Where/when to buy Japanese knives

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Panzo721

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May 20, 2020
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Location
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Where do you guys shop for Japanese knives online?
When is a good time to buy (as in sales such as holidays or anniversaries)
thanks
 
There are occasionally sales but not necessarily at specific times. Around black friday, cyber monday you might find some sales. Knifewear e.g. has his Masakage sale in February. JNS had an April sale for a week, ...
USA:
JapaneseKnifeImports: in Beverly Hills, one of the best and Jon will advise you well, pretty much all quality stuff
Bernal Cutlery, CarbonKnifeCo, EpicEdge, CoutelierNola, Homebutcher, MtcKitchen all good
Korin: not the biggest selection but good and worth a visit if in NYC
Echefknife: Yoshihiro cutlery, you won't necessarily know who the blacksmith and sharpener are, also Beverly Hills
Chef Knives 2 Go: broad selection, not bad prices, lacking in quality control, (bad)/ not the best customer service if you have a problem, overpriced custom handled knives
 
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Canada:
Knifewear: will have a sale on Monday, check and compare prices though
SharpKnifeShop, Ai and Om, ToshoKnifearts all great
Europe:
Cleancut.eu: good selection, just sucks that you have to pay shipping even if you spend quite some money, even in EU
JapaneseNaturalStones (JNS): small but some unique knives
Meestersleijpers, Japan-Messer-Shop.de, Japanische-Kochmesser.ch
Japan:
Japanny, ChuboKnives, Japanesechefsknife
hitohira-japan.com: You will find their partner stoes on the website
Australia:
Knives and Stones: knivesandstones.com.au, they also have a US site but with less sortiment
 
I agree with the above. I have done some business with StrataPortland as well. I have known the owner Evan from this forum before he opened the shop. I know he has other fans on here.
Yeah forgot them, they now have a webshop, before you had to message them over IG. Friendly and nice stuff indeed. There are definitely others I forgot.
 
Depends on what you're buying that is if you're just looking for any Japanese knife the above suggestions will get you what you need but if you're after a highly priced knife you need to do a little searching. I agree that Jon at JKI is a great resource to determine what you need for the price.
 
Canada:
Knifewear: will have a sale on Monday, check and compare prices though
SharpKnifeShop, Ai and Om, ToshoKnifearts all great
Europe:
Cleancut.eu: good selection, just sucks that you have to pay shipping even if you spend quite some money, even in EU
JapaneseNaturalStones (JNS): small but some unique knives
Meestersleijpers, Japan-Messer-Shop.de, Japanische-Kochmesser.ch
Japan:
Japanny, ChuboKnives, Japanesechefsknife
hitohira-japan.com: You will find their partner stoes on the website
Australia:
Knives and Stones: knivesandstones.com.au, they also have a US site but with less sortiment
No wonder all good knives are sold out everywhere if we all share the same source . It used to be an art to find the shops and good deals. Call me selfish, but next time you wonder why your favorite knife is sold out remember this.
 
Adding onto, Knifewear also does a garage sale. And Bernal has a Vintage and Trade-in section that sometimes has some cool stuff or just good deals.
 
I was eying the last Konosuke Fujiyama Blue#1 on Tosho for like 2 months but didn't have the funds at the time, with the additional taxes. A new guy joined here, read the Konosuke history post and bought it like 2 weeks before I wanted to. Damn him:pullinghair:
But when I started it definitely took quite some time to find the retailers and would have been great to get tipps from others.
 
it's not easy...mostly in EU, i'm based in Italy, and a big problem it's tax and duty
But yes, agree with above me too, for the best shop around internet.
 
I agree with most comments above except the CK2G part. So far I’ve bought an Anryu, a Shibata, 2 Konosukes, a Kanehide and some Shapton/Atomas from them and I have had nothing but good experiences. The emails were always responded rather quickly no matter it is questions or requesting pictures. The only exchange I had was arranged professionally as well. The shipping was always super fast. I think as long as you know what you want, they are not a bad place to shop at at all. And I got some KN95 face masks from them at a more than reasonable price in April which I really appreciated.

The customized handles are indeed what I would not pay for though...
 
