Other shops have started to sell what looks like the articles presented here. But, make no mistake, an attractive price is never synonymous with QUALITY. The products that we offer you are the representatives of the best of traditional Japanese crafts. There are products that have a soul. These tools are manufactured using specific techniques to forging, rolling and stamping, and are also finished by hand. Those are products that mass production can not make. A blade edge with such a sharp, for your convenience and work efficiency, can not be obtained in industry. Here among other things, that the subtlety of human sensitivity makes the difference. If you take care of them, you will last all your life as a gardener !
Here is a description of how to make one of these tools. In reality, the process of making a secateur takes place over a hundred steps… We are going to be more succinct, while tempting to summarize the clearest and most accurate !
1° Cutting of material
Two servings of about 130mm are cut from a steel rod of φ15mm × 5m.
2° Rolling
On each portion, one end is heated and then rolled to create the future handles of the secateur.
3° Forging
The party at the other end and corresponding to the blades on each of the portions will be hot forged, in order to form a sort of a rough-shape.
4° Stamping of rolled parts
The flat portions corresponding to the prehension area will be stamped to become the handles.
5° Stamping of tips
Forged parts corresponding to the blades will be stamped with patterns, they will then be fired again in order to gain stability – spheroidization – then made to cool down gradually.
6° Grinding
Grinding of all areas to remove anything that could rub or be over and get a smooth set.
7° Grinding of blades
The blades are ground to obtain a similar shape to two halves of a shell, as if we look at a clam shell section.
8° Drilling and tapping
Execution of various drilling, threading, tapping for the location of the screw, the two springs…
9° Temporary screw for adjusting the cutting mechanism
The combining of the two blades, with the establishment of a temporary screw, is going to determine their size. So we are going to cut the outer edge of the cutting blade when necessary.
10° Marking
Drawing of the mark.
11° Correction of gaps
First adjustments of the cutting blade positioned on the side blade.
12° Browning
Depositing of a layer of black oxide on the handle so that it is less susceptible to rust.
13° Resistance and durability
To increase the hardness of the steel, we are going to heat it to 800° C in a special mixture and put it to cool down then in an oil bath. Then reheat it to 200° C.
14° Correction of gaps
New adjustments of the cutting blade positioned on the side blade, to correct the gaps. The process is repeated as many times as necessary.
15° Working of blades
The interior of the blades are going to be polished several times until a shiny develops.
16° Polishing
The outer portion of the blades are going to be polished several times to get a nice shiny.
17° Final screw
The final screw is put in place and tightened so as to open and close the secateur smoothly, without knocking, etc.
18° Last adjustments
The last ajustements are made in order to adapt to the needs of end customers.
19° Lubrication
The secateur is wiped with a clean cloth and then we apply a rust preventive.
20° Packaging
The blades are wrapped in a rust paper (a sort of Japanese kraft paper), the shears is slipped into a plastic bag in its size and everything is placed in a nice cardboard box.