.
Drawing of a Gerber-Yari knife. The blade of the knife seems to be okay, but the handle is not very good.
Knife drawing by Chris Reeve-Shadow III. The knife seems to be combat, but not impressed.
Knife drawing by Chris Reeve-Ubejane skinner. A knife is like a tooth, in skillful hands it can turn into a formidable weapon.
Knife drawing by Chris Reeve-Nkonka. And what a cute little knife, it seems simple, but serious.
Drawing knife Hill knives. A good machete knife, I made it and immediately cut down thickets in my grandmother's garden, although it can come in handy on a hike.
Such a style of knives as tanto is known to us from Japan, it is also called a short sword. The blade length of such a knife can vary from 30 to 50 cm. As a rule, sharpening is used one-sided, and sometimes two.
By tradition, there is a jamon on the metal, the handle is removable, and it also has a removable guard.
Of course, a knife made according to this instruction bears little resemblance to a tanto, its blade is clearly not 30 cm, there is no jamon, and the handle is fixed on pins. However, the knife turned out to be quite good, despite the fact that it does not fit well under its name. However, remotely, its profile is somewhat reminiscent of a saber.
Materials and tools that the author used to make the knife:
List of materials:
- sheet steel with a high carbon content (it is this that can be hardened);
- wood for the handle;
- brass rods, rivets (or other material for making pins);
- epoxy glue.
List of tools:
- ;
- a good set of sandpaper;
- paper, pencil, scissors, drawing accessories (for making a template);
- ;
- glue;
- grindstone;
- different grit sandpaper;
- heat source (for quenching) and oil;
- drill with drills;
- clamps;
- wood impregnation oil.
Knife making process:
Step one. Draw a profile and cut out
First of all, you will need to show all your creativity. It is necessary to make a template for the future knife, this is done first on paper. If you wish, you can download a ready-made template from the Internet and change it to your liking.
Instead of paper, it is better to use thick cardboard, when you cut out the template, you can hold the future knife in your hands and make sure that it is comfortable.
Next, attach the template to the workpiece and circle it with a marker. Now the template can be cut out. For this difficult task, the author uses a grinder. We clamp the workpiece with a clamp or vice and slowly cut it out.
Step two. We grind
After cutting, the profile will turn out to be very rough, the edges will be uneven, they will have notches. The profile along the contour must be brought to the ideal. To do this, we need a sharpener, or a grinder with a grinding disc. If there are problem areas on the blade, they can be processed manually using a file.
Step three. We form bevels
The manufacture of bevels is a very crucial moment, the cutting characteristics of the knife depend on them. The wider the bevel, that is, the smoother the sharpening angle, the sharper the knife will be, and the easier it will sharpen.
But there are some nuances here, a thin blade cuts well, but it does not withstand loads well if you chop with a knife. So you will need to find some middle ground.
To make the bevels even and symmetrical, first mark everything. Draw a line on the blade on both sides, to which the bevel will reach. You also need to split the blade lengthwise into two so you can see the center line as you grind. Usually, a drill of the same diameter as the thickness of the workpiece is used for this.
Let's start sanding. This work will be done quickly and professionally. But not everyone has such a device, in extreme cases, you will need a grinder with a grinding disc. We clamp the workpiece with a clamp and proceed to grinding.
Some craftsmen form excellent bevels using ordinary files. But all this is laborious and requires experience.
Step four. Metal grinding
Now let's start grinding the metal, here you would again need a belt grinder. If not, everything will have to be done manually. We first use coarse sandpaper to level the planes, clean off rust and remove other defects. Then we gradually take the sandpaper finer and finer, and so on until the knife shines like a mirror.
Many craftsmen recommend moistening sandpaper in water, so it is cleared of chips.
Step five. Drilling holes for pins
Be sure to complete this step before heat treating, as it will be extremely difficult to do later. You must also complete all major metal work before hardening.
In the workpiece, you need to drill two holes in the place where the handle is located. They are needed to install the pins, respectively, we select the diameter of the holes depending on their thickness. There may be more pins, two is a classic option and this is quite enough for a reliable assembly of the handle. The author decided to drill three holes in the handle.
Step six. Metal hardening
If you used special steel for making a knife, which has a high amount of carbon in its composition, it can be hardened. For this case, you will need an oven and a permanent magnet. If you do not know the grade of steel used, then a permanent magnet will help determine the degree of heating for hardening. If a magnet is brought to the heated steel, and it will not be attracted, then the metal is heated to the desired temperature.
Steel is usually heated to a temperature of 700-900 degrees. In principle, you can get it in a small furnace and with the help of coal. Coals will need to be inflated with a hair dryer, vacuum cleaner or other similar device.
