Shigeki Tanaka is a renowned Japanese knifemaker. He is the son of Kazuyuki Tanaka, who passed away in 2012 after an illness. Shigeki has been rigorously trained since childhood, and after his father's death, he leads the factory and determines the future design of Tanaka knives. All knives are entirely handmade and very exclusive. Through our unique collaboration with Tanaka, we have had the opportunity to visit the factory multiple times. There, one witnesses spectacular craftsmanship entirely in accordance with ancient traditions. The factory is very small and unassuming, located in Miki City, outside the city of Kobe in Japan. To find it, we were guided along a secluded gravel road far from the bustling city pulse. In a way, it felt as if we had gone back in time a couple of hundred years.
In Tanaka's factory, they rely entirely on knowledge and intuition, and there is a complete absence of high-tech machinery. The only machine in the factory is actually a power hammer that strikes repeatedly in the same spot. It facilitates an otherwise very strenuous manual labor, although manual work with a sledgehammer and tongs is constantly used. One notices that there is great pride in the work performed. Every step is meticulously evaluated, and production never proceeds until Tanaka is completely satisfied with the result. For the R2 Custom knife series, the maximum production capacity is only 5 units per day, so it is easy to understand that availability is severely limited.