Considered one of the best blacksmiths in the region, Yoshikazu Tanaka has been a blacksmith for over half a century. He now works with his son and an apprentice. He is a traditionalist, but he is always looking to improve his process and skills. He uses the traditional method of quenching with pine charcoal and then uses straw ash. It is a very old way of making knives. He does not use a thermometer for quenching; he manually calculates the temperature of the steel by examining its color. Tanaka-san is always looking to improve. He uses a temperature-controlled furnace for quenching, which only a few blacksmiths in the region use. He and his team only forge 30 knives a day between the three of them. For reference, some blacksmiths forge as many as 100 blades in a single day. The reason he only forges 30 is that he takes his time, carefully forging at very low temperatures. At lower temperatures, the steel does not stretch as quickly, but it will retain the grain size of the steel much better. Stretching the grain size will make the steel brittle, which he tries to avoid. He frequently moves the steel in and out of the furnace to check the color, then when the entire blade is a specific shade of color, he quenches the steel in water. Water tempering (Mizu) is the most difficult to achieve and requires very careful handling.
Takada no Hamono
Mitsaki Takada is a knife craftsman in Sakai. He founded TAKADA no HAMONO in 2018. He is versatile and has great expertise in Hamaguri-style convex sharpening. His polishing technique is innovative and unique. The brand concept is multi-dimensional. This is expressed through his choice of logos that resemble the sun or a star. He is passionate about creating pieces that bring joy to those around them. With this multi-faceted philosophy of mind, he focuses not only on blade making (forging and sharpening), but also on woodworking and leathercraft. Mitsuaki Takada believes that detail is life! – His love of craftsmanship and kitchen knife making is evident, with his attention to even the smallest details.
These knives have a fine cutting feel and excellent edge life. They represent an exciting new generation of Sakai craftsmen producing superior quality work. I am extremely fortunate to work with Takada no Hamono and represent this company in Montreal.
Considered one of the best blacksmiths in the region, Yoshikazu Tanaka has been a blacksmith for over half a century. He now works with his son and an apprentice. He is a traditionalist, but he is always looking to improve his process and skills. He uses the traditional method of quenching with pine charcoal and then uses straw ash. It is a very old way of making knives. He does not use a thermometer for quenching; he manually calculates the temperature of the steel by examining its color. Tanaka-san is always looking to improve. He uses a temperature-controlled furnace for quenching, which only a few blacksmiths in the region use. He and his team only forge 30 knives a day between the three of them. For reference, some blacksmiths forge as many as 100 blades in a single day. The reason he only forges 30 is that he takes his time, carefully forging at very low temperatures. At lower temperatures, the steel does not stretch as quickly, but it will retain the grain size of the steel much better. Stretching the grain size will make the steel brittle, which he tries to avoid. He frequently moves the steel in and out of the furnace to check the color, then when the entire blade is a specific shade of color, he quenches the steel in water. Water tempering (Mizu) is the most difficult to achieve and requires very careful handling.
Takada no Hamono
Mitsaki Takada is a knife craftsman in Sakai. He founded TAKADA no HAMONO in 2018. He is versatile and has great expertise in Hamaguri-style convex sharpening. His polishing technique is innovative and unique. The brand concept is multi-dimensional. This is expressed through his choice of logos that resemble the sun or a star. He is passionate about creating pieces that bring joy to those around them. With this multi-faceted philosophy of mind, he focuses not only on blade making (forging and sharpening), but also on woodworking and leathercraft. Mitsuaki Takada believes that detail is life! – His love of craftsmanship and kitchen knife making is evident, with his attention to even the smallest details.
These knives have a fine cutting feel and excellent edge life. They represent an exciting new generation of Sakai craftsmen producing superior quality work. I am extremely fortunate to work with Takada no Hamono and represent this company in Montreal.
