r/japaneseknives

I’m hoping the Japanese sword and history community can help me with something that has turned into a much bigger research project than I ever expected.
I purchased a Japanese sword at the Brimfield Antique Show in Massachusetts. After extensive research and professional examination, the blade has now been identified as a late Koto-period sword. The blade has also been authenticated as belonging to the Miura family.
The accompanying shirasaya is inscribed with the owner’s name:
Miura Sōichi (三浦操一)
It also includes his address in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan.
Our original assumption was that the blade was Early Shintō, but the authentication determined it is considerably older.
Because of the Miura family association, this sword is now being researched as a possible candidate connected with the family of William Adams (Miura Anjin), although that specific connection has not been proven.
My goal is not to sell the sword.
I would like to contact descendants of the Miura family to let them know this blade has survived and to learn as much as possible about its history and provenance. If this was a family sword that disappeared decades ago, I’d like the family to know it still exists.
I’m looking for help with:
Identifying descendants of Miura Sōichi
Contacting members of the historical Miura family
Recommendations for Japanese historians or genealogists
Museums or organizations that may be able to assist
Anyone familiar with Miura family genealogy in Miyagi Prefecture
I have detailed photographs of the blade, tang, shirasaya inscription, and supporting documentation that I’m happy to share with serious researchers.
Any guidance would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

I bought a Higonokami from a chinese e-commerce site, the knife came with a yellow-gold box and is wrapped in a plastic sleeve.

The Discrepancies

The higonokami is steel of a warikomi construction and the steel is still relatively hard (scratch test against a victorinox) but the Chikiri came buffed and in a brushed satin finish. The biggest thing that alarmed me was the blade having the markings of the white paper steel but the official Nagao site not having a White paper steel knife with the same blade shape is the one I bought.

What do you guys think? fake or real

I’m interested in Japanese kitchen knives and just saw this. What would be the purpose of a knife being this thick? It’s as thick as a cleaver. Thanks for any info.

Hi all, I recently got this Santoku from a second hand seller, it is in pretty rough shape, I can’t seem to ID the maker from the stamp, but it looks partially hand stamped so maybe a well known forge? I want to restore it a little but don’t want to devalue it, many thanks!

The dog’s name is Poppy and she isn’t the Chicharones we are making.

Kisuke Manaka 210
Aogami #2
Chuka Bocho

1st time to use it so I can’t review the knife yet sorry. Feels hefty enough for the job though. We’ll see how it goes.

I decided to put an idea of ​​mine into practice: a handle made of dark rosewood with an angled copper spacer. Unfortunately, the wood grain almost completely disappeared after oiling; I’m hoping it will come back once it dries. I think the handle suits the Moritaka quite well—what do you all think?

The first thing you must understand is that searching for “Higonokami” is useless in trying to get an authentic model. And what does “authentic” mean in this context anyway? Lots of really great brands of Japanese knife makers manufacture a folded knife looking identical to the one we associate as “real”. The truth is Higonokami in Japan has become more a name for a category of knives, than it is a literal brand. It’s another name for a minimalist folder knife without a lock, and often having kanji on the handle. Simply that. It is like saying “switchblade”, a style of knife, not a specific maker. Or calling all sodas a Coke. Is Higonokami trademarked? Yes! But you will find once you embark on your path to buying a genuine Nago Kanekoma Factory made knife that buying one simply calling itself a Higonokami knife does not in any way mean its genuine to this specific maker. In fact, most of the times it isn’t, they’re knockoffs or even beautiful renditions of this style knife outnumber the actual ones! I should also note that there is no way you will get a genuine one on Ali Express for $10. There are only MAYBE a half dozen places on Amazon to get a real one, the rest comes from specific retailers. (I will list them.)

My point this far is to establish what it means when I say authentic, Higonokami, and the Nagao Kanekoma Factory. To put it simply, what we mean by authentic from here on out, is that it was made in the Nagao Kanekoma Factory, and ONLY there, by these specific artisans. If it came from elsewhere, it’s not authentic. Could it be a great knife? Sure! But it’s not what I’m going to write about. Here is the official companies website:

https://www.higonokami.jp/en/index.html

You will be able to read about their companies history. For knife enthusiasts or just people that like a bit of history (that’s me both) it is interesting, and also you can view their product line. Unfortunately, they do not sell their knives directly from their official site. That would be very simple indeed, but they do not. They instead ship their knives to distributors who in turn ship to retailers, from whence we may buy them.

One more thing needs to be noted before we move on. Another name that means the same company is Nagao Seisakusho, which (I believe) is simply another way of saying their company name, or rather, it’s the name of their company, while the Nagao Kanekoma Factory refers to the specific place, the ONLY location they have in which they manufacture. Sellers of these knives will often use these names interchangeably, and in fact, when you see a knife you are interested in labeled as “manufactured by Nagao Kanekoma Factory”, or you see Nagao Seisakusho, it’s a very good sign you are on the right track in locating a genuine one. It is NOT a full proof method though, just the most useful. I will discuss the other methods that used all together are the best way to find the genuine article.

