"KATABA" SAW - HISHIKA - OUTINOMI x MAGASIN VIVANT!

The Kataba is the "all-terrain" saw of the workshop, the most versatile of Japanese saws. Made in Miki by the Hishika manufacture, it represents excellence in Japanese-style cutting. Unlike industrial models, each blade is straightened by hand by master craftsmen to ensure absolute straightness and effortless gliding.

Its "Hard Impulse" tooth pattern offers a cutting edge that is three times more durable, capable of making cuts so clean that they require no sanding. Versatile and non-backed, it allows for deep and precise cuts in all types of wood, even the hardest ones. It is the reference tool for those seeking the perfection of the gesture and an impeccable surface finish.

The Kataba is a pull saw. Unlike Western saws, the effort is never made by pushing.

• Type: Kataba (universal non-backed saw).
• Blade length: 265 mm (versatile standard)
• Blade thickness: 0.6 mm
• Steel: Japanese carbon steel with impulse-hardened teeth.
• Handle: Traditional wood with rattan wrapping.
• Special feature: Interchangeable and hand-straightened blade.

The Manufacture: HISHIKA (Miki, Japan)

Established for over 120 years in Miki, the historical cradle of Japanese edge tool making, the Hishika company is one of the last strongholds of high-quality saws. Its reputation is built on a rare balance: the use of cutting-edge technology for tooth hardness, combined with an ancestral manual finish for blade flatness.

Exclusive OUTINOMI x MAGASIN VIVANT! collaboration:

Together with Outinomi, we select the best of Japanese craftsmanship and utilitarian design, tools that are as simple as they are intuitive to use for all basic work, while guaranteeing strictly professional quality.

This young company was founded in 2024 by Lucas Hoffalt, a "designer-craftsman" who graduated from the École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs. Outinomi represents a bridge between the last great Japanese blacksmiths and Western artisans.

Lucas offers tools with soul, often sourced from small traditional forges. His approach is distinguished by a highly specialized selection, ranging from new tools to rare "vintage" pieces (Showa era) that he refurbishes himself, sourced for their exceptional forging quality. He values Japanese carbon steel, which he considers vastly superior to modern mass-produced goods.

For Lucas, the tool is not just perceived as a utilitarian object, but as a piece of functional design endowed with its own aesthetics, texture, and poetry. It is this quest for beauty and excellence that naturally led him toward Japanese craftsmanship, one of the most demanding in the world.