Tabata Blue #2 Bunka 165mm. This knife is handmade and hammer-forged by Tabata Hamono, a small blacksmith shop on Tanagashima Island, located south of Kagoshima Prefecture in Kyushu. It is made with stainless cladding for easy care and has a nice, kasumi finish. Chefknivestogo is proud to be the first dealer for this company in the USA. We hope you will find something interesting.
Blacksmith: Tabata Hamono
Brand Name: Tanegashima
Construction: San Mai, Hammer Forged
Location: Tanegashima, Japan
Edge Steel: Blue #2 (Aogami #2)
Cladding: Stainless Clad
Bevel: Double Bevel
Edge Grind: Even
Finish: Kasumi
Handle: Oak Urushi Octagonal
Ferrule: Black Pakkawood
Weight: 5.8 oz (166 g)
Edge Length: 173 mm
Total Length: 313 mm
Spine Thickness at Heel: 3.6 mm
Blade Height at Heel: 46.5 mm
Reviews
2 review(s) WRITE A REVIEW (Reviews are subject to approval) One serious workhorse Posted By: Jordan Ross
2 people found this review helpful
Been curious about Tabata knives since CKTG started carrying them. First impression, this is hands down a work horse. Good amount of weight to the knife but perfectly balanced with the handle. You don’t feel the weight but nimbleness of it. It balances right where my pinch grip is. The blade is stiff with a stiff spine. By no means is this a laser but it does go through product with ease.
The oak handle is gorgeous, I truly love the look and feel of oak. The black pakka wood ferrule is interesting as it looks like it has some glitter running through it. I’m definitely not complaining about that, it’s kind of charming. I did condition the wood on the handle when unboxing, it needed just a little bit.
Personally, I like my edge really thin, so I will end up thinning it down a bit. It comes with a decent secondary bevel and I prefer more of a micro bevel. That being said, the out of the box edge was superb. Shaving sharp, and sharp enough to glide through a paper towel. I think the perceived sharpness will be more noticeable when thinned. As well, food release is not bad, much better than I expected with such a workhorse thick blade.
There is some minor gapping where the handle is set so I sealed it a little tighter with some epoxy and activated charcoal. As well, the handle is set flush on the choil side going into the tang, but as you can see in the photos, there’s about 3-4mm of extra lift towards the spine. This has no impact on how it feels, if anything you get a little more board clearance.
There is some rounding on the choil. I’m going to round it a little more and polish it. The spine needs a bit of rounding and polishing so that’ll be in the works as well.
All in all, a comfy and sturdy work horse.
2 people found this review helpful
Been curious about Tabata knives since CKTG started carrying them. First impression, this is hands down a work horse. Good amount of weight to the knife but perfectly balanced with the handle. You don’t feel the weight but nimbleness of it. It balances right where my pinch grip is. The blade is stiff with a stiff spine. By no means is this a laser but it does go through product with ease.
The oak handle is gorgeous, I truly love the look and feel of oak. The black pakka wood ferrule is interesting as it looks like it has some glitter running through it. I’m definitely not complaining about that, it’s kind of charming. I did condition the wood on the handle when unboxing, it needed just a little bit.
Personally, I like my edge really thin, so I will end up thinning it down a bit. It comes with a decent secondary bevel and I prefer more of a micro bevel. That being said, the out of the box edge was superb. Shaving sharp, and sharp enough to glide through a paper towel. I think the perceived sharpness will be more noticeable when thinned. As well, food release is not bad, much better than I expected with such a workhorse thick blade.
There is some minor gapping where the handle is set so I sealed it a little tighter with some epoxy and activated charcoal. As well, the handle is set flush on the choil side going into the tang, but as you can see in the photos, there’s about 3-4mm of extra lift towards the spine. This has no impact on how it feels, if anything you get a little more board clearance.
There is some rounding on the choil. I’m going to round it a little more and polish it. The spine needs a bit of rounding and polishing so that’ll be in the works as well.
All in all, a comfy and sturdy work horse.
