[Tobisho] Hirei Pruning Shears 165mm (6.5") [TBS011501]

Features of Hirei Pruning Shears 165mm (6.5")

• The latest product released in November 2023.
• Pruners Hirei is created using Tobisho's experience to date.
• Although the total length is 165 mm, these pruning shears are suitable for all people regardless of their physique.
• You can prune as if you were pinching it with your fingers.
• These pruning shears have high cutting ability and are lightweight, making them less tiring.
• This means it's perfect for orchard farmers, wineries, and professional gardeners who prune a lot of branches.
• You can do a lot of work with just one tool.

About Pruners Hirei

The development came about when a peach orchard farmer told Tobisho that he wanted a hand pruner that could cut thin and hard branches smoothly.

The motif was a pair of pruning shears called the "pistol type" developed in the Akita area of Japan. Hisui and Hirei are based on this shape and incorporate Tobisho's experience.

The biggest feature of these hand pruners are that they are less tiring. The feeling when pruning has already been described as ``like cutting butter.'' Its characteristics are due to the thin, sharp, mirror-finished blade. In addition, the overall shape and handle shape have been redesigned many times with the overall balance in mind. The difference in pruning may be small for a single pruning operation, but if you prun for a long time, the difference in fatigue becomes obvious. These pruning shears are especially recommended for professionals who are concerned about tendonitis.

About Tobisho: Four Generations of Pruning Shear Hand-Forging

Tobisho has been forging blades in Yamagata since 1804, ten generations of blacksmiths, four of them dedicated to pruning shears. It was Syojiro Tobitsuka, the seventh-generation bladesmith in his family line, who founded Tobisho as a pruning shear forge in 1930, making him the first of four generations dedicated to shears.

Syojiro's shears served both the silkworm farmers already working the region and the orchardists who followed as Yamagata became one of Japan's great fruit-growing prefectures. The tools had to work. His name is still stamped on every Karikomi Shear Tobisho makes.

Generation by generation, the shears got better. What Tobisho is known for today, their heat treatment, their distinctive surface finish, is accumulated experience, made visible.

The late master Yasuhito Tobitsuka, third generation, developed the SR, the Hiryu, and the Asuka, and redesigned the A-type's handle. Daiki Tobitsuka, the fourth-generation master working at the forge today, has added the Hisui, the Hirei, and a Damascus steel A-type. His philosophy: "Cutting well is the baseline. Beyond that: simple and sturdy.", 質実剛健

Video: Forging the Tobisho Pruner Handle

Video: Sharpening the Blade

Notes on use

IMPORTANT: This shear is made of High-Carbon Alloy Steel (Not Stainless Steel). It is exceptionally sharp but prone to rust if not maintained.
Do not twist or lever the blade during a cut.
Handle with care, blade-first drops risk chipping.
For one-handed use only. Right hand.
Designed for branches up to the thickness of a little finger. Use a saw beyond that.
Oil and clean regularly to prevent rust and blade separation.
Do not use on wire, rope, or any non-plant material.
Keep out of reach of children.