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Thread: Tokyo - where to purchase good chisels and knives

  1. #16
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    Apr 2019
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    Madison, Wisconsin
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    Buying on price, I’d suggest the following selection criteria for tools (I know very little about Japanese knives, though I would speculate that the same principles likely apply):

    1. Plain rather than decorative tools; the artistic finishes can add a lot to cost without making a tool any better from a functional standpoint. Tools that look unremarkable but cost more are more likely to be excellent quality from a standpoint of being able to take and hold an extremely sharp edge while being easy to sharpen and from a standpoint of avoiding any tendency to chip in use. The reasoning is that a smith can only command a higher price for a plain-looking tool if the quality will support the price; otherwise, customers will go elsewhere.

    2. Hitachi White Paper steel #1 or #2, or Swedish steel. There are other options, but these appear to be the best for price/quality ratio.

    According to what I have read, tamahagane (“sword steel”) can also be excellent and rival the Hitachi white steel, but the price for a particular quality level is higher. I have no personal experience with tamahagane, however, nor have I pursued any purchase of tamahagane chisels.

    Blue steel, according to knowledgeable people with a great deal of experience (Stan Covington is one example), neither takes nor holds its edge as well as white, and is more effort to sharpen thanks to abrasion resistance from the chromium and tungsten carbides—doesn’t sound like my kind of chisel, so I never purchased any. I therefore have no personal experience with Hitachi blue steel, but I do very much like the white #1 and #2.

    I put excellent-quality #1 slightly ahead of excellent-quality #2 based on my seven white #1 chisels purchased from Stan Covington, my three Koyamaichi white #2 chisels, and my one Iyoroi white #2 chisel. Clearly a limited sample size, so take that as you will.

    From what I have read, the “Swedish steel” Japanese chisels are very similar metallurgically and performance-wise to Hitachi white, but again no personal experience.

    I also have no experience with any “special alloy” chisels, nor do I have any knowledge of what the steel composition or in-use characteristics might be. I also have no knowledge about the price/quality ratio.

    Unless you’re doing rough work that includes abrasives in the wood and possible nails, I’d also suggest avoiding the high speed steel chisels; again, no personal experience, but knowledgeable people with experience using such chisels seem to agree that they take quite a bit of extra effort to sharpen and don’t get as sharp (but will take abuse better, such as cutting through nails without taking major damage).

    I hope this helps.

  2. #17
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    Apr 2019
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rafael Herrera View Post
    (snip)

    P. S. Stan Covington retired from tool dealing years ago.
    Are you sure? He has recently posted blog entries about new tools available, and his price list for hantatakinomi (for example) was last updated in April of this year. That doesn’t look like the behavior of someone no longer selling tools.

  3. #18
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    Aug 2019
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    Quote Originally Posted by Michael Bulatowicz View Post
    Are you sure?
    I recall seeing a post on his website about shutting down his business. Perhaps I'm confusing him with another dealer in Japan that closed his business. I'll amend my post.

  4. #19
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    Apr 2019
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    You might be thinking of Stu Tierny (sp?), proprietor of Tools from Japan. He did indeed stop selling tools years ago.

  5. #20
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    That's the guy I was thinking about. Thank you.

  6. #21
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    Jun 2008
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    So Cal
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    I have bought my Japanese chisels one and two at a time over the years. I’m fairly confident I won’t need to buy anymore
    im also sure I cannot afford to.
    I would like to share my experience with Japanese chisels. It’s not just the type of steel thats important. The shape of the back or work that’s needed to get the chisel ready to work.
    Ive bought several that took a lot of work in the back and lost a lot of the hollow or the hard steel. But they were cheap.
    Dont see much of a difference between white or blue steel.
    The main difference is bevel be right angle for the wood. As in hard wood or soft fibers.
    Here a pic of good chisel that holds a edge and took very little work on the back. Full hollow.
    My favorite mortise chisel.
    Aj

  7. #22
    Tokyu Hands is a great store to visit and browse, but keep in mind it is an "everything" type store so if high quality artisan tools is what you seek, it's not the right place but still worth a visit.

    Hamono Inoue is a very good little store, and Mr. Inoue is a very nice man. It's a bit out of the way, a short walk from a subway station called Kikukawa. In case your wife is a coffee aficionado, there's a coffee shop next to the station that makes smoked coffee which was something new to me.

    But all this said, I think you would be best served by contacting Stan Covington. His relationships are direct with the blacksmiths, and he will do his best to match your goals and budget with the right tools. The artisan tool market even in Tokyo is not very accessible or apparent. It seems to be a relationship network that ultimately leads back to the blacksmiths in two different toolmaking towns well outside Tokyo. Now that Stu Tierney is unavailable, Stan is your most practical way into that network.

    Regarding kitchen knives, I have been very impressed with the Japanese Shun knives that are available in the US. Williams Sonoma has their own signature line of Shun and the regular Shun line is available from lots of retailers both online and brick/mortar. I sharpen mine on a Tormek and they hold a razor sharp edge for what seems like forever. For a step up, there is a place called Korin in NYC with a good online presence that you can check out also.
    But if your wife is interested in an experience, there is a street in Tokyo called Kappabashi street, and it is lined with kitchen supply stores. Some of them deal in knives with glass cases and guys at the counter that have probably forgotten more about kitchen knives than I will ever know. Language could be a barrier, but if you were truly after something special, that's where you'd find it. Kappabashi is a short walk from Asukusa which is a major tourist site and temple complex, which may be somewhere she might be going anyway.
    Last edited by Edwin Santos; 07-30-2022 at 4:47 PM.

  8. #23
    Join Date
    Mar 2016
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    Tokyo, Japan
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    885
    Quote Originally Posted by Andrew Hughes View Post
    I have bought my Japanese chisels one and two at a time over the years. I’m fairly confident I won’t need to buy anymore
    im also sure I cannot afford to.
    I would like to share my experience with Japanese chisels. It’s not just the type of steel thats important. The shape of the back or work that’s needed to get the chisel ready to work.
    Ive bought several that took a lot of work in the back and lost a lot of the hollow or the hard steel. But they were cheap.
    Dont see much of a difference between white or blue steel.
    The main difference is bevel be right angle for the wood. As in hard wood or soft fibers.
    Here a pic of good chisel that holds a edge and took very little work on the back. Full hollow.
    My favorite mortise chisel.

    Beautiful chisel.

    I agree, cheap Japanese chisels often need a lot of work to get the backs flat, and you wind up removing a lot of the hollow. Some are better than others.

    That's a common issue with any cheap chisel, of course -- it's just more of an issue with Japanese chisels considering the super hard laminated steel on the back.

  9. #24
    Join Date
    Feb 2010
    Location
    Nolensville, Tennessee
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    42
    I was in Tsubame Sanjo about 20 years ago, and it is a town known for cutlery and woodworking chisels. I saw some unbelievable tools at a shop my Japanese host took me to visit. It is a couple of hours trip from Tokyo on the Shinkanen. Maybe a nice day trip for you.

  10. #25
    Join Date
    May 2005
    Location
    So Cal
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    866
    Thank you for all the suggestions. My wife will be going to Kappabashi street this weekend to look for knives. We will see how that goes...

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