Tanto Blade?

Joined
Jul 26, 2000
Messages
31
Just trying to learn a little.

I know the shape, but what is that design used for? Why that shape?

Thanks.
 
While I am sure others here can elaborate (Ryu?), the Tanto point became famous among warriors from the East in years past, designed as an armour piercing point for long and short swords...

As graceful slicing and chopping is concerned, the Tanto does not work well.

Today, the Tanto point is equally matched and beaten in performance by modifed drop and clip point designs from Busse, as well as other makers.

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Good points here Andy,

The tanto was the original Armour piercing design. But they don't make very functional knives unless they are made well. The plus side on a tanto is that it was one of the few designs where the spine of the blade could stay at is utmost thickness right up to the end making for a stronger blade and point. With modern materials and tools it's not a problem to make both a sharp and strong point on any blade design. The Samurai used their tantos for Daily chore knives, not to do battle. Now of course if that's all the good samurai had he would do what he had to. But mainly they were tools. So they didn't have to be very tactical as they weren't meant for combat. The samurai carried their Katanas which were elegant weapons and probably the most graceful yet leathal design to date. It combined a stong blade that could flex with an edge and point that would go through just about anything. But those weapons were also 30 inches in length and that kind of cutting power can be harnessed in such a long curve. However they lose functionality when shortened to the 7" and under category. Once a tanto gets to this point one has to become very comfortable with their weapon before he or she can use it with deadly force. Shorter tantos tend to cut in a swing or slice right at the point where the blade stops and the point begins. Leaving you with only an inch or so cutting space. This is because that is the part of the blade which is the most exposed on a swing. This is why it takes time and practice to get to know a Tanto before it's very deadly. But once you learn the fit and feel of your tanto then I would suggest to others that they stay away. Where it lacks in (RAW) performance from just the plain ability of the knife. In the hands of it's long time owner who has grown comfortable with that knife and knows its sweet spots the Tanto can be most offensive as it has a slimmer blade in profile and enough belly that can be made to work. Hope this helped.

Ryu

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