Yoake means daybreak — the moment the dark edge of night gives way to the first pale band of light. It is the perfect name for a blade defined by its hamon: the wavering temper line that runs the length of the steel like a horizon at first light. This tanto is the entry collection’s most authentically forged companion blade.
The 33 cm blade is forged from T10 tool steel — a high-carbon tungsten alloy prized for its hardness and its willingness to take a true differential temper. Through clay tempering, the spine is insulated and the edge left bare before the quench, so the two cool at different rates. The result is a hard cutting edge backed by a tougher, more flexible spine, and the visible hamon born in that quench — not etched on, but earned in the fire.
Forging & Steel
T10 is a step up from plain carbon steel: the added tungsten lifts wear resistance and edge retention, which is why it is a favourite for functional tanto and katana alike. The misty, undulating hamon is the honest signature of differential hardening, and on a blade this short it sits right under the eye where it can be admired.
Fittings & Mounting
The mounting matches the blade’s seriousness: copper-and-brass tsuba bindings, a copper-brass alloy menuki set, a lacquered ebony saya with a bull-horn kurigata, and a tsuka wrapped in genuine shagreen leather. A bamboo mekugi pins the blade in the traditional way.
Specifications
| Blade steel | T10 steel with hamon |
|---|---|
| Tsuba | Copper and brass bindings |
| Saya | Lacquered ebony wood with bull-horn kurigata |
| Tsuka | Genuine shagreen leather |
| Menuki | Copper and brass alloy menuki set |
| Mekugi | Bamboo |
Dimensions
| Total length | 55 cm |
|---|---|
| Blade length | 33 cm |
| Handle length | 17 cm |
| Blade width | 3.2 cm |
| Blade thickness | 0.7 cm |
| Weight | 0.8 kg |
Is it battle-ready?
The clay-tempered T10 blade is a genuine differentially hardened cutter, so the Yoake reads as a functional tanto as much as a display piece. Treat it with respect: a 0.7 cm thick spine and a hardened edge are made to perform, not just to sit on the shelf. For a manganese-steel display companion instead, see the Tanto Ryūjin; to match it with a full-length blade, pair it with the entry Katana Fuyu.
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