As soon as the steel warms up, it is time to extinguish it. To do this, you will need oil, mono motor or vegetable. In oil, the metal does not cool as quickly as in water, so the risk of deformation of the workpiece is reduced. The author immerses the workpiece for 15 seconds, while being careful, as the oil ignites and emits a strong odor. After hardening, handle the workpiece carefully as the metal will be very brittle.
In the end, you need to leave the metal, this will make it elastic and the knife will not fly apart. If you drop it or throw it into a tree. Vacation can be done in a conventional household oven. We heat it to a temperature of 200-215 degrees Celsius and put the workpiece for an hour and a half. After that, turn off the oven and let it cool down with the knife closed.
Step seven. Knife cleaning and polishing
After hardening, there will be scale and traces of burnt oil on the knife. It all needs to be cleaned up. We take fine sandpaper, WD40 or plain water and proceed to cleaning. Gradually move to the smallest paper and in the end, if desired, polish the metal.
Step eight. Handle Assembly
Now we need to make blanks for the pen. We attach the knife with the tail to the boards and circle with a pencil. We cut out two blanks using a jigsaw or other band saw. However, if you don’t have a jigsaw, it’s not scary, you can cut out the rough outlines of the handle, then it will still be sanded anyway. Blanks can be easily turned to the desired profile on a grinder or with a file.
Finally, you have to drill holes in the wood for the pins, exactly in the same places as in the metal.
Differences in them - in form and purpose.
What are Tanto combat knives
The original tanto (短刀= tan "short" + too "sword") is a traditional Japanese short knife available to civilians (as opposed to the long katana). National Treasure of Japan. Tanto combat knives are considered edged weapons in all countries. In a safe form (made of plastic, wood, rubber, etc.) it is used in oriental martial arts.
Traditional samurai set - tanto, wakizashi and katana In the European tanto classification:
- in size - a dagger;
- for sharpening - a knife.
In the classical sense, Tanto knives are exactly a sword.
Tanto knife in Japanese is hamono (刃 "blade, blade" + 物 "product, thing"). Despite the fact that both "hamono" and "tanto" have two hieroglyphs, the first is perceived as one word "knife", the second - as a phrase with the keyword "sword".
The second meaning of tanto is a special blade shape for modern knives:
- combat;
- tactical;
- folding, etc.
The thick tip of the tanto is the key to the durability of the knife even with inappropriate use This form has little in common with the classic tanto, but is popular and widely used due to its strength.
Description of the Japanese sword Tanto
Classic tanto should be done like this:
| Parameter | Meaning | Japanese designation |
| Blade shape | slightly curved tip |
 The correct shape of the tanto blade is flat with a slight curvature. |
| flat | ||
| sharpening | unilateral | |
| Blade length | no more than 30.3 cm, otherwise it will turn out wakizashi |
A standard school 30 cm ruler is just 1 exemplary Japanese shaku |
| total length | 35-50 cm | |
| Material | Japanese Sponge Iron Ingot Steel |
 Tanto is made from "diamond steel" - tamahagane |
| Handle | Removable | |
| Bamboo pin |
 If you make mekugi from metal or horn, the sword will be decorative, not combat |
|
| Garda* | Round |
 By tsuba, you can recognize the owner of the blade. The samurai code forbade them jewelry, so they decorated the tsuba. Simple "guards" - the lot of commoners |
*Tsuba was never used by the Japanese to block weapons - only to stop the brush during a stabbing blow.
Parameters of a short knife Tanto
Modern tanto knives differ from the canon in almost all respects:
| Parameter | Traditional tanto sword
|
Modern tanto knife
This kind of American tanto resembles a kitchen knife, but costs 10 times more. |
| Blade shape | slightly curved tip | Straight bevel under 45 o |
| flat | With stiffener | |
| Type of sharpening | unilateral | Single sided or double sided |
| blade length | 17-30.3 cm | 10-30 cm |
| total length | 35-50 cm | 22-50 cm |
| thickness | 5-7 mm | 2,5-7 |
| material | sponge iron steel | A variety of steels, including Damascus |
| Handle | Removable | fixed |
| Attaching the handle to the shank | Bamboo pin | No bamboo studs at all |
| Garda* | Round | Flat, round or none |
The sketch is so detailed that at least take it and make a real Tanto sword yourself
The American tanto took over the sharpening from the katana and added chopped forms. In pursuit of a spectacular appearance, modern knives have acquired serious drawbacks:
However, the point strength of modern tantoids is very high, so sticking them into something hard is much safer - and it will turn out much better than other knives.
Tanto blades in Japanese culture
Tanto blades historically are not a knife, but a sword, therefore, they were most often worn in a sheath:
- for warriors - behind the belt, on the right;
- for women - in a sleeve, a fan or behind an obi belt.
