Japan-tool.com....reliable?

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StonedEdge

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Lurking the web today I can across this website japan-tool.com has anyone dealt with them in the past? Is it legit?

Thanks in advance!
 
Yep it's run by So Yamashita, he is based in Australia but a lot of his items ship direct from his father in Japan.
I have bought multiple Shigs & Heijis from him and he also organised some bowls to be made for me.
I haven't bought any natural stones from him.
I've heard he can be slow in replying to emails but he is always prompt with me.
 
Definitely - a wonderful vendor. He'll spend hours on emails making sure you get the thing you really need. Sometimes a bit slow to respond, or ship or email, but he's a solo operator and gets inundated with emails because of his knowledge of stones, so its worth waiting for him. I bought a Kato from him and a lot of woodworking tools.
 
So-san is a great guy; very knowledgeable and helpful, especially when it comes to polishing/sharpening. He has been almost totally responsible for my rapid advances with natural stones and has made me appreciate how synthetics and JNats both have a place in a good sequence.
He gets very busy and can go months without answering an email, but his shipping is prompt and his products are always as promised.
Tom
 
I ordered an item from japan-tool 2 weeks ago which was in stock. Still hasn't been shipped and there's no reply to any of my inquiries. It's time to escalate it with paypal and get my money back.
 
Yeah - his website even says if you need it in a hurry you should try somewhere else.
 
It also says it usually takes no longer than a week to ship. I just don't get it. The chisel was in stock and I paid for it. Put it in a thick envelope and get it to the post office. Done.
 
I have only good things to say about Yamashita-san. His jnats are first grade and he is very knowledgeable and polite. Great seller and an amazing person. If you can wait, he will not disappoint.
 
Ive waited months on So before, but only cuz ive dealt with him in the past, but if you can wait he will make it up to you for sure. All of his stones and tools are too notch.
 
When someone says Kikuhiromaru, Kiyohisa and Funahiro are better than Kiyotada chisels or that Konobu chisels have a better finish than Ichihiro I can't really take them seriously. Especially the part about Funatsu and his self serving stress test makes me laugh.
 
Same as my ordeal with 330mate and the tanaka petty. I paid for it, asked for two months with no reply, no tracking number, no clue. One day, it just showed up! Read the shipping label, it actually spent a over two months in transit from japan. Paypal now allows 180days to resolve, so probably waiting a few more weeksnmight be a good idea
 
I just think this is not how you do business when you have a web store. Either commit to it and make time to answer questions or don't and stop bullshitting around. Leaving people completely in the dark is very rude.
 
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