A Tale of Two Kotanto
An interesting opportunity to study the details and differences with two very similar kotanto in the same place at one time. The materials and construction are almost identical other than the blade steel and profile and a slight colour variation. The lighter coloured one was made from file steel and the darker one from 1965…
Rover Mountain Kotanto
The first completed Rover kotanto, a charcoal-forged 1965 Series 2a Land Rover leaf spring steel blade, water quenched with clay and sharpened with waterstones, an outdoor knife that has the foundation of the Japanese sword but is finished in the simple and humble style of farming and foresting tools of centuries ago. Satoyama are the…
Rover Mountain Survival
The core of this project is a charcoal-forged 1965 Series 2a Land Rover leaf spring steel blade, water quenched with clay and sharpened with waterstones, a historical western style outdoor knife that has the foundation of the Japanese sword but is finished in the simple and humble aspect of farming and foresting tools of centuries…
Rover Mountain Skinner
The core of this project is a charcoal-forged 1965 Series 2a Land Rover leaf spring steel blade, water quenched with clay and sharpened with waterstones, a historical western style outdoor knife that has the foundation of the Japanese sword but is finished in the simple and humble aspect of farming and foresting tools of centuries…
Rover Ken Nata
The inaugural-forged rover blade, charcoal-forged by hand from 1965 Series 2a Land Rover leaf spring steel, water quenched with clay and sharpened with waterstones, an outdoor knife that has the foundation of the Japanese sword but is finished in the simple and humble aspect of farming and foresting tools of centuries ago. Satoyama are the…
Testing Land Rover Steel
A project initiated many years ago which has finally come to fruition. A part of the Islandrovers Adventure Co. project, this is the first kotanto forged from rover steel, 1965 Series 2a Land Rover leaf spring steel, to be specific. This blade was crafted as a test of the forging and hardening properties of the…
Forging Adventure
One of the current projects at the Parksville Museum forge involves hand crafting knives from series Land Rover leaf springs––a tool for adventure made from a vehicle for adventure! Series spring steel has not changed spec since the first run in 1948 and even today replacements are made with the same composition. The projects shown…