Kai cut Cleaver

I have been sharpening knives here steadily for the last couple of mo's. I took in the work knife that I did to see how well I could get a edge on it. My boss said he has some knives that need sharpening (Forschner). For a joke he threw in this 15lbs cleaver (my guess on the weight). I laughed at it and said I would do some work on it. After looking at it I saw a mark that said Japan really small. I hadn't looked at the makers mark at this time, I was thinking it was something that would be american made or even a Forschner. I went looking for the company and really couldn't find much. Anyone have a history lesson on this company?



I was thinking of just doing a handle soak in mineral oil for a day or two, then do a light board wax on the handle. The blade I was thinking of doing a soak in the same with a light sanding to take off any other rust still left. Wasn't sure if I should use the board wax on the blade, I haven't found any problems with it in my thinking so far. Any suggestions would be very help full.

Kai is the parent company of Kershaw, I believe. They make Shun and a bunch of other brands.


About KAI Group
KAI, the history of cutlery.

KAI is a company that currently manufactures, sells, exports and imports more than 10,000 different kinds of cutlery and cutting tools, ranging from kitchen utensils to cosmetic accessories and surgical implements.
KAI started in 1908 as a small pocket-knife factory in the city of Seki, which is known in Japan as the City of Good Swordsmen.
Even though the company has become large, one principle, nokaji (blacksmith)'s spirit, has been consistently upheld by KAI. "The nokaji strives to make blades that are suited to the daily lives of people by bringing to bear on the task all his craftsmanship and all his heart."
KAI is to find an answer to the question: "how can we bring the spirit of the nokaji into the 21st century?"

head office


kai corporation

Head Office Address


3-9-5 Iwamoto-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-8586, Japan

Founded


1908

President & CEO


Koji Endo

Business Description


Marketing of cutlery, kitchen utensils, beauty care products, confectionery utensils, etc.

Registered Capital


450 million yen

Number of Employees


2,615(March 2010, consolidated basis)

Sales


41.3 billion yen (March 2008, consolidated basis)
Timeline
1908

Saijiro Endo set up business in the city of Seki
1920

Established Joint-Stock Company Endo Hamono Seisakujo to produce pocketknives
1932

Established Seki Anzen Kamisori Seizo Joint-Stock Company and began production of the first replaceable blade razor in Japan.
1936

Dissolved Seki Safety Razor Seizo Joint-Stock Company to establish Nihon Safety Razor Co., Ltd.
1940

Changed corporate name from Nihon Safety Razor Co., Ltd. to Nihon Anzen Kamisori Co., Ltd.
1947

Saijiro Endo II established Feather Shokai Co. Ltd. in Nagoya and started wholesaling razors and cutlery.
1949

Established Joint-Stock Company Sanwa Shokai in Tokyo.
1951

Established Sanwa Blade Manufacturing, Ltd. and started production of Kai-branded lightweight, convenient long-bladed razors
1954

Merged Feather Shokai and Sanwa Shokai to establish Sanwa Co. Ltd.
1956

Set up a trade division inside the company to export cutlery
1967

Changed corporate name from Sanwa Co. Ltd. to Sanwa Hamono Kogyo Co. Ltd.
1968

Built the Oyana Factory
1971

Established Endo Hamono Seisakujyo and started production of kitchen knives.
1973

Started production of scissors at Sanwa Hamono Kogyo Co. Ltd.
1977

Established kai cutlery U.S.A. ltd. in Portland, Oregon
1978

Established kai cutlery (H.K.) ltd.
1980

Established kai cutlery (Europe) GmbH in Solingen, Germany.
1982

Changed corporate name from Sanwa Hamono Kogyo Co. Ltd. to Kaijirushi Hamono Co. Ltd.
1984

Started production of scalpels.
1988

Introduced a new identity to relaunch the new Kaijirushi Group
1990

Launched K-II, a blade-replaceable dispo-razor
1992

Consolidated 6 manufacturing companies and changed the corporate name to Kai Industries Co., Ltd.
1993

Established Mi Kai Housewares Co., Ltd. (joint venture) in Guangdong, China and started operations
1995

Established G.T.I. Cutlery Co. Ltd. (joint venture) in Guangdong, China and started operations
1996

Started locally-based production of Kai USA pocketknives


Shanghai Kai Cutlery Co., Ltd, the Asian production hub for razors and beauty products, goes into full-scale operation.
1998

Launched K-3, the world’s first replaceable 3-blade razor
1999

Launched Lady K-3, the world’s first replaceable 3-blade razor for women
2000

Aligned all development divisions into the Kai Cutlery Development Center Co., Ltd. to leverage operations.
2004

Renewed the overall corporate message, corporate mission, code of conduct and corporate philosophy of the Kaijirushi Group


Launched K-4 TETRA, a replaceable 4-blade razor


Remodeled the first and second floors of theTokyo Head office and opened “Kai House”
2005

Launched Michel Bras kitchen knife line-up (co-development with Michelin’s 3-star chef) in Europe and the United States.


Established KAI vietnam co.,ltd. in Hanoi City, Vietnam
2006

Acquired all stocks for Universal Razor Industries (razor / beauty care product joint venture company in the US) and made it a subsidiary
2007

Established Kaijirushi Korea Co. Ltd. in Korea.
2008

100th anniversary


Established KAI R&D (Guangzhou) co.,ltd. in Guangdong, China


Established Lampas Inc.

long winded, but here you go.

lol ty. Cool to know, it was beating me up.