Samurai before the 14th century armed with a pair of swords - daisho ("big-small"):
- Daito ("big tanto sword") - the main one, more than 66 cm.
- Shoto ("small sword") - additional, 33-66 cm.
Sometimes the Japanese tanto sword was used instead of the seto.
A couple of things that distinguished the samurai from ordinary people - a large and small sword. Guess what tanto came from In the 14th century the weapons of the samurai have changed:
- instead of daito - tati, then - katana;
- instead of seto - wakizashi, sometimes - tanto.
The difference between tati and katana is that the first was worn on a leash to the belt, and the second was thrust into the belt Over time, tanto entered the military recruitment on an ongoing basis, the third item. It was regarded precisely as a military weapon, and therefore was used accordingly:
- to finish off the enemy;
- for battle in a cramped room;
- for cutting off heads;
- for suicide (male warriors, women, children);
- for self-defense (merchants, artisans, monks and other travelers).
Now tanto is a cultural heritage.
The only permitted uses:
- wedding ceremonies of the imperial family;
- oriental martial arts.
Types of tanto
In addition to the tanto itself, the short sword at different times had dozens of varieties:
| Title and photo | Difference and purpose |
 The tanto fan has a well-camouflaged scabbard |
Sheath for tanto in the form of a folded fan. Concealed carry:
|
 The most despised tanto by samurai is firearms. |
When sheathed, it looks like a normal tanto. Outside the scabbard is a single-shot pistol. In the 17-18 centuries - as a weapon of self-defense;
|
 Like a spear - but no, yari-tanto |
The blade is exactly like a yari spear:
For armor penetration. It could be worn on a shaft like a spear. Like a second hand weapon |
 Perhaps the hasiwari is the prototype of the Japanese sai weapon. |
|
 Tanto saw not only cuts, but also saws |
On the concave part - saw teeth. Supposedly the ninja made holes in the walls to get into the house. |
 This is what yoroi doshi tanto looked like |
|
 Aikuti ("fitted mouth") was not considered a sword |
Without a guard, without a handle braid, various sizes of tanto, more often short ones. “Civilian version”, for finishing off the enemy, (you can’t finish off the lying one with a sword, a. aikutti, unlike tanto, was not considered a sword) |
 Kubikiri literally means "head cutter" |
More curved, sometimes without a point (or with a weakly pronounced one), the cutting edge is on the inside or on both sides.
|
 Tanto-kens were forged especially for monasteries |
Double-edged blade like a dagger two parallel cutting edges.
|
 Hamidashi feature in the handle, more precisely, in the guard-tsuba of modest size |
The specific form of the guard-tsuba is very small, barely protruding beyond the edge.
|
 Kusungobu - a shortened version of the tanto for hara-kiri |
Ritual, the size of the tanto knife is 29.7 cm. Seppuku or hara-kiri |
 Too crowded for wakizashi? Use the kaiken! |
|
 A kind of tanto with additional sharpening on the concave part |
Double-edged, curved tanto blade for close combat |
 Unokubi is a refined Japanese tanto in the literal sense, as it becomes thinner along the entire length of the percussive part and only the tip and base remain thick |
The back of the blade becomes thinner in the middle, but thickens again towards the tip. End difference:
Perhaps the stronger tip was used for stabbing. Plus, such a weapon is lighter than usual, monolithically thick along the entire length |
 A short Japanese tanto knife with a stiffener is already more like an American tanto |
Stiffener (approximately in the middle) |
Rarer performances of tanto (as well as wakizashi, katana and naginata) are shown in the figure below.
Photo tanto. Different geometries of Japanese bladesHistory of the tanto sword
In Japan, tanto has a long history - up to the present day:
| Production eras | Period | Event |
| Koto, "old swords" | Heian (794 - 1185) | The emergence of tanto. Rough, not artistic |
| war genpei (War of Minamoto and Tairo) |
Tanto was included in the armament of the war:
|
|
| Kamakura | High quality, very artistic, mostly for samurai. The most famous tanto master is Yoshimitsu |
|
| Muromachi | peak production | |
| Mamoyama (1573-1599) | ||
| Shinto, "new swords" | Edo (1600-1868) | At first, production decreased, but Japanese daggers became popular. Then production increased, but the quality dropped. Gradually began to go out of use, turning into a tribute to tradition |
| Shin-Shinto, "new new swords") | ||
| Meiji dynasty (1868-1912) | The second birth is among aristocrats, ninjas and yakuza. Weapons are manufactured industrially |
|
| Gendai, "modern" (1876 - 1945) | Edict of Haytori (1876) | Samurai eliminated The carrying of weapons is prohibited. Tanto is falling into disuse |
| 1940-1945 | Mass production of steel tanta for military purposes | |
| Shinshaku, "The Newest" (after 1945 ) | 1950 - law "On cultural heritage" | Tanto entered the list of traditional weapons that need to be protected and preserved. Exception: steel tantos of the Second World War, forged in haste. They are not considered cultural value and are destroyed so as not to dishonor the national treasure. |
| 1954 | It is allowed to manufacture weapons according to ancient technologies - but only to licensed blacksmiths. Currently, out of 650+ such manufacturers, about half are working |
After the 1950s, nothing interesting about tanto happened in Japan. But thirty years later, the tanto was reincarnated - in America, in the form of a combat knife.
