Tanto Knives

The tanto is the Japanese short blade, historically a single-edged knife of under 30 cm carried alongside the katana and wakizashi. The tanto knife most people picture today is a different object: an American reinterpretation from the 1980s with an angular chisel-style point, where a second bevel meets the main edge at a hard corner instead of a swept curve. That point is the appeal. It leaves a great deal of steel behind the tip, and it looks like nothing else on a knife wall.

Our tanto knives are hand forged in pattern-welded Damascus steel with the American-style angular point, in 12, 15 and 19 inch lengths. Steel, handle material and dimensions are listed on each product page.

Choosing a tanto knife

Length

The 12 inch tanto is a belt-knife scale blade. The 15 inch is a large fixed blade in the Bowie tradition. The 19 inch tanto is closer to a short sword than a knife, and it is the one to choose if you want the profile at display scale.

Steel

All three are pattern-welded Damascus, forged from 1095 high carbon and 15N20 nickel steel and etched so the layers show through the full thickness of the blade. No two patterns repeat. Damascus is high carbon steel and wants to be kept clean, dry and lightly oiled.

Point

A traditional Japanese tanto has a gently curved tip in line with the spine. The American tanto point is angular, with a distinct secondary edge meeting the main edge at a corner. Ours are the American pattern, which is what the term tanto knife usually means in the United States.

For full-length Japanese blades, see the Japanese swords collection. The rest of the large fixed-blade family is in Bowie knives, and the katana, wakizashi and tanto guide explains where the tanto sat among the samurai's three blades.

Frequently asked questions

What is a tanto knife?
Historically, a Japanese single-edged knife under about 30 cm. In modern use, a fixed-blade knife with an angular chisel-style point, a design that appeared in the United States in the 1980s.

What is the difference between a tanto knife and a tanto point?
The tanto point is the angular tip geometry, and it appears on folding knives and other blades as well. A tanto knife is a fixed blade built around that point.

Why the angular point?
The corner leaves more steel behind the tip than a drop or clip point of the same length, which is why the profile has stayed popular since it appeared.

Are these sharpened?
Each listing states how that piece is finished. The steel is hardened either way.

Can a tanto knife be engraved?
Yes. Blade and sheath engraving are done in our Illinois workshop. See the engraving options on each listing.