I agree with most comments above except the CK2G part. So far I’ve bought an Anryu, a Shibata, 2 Konosukes, a Kanehide and some Shapton/Atomas from them and I have had nothing but good experiences. The emails were always responded rather quickly no matter it is questions or requesting pictures. The only exchange I had was arranged professionally as well. The shipping was always super fast. I think as long as you know what you want, they are not a bad place to shop at at all. And I got some KN95 face masks from them at a more than reasonable price in April which I really appreciated.

The customized handles are indeed what I would not pay for though...
They are good about products other retailers carry. Things get hit or miss when it comes their own branded stuff.
 
Protooling in Australia. Can also buy direct from Watanabe, Takeda, TF and Will Newham in Tasmania. As well, some western producers will take custom orders.

just bought a knife from Evan at Strata. Can’t say enough good things.
 
No wonder all good knives are sold out everywhere if we all share the same source . It used to be an art to find the shops and good deals. Call me selfish, but next time you wonder why your favorite knife is sold out remember this.
i'll be sure to buy all the knives you want. lots of money burning in my pocket
 
Thanks a lot for all the replies. I’ve been checking out most of those sites in the first place. Just wasn’t sure which would be best. I’m not looking for any fancy collectible or super high end knife. Just a good sharp knife that will last for a long time.
 
Thanks a lot for all the replies. I’ve been checking out most of those sites in the first place. Just wasn’t sure which would be best. I’m not looking for any fancy collectible or super high end knife. Just a good sharp knife that will last for a long time.
Good luck sticking to your plan ;)
 
Strata has some beautiful knives !
Strata

P1013822_1800x1800.jpeg
 
Canada:
Knifewear: will have a sale on Monday, check and compare prices though
SharpKnifeShop, Ai and Om, ToshoKnifearts all great
Europe:
Cleancut.eu: good selection, just sucks that you have to pay shipping even if you spend quite some money, even in EU
JapaneseNaturalStones (JNS): small but some unique knives
Meestersleijpers, Japan-Messer-Shop.de, Japanische-Kochmesser.ch
Japan:
Japanny, ChuboKnives, Japanesechefsknife
hitohira-japan.com: You will find their partner stoes on the website
Australia:
Knives and Stones: knivesandstones.com.au, they also have a US site but with less sortiment

^For Australia I'd also recommend TheBladeRunner: thebladerunner.com.au, not a huge selection of knives ( pretty sure they're currently expanding their stock/ range) but most stuff is really well priced (esp TFs) plus Leigh is great to deal with.
- Also +1 for KnS James and his team are amazing
 
No wonder all good knives are sold out everywhere if we all share the same source . It used to be an art to find the shops and good deals. Call me selfish, but next time you wonder why your favorite knife is sold out remember this.
Well...I think Codered is right. If you think a little, you will agree he is. The number of blacksmiths is huge and they produce huge number of knives. Now try to imagine the HUGE number of buyers....MUCH more than the blacksmiths (if we talk baout hand-made knives). Now think agian about what Codered says...
 
Well...I think Codered is right. If you think a little, you will agree he is. The number of blacksmiths is huge and they produce huge number of knives. Now try to imagine the HUGE number of buyers....MUCH more than the blacksmiths (if we talk baout hand-made knives). Now think agian about what Codered says...
It's clear what he said, im sure everyone understands. It is selfish, though if you want something then buy it before you tell everyone its available. BTW, there is a Shigefusa nakiri at JNS available. I have one, so no need.
 
Well...I think Codered is right. If you think a little, you will agree he is. The number of blacksmiths is huge and they produce huge number of knives. Now try to imagine the HUGE number of buyers....MUCH more than the blacksmiths (if we talk baout hand-made knives). Now think agian about what Codered says...
Sorry, didn’t you ask a ton of questions about your TF, about rehandling, about prices, about who were good handle makers? I recall you were provided answers straight up.
Now think again about what you just said. Sharing goes two ways.
 
It's not like this is super secret classified info - a few simple Google searches and even someone new to the hobby will come across most of the popular shops.

What's the point of having a forum if we don't share info?
The next time @Codered @valdim need something, be sure not to share your top secret tips. Wouldn't want someone to know too much then go buying all the supply.
 
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