Manufacturing history
In the USA, there was just a mass passion for Japanese martial arts, and knife masters took advantage of this.
| Year | Event | Advertising | Image |
| 1978 | American Chinese Bob Lam creates a knife that looks like a miniature samurai sword, with the Japanese name - tanto. |  |
|
| 1979 | Individual blacksmiths picked up the style. Due to the high demand, the production of tanto has been put on stream. | Increase in tanto models on the market. | |
| 1980 | Phil Hutsfield promotes a simplified version of the tanto - with a rough chisel sharpening and a simple handle (sometimes the shank was simply wrapped with long laces soaked in epoxy). | Master swordsman Obata Toshiro cuts rice straw mats (tatami omote). Navy SEALs order tantos from Phil Hutsfield (and get them for half price). |
 |
| 1981 | Ernest Emerson designs and mass-produces folding tantos. | Again, for the SEALs. On the knife - a lot of trendy attributes, including a retainer and a clip. |
 |
| 1982 | Lynn Thompson of Cold Steel is mass-producing tantos, both regular and folding. | Punches several times in a row a car door, aircraft skin, metal barrels. Experiencing lethality on a Mexican pig farm. Forms a myth about special strength and penetration. |
 |
In this article, you will learn how to make Wooden tanto (jap. 短刀 literal translation - "short sword" - samurai dagger). A wooden tanto is mainly used for trainers in various martial arts, and can also be a gift (decorated, for example, with carvings) or an interior element.
Reference: Tanto has a one-sided, sometimes mutual blade with a length of 25 to 40 cm. If the blade is longer, then this is a short wakizashi sword. Tanto is made of sponge iron (tamahanane) and has a characteristic jamon, a removable handle attached to the shank with a bamboo menuki pin and a removable round guard - tsuba. Tanto is usually forged in the hira-zukuri style, that is, flat, without a stiffener, although there are specimens with a stiffener - moroha-zukuri, mutual. Some tanto, which had a thick triangular blade, were called eroidoshi and were designed to pierce armor in close combat.
Materials and tools:
- oak bar with dimensions 260x35x16cm;
- knife (wood chisel), hacksaw;
- file, sandpaper (different from large to small);
- pencil, marker;
- stain and linseed oil.
Step 1
To make a tanto, let's take an oak bar and a sketch of the future tanto.
Tanto will be 26 cm long, handle - 10 cm. In order to maintain the proportions in the manufacture, one should adhere to the sketch.
Let's transfer the sketch to the bar. To display the characteristic curve of the tanto, we divide the length of the bar in half. In the center, measure 1/7 of the width from the edge (in this case, 5mm) and connect this point with the corners. We measure 10 cm along this line - this will be the length of the handle. The rest (future blade) is divided in half across and the intersection point is connected to the beginning of the handle, thus obtaining the main bend of the tanto.
On the handle at a distance of 1/4 from the edges, mark the rounding line. The blade is divided in half along the lines of the beginning of the descents. The upper part is divided in half - this will be the descent of the false blade.
Step 2
Let's start processing the bar - adhering to the sketch, we will remove all unnecessary. Along the line dividing the bar into the handle and the blade, we will make cuts on both sides to the thickness of the blade - this will protect the handle from chipping when removing wood with a knife. Now remove the main layer of wood with a knife.
Step 3
We will carry out rough processing with a file and the final sandpaper from coarse to fine, so that the surface becomes smooth.
Step 4
To give a more beautiful look, we will apply a pattern to the handle or, as is customary for tanto, make a winding of the handle. We apply the pattern on the handle with a pencil (marker) and slightly deepen (cut through) the pattern along the pattern.
Step 5
After applying the pattern, we emphasize it with a stain. Dip for a day in linseed oil, the wood treated in this way is protected from moisture and other negative influences. It is necessary to dry the oil-soaked tanto in the sun - under the influence of ultraviolet oil, creating protection.
After drying, the wooden tanto is ready for use.