Bonika Japanese Damascus Steel Shoto Shears

Featuring V10 Japanese Damascus steel and exquisite craftsmanship, the Bonika Shoto Shear is definitely a treasure worth possessing. Created in the ancient Samurai sword tradition or layer or laminated steel, only the Bonika Shoto will be capable of great things in your hands. These shears work so smoothly that each snip and cut will prove to be effortless, thanks to the perfectly matched blades. By feel alone, you will be able to create wondrous results even with your eyes closed! Each shear features a personal pattern to make it unique and special, you can observe this when observing the layered steel blades in the light. Make sure to use a sharpener with excellent training and high quality equipment in order to bring out the potential of Damascus steel.

In the past there was a dilemma on how to create a hard blade yet give it flex so that the blade would not break when dropped like a ceramic blade shear. By using a layering structure with selective hardening a superior metal can be created. This steel is called Damascus steel or Tajyusou in Japan. The Japanese version of Damascus steel is far superior to the Damascus steel found in European countries. Japanese bladesmiths trained through the generations by their fathers, create this steel through a layering or laminate technique. The modern V10 top quality Japanese steel used consists of a high carbon content, vanadium, cobalt, chromium, and molybdenum. This steel is folded on itself 15 times which creates more than 5,000 layers of steel. This increases the strength of the blade without giving up flexibility. It is this flex that gives the buttery cut feeling when the blades cross. The blade of the shears will have a unique fine wood grain type pattern much as a finely polished hardwood tabletop. This is a complicated method. There is actually a different steel at the core than at the edge giving properties to your shears that can not be created in any other way.

On the outside of the cutting edge you will see a misty line. This is not a bevel, since the blade is completely convex or hamuguri style. This is a “tempering line” also called the hamon line. This is created to form a hard sharp edge without increasing the brittleness of the entire blade. Once the steel is formed, a master bladesmith called a Sensei creates the shear. The shear is totally handworked to an ultimate level of perfection. This process will take 5 days before the shear is ready for the hand of a master stylist.

How does this shear cut different than other quality shears? It is in primarily in the feel. If you close the blade of your best shears with your eyes shut, you can at any point see in your mind exactly where the blades cross. These shears are so smooth and effortless that if you tried this experiment, you would not be able to tell how far apart the blades are open or closed without visibly looking at them. In other words, the blades ride on each other perfectly matched and smooth. The Damascus steel or Tajyusou pattern is subtle and your shear will appear as other shears except on close examination in the light when the beautiful pattern of the layered steel is revealed. Each shear has its own personal pattern, much as a fingerprint.

These shears can be sharpened, when needed in the ordinary way, but be sure to use a sharpener who has the top equipment and training and understands the demands of sharpening Damascus steel.

Because of the time consuming process, the Bonika Shoto Shears have a limited production. Each will be consecutively numbered for the collector and for insurance purposes.