Amberoak Hand Forged High Carbon Steel Tanto | 21.5 Inch Overall with 15 Inch Blade | Brown Leather Wrapped Wooden Saya | Norse Collector Gift | RK-1279

A Japanese scabbard is a more considered object than it looks. It is not a tube. It is made from a single piece of light close grained wood, split down its length, hollowed out on both halves to the exact section of the blade with the tip of a chisel, then glued back together so the seam disappears. Nothing inside touches the polished steel. The blade floats down a channel cut a fraction wider than it is, and the entire grip on the sword comes from the mouth of the scabbard closing on the brass collar at the base of the blade. That is why an old saya still holds a sword firmly after a century, and why a scabbard that grips the blade itself will have polished the finish off it in a fraction of that time. Amberoak sits in one of those, finished in brown leather, over a 15 inch blade of 1095 high carbon steel hardened to 54 to 58 HRC.

Forged, ground, heat treated and mounted by hand in our shop in Memphis, Tennessee. It ships with the leather wrapped saya shown in the photographs and a light protective coat of oil on the blade. Shipping inside the United States is free.

Specifications

What a wide belly does to a short blade

This blade widens as it moves away from the guard and then sweeps up into the point, rather than tapering evenly from base to tip the way a dagger does. That shape is chosen for cutting rather than thrusting and the reason is simple mechanics. Widening the blade forward moves mass out along the length, which raises the moment of inertia and means that once the blade is moving it carries momentum into the target instead of stopping at the surface. On a 15 inch blade, where there is not much length to build speed with, that forward weight is what makes the difference between a cut and a scratch.

The upswept point does something separate. It puts the tip above the line of the edge, so when you draw the blade towards you through a target the point clears rather than digging in and stopping the cut. It is the same logic behind a skinning knife, and it is why this shape appears again and again in working blades from completely unrelated cultures. Anywhere someone needed to cut long and shallow through soft material, they eventually arrived at a wide bellied blade with the point lifted clear.

Why 1095 high carbon steel and not stainless

1095 is plain iron with just under one percent carbon and very little else. Because it contains no chromium, none of the carbon is tied up in coarse carbides, and all of it is available to form the fine hard structures that take and hold a genuinely keen edge. It also sharpens back on any ordinary whetstone without special abrasives, which matters on a blade you actually intend to use.

Stainless steel resists rust because chromium forms an oxide skin at the surface. The same chromium coarsens the carbides, which sets a limit on how fine an edge the steel will hold, and in a longer blade it trades away toughness as well. The cost of 1095 is that it will rust if left wet or covered in fingerprints, and that is what the oil and the wipe are for. The full argument is in Damascus versus stainless.

Wood, leather and brass

The handle core is hardwood shaped in two halves to the full length tang and wrapped in brown cord, with a brass cap at the pommel and a brass collar at the guard. The saya beneath the leather is wood, hollowed the way described above, and the leather is wrapped over it and stitched. Leather over wood is a practical combination for a piece that goes outdoors, because it takes knocks without denting the way a lacquer finish does and it can be re oiled when it dries.

Feed the leather once or twice a year with a light leather dressing and keep it out of prolonged wet. The wood underneath wants what all wood wants, which is described in wooden handle care. Brass darkens with handling into a warmer tone and polishes back if you prefer bright.

Engraving, runes and your own design

Use the rune converter on this page to turn a name, a date or a short phrase into Elder Futhark and we will cut it into the steel or the handle. If you would rather have a Viking pattern than a rune line, choose your own design in the engraving option above the add to cart button and tell us whether it goes on the blade or the handle. Where a piece already carries an engraved design, your chosen engraving replaces it rather than sitting alongside it. The wide flat of this blade takes a long line comfortably, and the engraving page covers depth and layout.

Care and sharpening

Wipe the blade after handling, particularly around the brass habaki where moisture collects between two dissimilar metals. Light mineral oil on a cloth does the job. Do not leave the blade sheathed and wet, because leather and wood both hold moisture and will hold it against the steel.

The edge sharpens on ordinary water stones at the angle it was ground at. Follow the belly around rather than trying to hold the blade flat, which is the usual mistake on a curved edge, then finish on a fine stone and strop. Both jobs are covered in steel care and sharpening with a whetstone.

Forged in Memphis

Made in Memphis, Tennessee, from bar stock, in the shop the photograph was taken outside. Nothing here is drop shipped from an importer catalogue and rebadged. Drawing out, grinding, hardening, polishing, wrapping the handle and stitching the leather all happen under one roof, and that is why there is a genuine lead time rather than a same day promise. Most orders leave within one to two weeks, engraved orders take a few days longer, and if a piece is going to run past that we tell you before the date rather than after it.

A note on handmade variation

Amberoak is hand forged. It is not machine made and it is not bulk produced, so what arrives will not be a pixel for pixel copy of the photograph. Leather takes dye unevenly and every wrap comes out its own shade of brown, the brass will have its own tone, the polish carries light in its own way, and the grain of the wood in the handle core belongs to that piece of timber. The sweep of the belly varies a little because it is ground by eye. Dimensions, steel and build are the same every time. The character is not.

Frequently asked questions

Is this a tanto or a short wakizashi?

It sits at the top of the tanto range. At 15 inches of blade it is longer than a classic tanto and shorter than a wakizashi, which in Japanese terms would make it an o tanto. It handles like a very large working knife rather than like a sword.

Does it arrive sharp?

Yes, sharpened and ready to use. If you would rather have it blunt for display, ask in the order notes and there is no extra charge.

Can I take it outdoors and use it?

Yes, and the leather saya is chosen with that in mind. It will handle camp cutting, brush and soft target work. Keep it off bone, metal and stone, do not use it as a pry bar and do not throw it.

How do I look after the leather?

Keep it out of prolonged wet, dry it slowly if it does get soaked, and work a light leather dressing into it once or twice a year. Leather that is allowed to dry out hard is what cracks.

Can I have runes engraved on it?

Yes. Use the rune converter on this page for Elder Futhark or choose your own Viking pattern in the engraving option above the add to cart button. The broad flat of this blade suits a longer line than most pieces this size.

How long does shipping take?

Free inside the United States. One to two weeks in the shop, longer with engraving, then two to five days in transit.

What is in the box

• Amberoak hand forged 1095 high carbon steel tanto
• Brown leather wrapped wooden saya with brass throat
• Protective oil coat on the blade
• Care card covering steel, leather and wood
• Elder Futhark rune engraving where selected
• Forged and finished in Memphis, Tennessee

Explore the range

Browse the longer wakizashi, the full katana and Japanese sword range, the Damascus swords, or read the guides.