Description
Design a custom kotanto blade mounted in the rustic satoyama kaiken style of your choice. More info: Design Your Own Custom Knife.
Variation shown: hammer finish blade, brass seppa, natural lacquered handle and scabbard, and bamboo mekugi. (read more info below)
Blade Finish
- tsuchime – hammer texture (as-forged surface shows marks of hammer and fire)
- kaji togi – stone finish (blade is smoothed with files and a coarse stone before hardening)
- togi – polished (blade is smoothed with fine stones after hardening)
Mekugi
- bamboo retaining peg (the classic)
- dark hardwood peg (black or brown wood like Walnut, Wenge)
- light hardwood peg (red or orange wood like Sapele, Yew, Oceanspray)
Lacquer Finish
- fukiurushi (smooth wiped-on layer, often in natural brown colour)
- ishimeji (stone-like texture created with urushi and crushed tea leaves)
- negoro (“worn-look” fukiurushi done with two colors)
- or some combination (including giving unlimited creative license to the maker)
Lacquer Colour
- natural (a red-brown colour when used for fukiurushi, a dark chocolate brown when used for ishimeji)
- black (shows some wood through with fukiurushi, very deep black with ishimeji)
- antique crimson (very deep red/brown with plum undertones)
- black and red (streaked “negoro” or texture fill, varies greatly)
- natural and black (streaked “negoro” or texture fill, more subtle)
- natural and red (streaked “negoro” or texture fill, more subtle)
- or some combination (including giving creative license to the maker)
Measurements
Nagasa (blade length): 50-80mm
Motokasane (blade thickness): 3-5mm
Motohaba (blade width): 18-22mm
Sori (curve): uchizori
Nakago (tang): 70-80mm
Tsuka (handle): 90-100mm
Koshirae (overall): 150-190mm
Potential Raw Materials
Blade: reclaimed file steel, reclaimed harrow tooth steel
Seppa (guard): forged copper washer, brass door plate, steel, or wrought iron
Handle and scabbard: Nootka Cypress, hemp or cotton cord wrap
Finish: natural urushi lacquer, crushed tea leaves
Mekugi (removable peg): Bamboo, hardwood