There are basically 3 ways to insure you are getting an actual made in Nagao Kanekoma Factory Higonokami knife.

Your listing literally says Nagao Kanekoma Factory, or Nagao Seisakusho manufactured. Often times, it will come with a short blurb about the company itself, and their history. This is a great sign that when they are selling Higonokami knives they are from our OG makers. I have encountered only one site on the internet that seems to mix genuine models with knockoffs, which I think is rather not nice.

The Kanji stamped on the blade is accurate. If the kanji is missing, it is VERY unlikely to be authentic. The kanji will vary across models, but will always be there. Sometimes it will have four characters, sometimes 3. If there is no kanji, it is not an authentic model. The best way to understand the kanji symbols on the blade itself is to photograph them, and feed them into ChatGPT (hey, it’s useful for SOME stuff). The kanji is different on different models precisely because they are referred to what model and steel is being used on that blade. NOTE: This does NOT refer to the kanji on the handle! The kanji on the handle of Nagao Kanekoma Factory made knives will ALWAYS be the same. Once you get your first genuine knife, you can use it to compare to all others you get from then on.

Finally, the knife comes with the very popular and noteworthy Higonokami paper box. With its bright yellow border and deep blue center, it is unmissable. The vast majority of their product line is given in this box, only much higher end models with have different colored boxes or wooden ones. If your knife comes without this box, it’s a very good chance it is not genuine, such as if it just comes in a clear plastic sleeve or the knife is just placed in the padded envelope alone. Look for your box, demand it. Even better, only order knives that picture the box as included. That’s paramount.

Put these methods all together, and you will have the formula for always getting a genuine Nagao Kanekoma Factory product.

Now I will write about their steels. Generally, their product line goes (in terms of value) from least to greatest: SK Steel (which is triple layered), SK Steel Warikomi (triple layered laminated), to Blue Paper Steel (aka Aogami), to White Paper Steel (aka Shirogami), to VG10 (this label VG10 will be stamped onto the blade, with their companies kanji symbols on the other side).

Edit: It has been said listing these in terms of quality is a bit problematic or when it comes to putting VG10 after Aogami/Shirogami. What I will say, is that the steel has different qualities, in terms of its ability to maintain an edge, its brittleness. Etc. so think of this order as a general outline of cost instead of me literally stating VG10 is “better” than to others.

The Aogami and Shirogami usually start around $35 bucks and much higher. The VG10 usually start at $50 and go up from there, I’d say most will run you at least $85 or more. Finally there are a line of Damascus steel, and hand hammered high end pieces which will run you hundreds to get ahold of. Any listing you see will be labeled as either type of steel, if it’s not, and the price is suspiciously low, you are probably not getting a genuine Nagao Kanekoma Factory knife, or if it is genuine, it’s the baseline SK steel model (Zenkou). If you see a different type of steel listed as being used other then these, be extremely cautious.

Compare what you are buying with their product line, and if you see something being sold that isn’t listed in their product line, I wouldn’t buy it.

https://www.higonokami.jp/en/items.html

As an example of analyzing a listing, I’ll now link their basic No. 10 “classic” model which you can buy on Amazon. It’s the model that I would start with, and it’s pretty cheap. Plus it will give you a great idea if you want to continue purchasing their other products. It is made with SK steel.

https://www.amazon.com/Higo-Kami-10-Pocket-Seisakusho/dp/B00EU8MLQY/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?crid=13QNZR4BGSSZR&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.FftT_2qBLrWljQXvdx2tBD4sGUQGbf43x9v2pqI31Bi1j3lHaFZxigCL7V54lcVxG7q49BFnwxmKMb8ugGJdLkNGRpWtu_p1OPUh0HSh4vjlCAzRTFK-O6fteaCBRyHhCHSF_hNX2acnJXEVPmahuDHV4W-FC6TQPQOFhEt_Ipwud13BB3UuQXX3fwv0PRxQJauiPhPuUJ0TfXUzODBb_A.SAUlfXAlh4_zNFdAM6xcvDPbU0pfdwO699YIVDMRD6Q&dib_tag=se&keywords=higonokami&qid=1783234236&sprefix=higonokami%2Caps%2C150&sr=8-4

As you will see, this listing has all the hallmarks of a genuine Higonokami Nagao Kanekoma Factory Made Knife. It lists the name of the business, it shows you that you are receiving the legit box, and you see that the knife is stamped with the appropriate kanji. Personally my recommendation is that you go right to the Aogami, the Blue Paper Steel model No. 10, at your desired size. Why not? It’s essentially $35 for the SK steel one anyway!

Now I’ll note the sizing. This can get confusing. They offer sizes varying from TINY (aka ‘bean’) models at 15mm meant for keychains or as novelties, to the general small size of 75-85mm, medium/standard of 95-100mm, to their very largest (aka Tokudai, which means XL) which is 120mm. Note that oddly enough, they are measuring the actual handle here, and while the handle itself obviously reflects the size of the blade, it’s not exact. Plan on the blade being offset the handle measurement a bit, so don’t be surprised when the knife is a little smaller than you imagine when you first get it, (unless you order the Tokudai). I like having a collection of all examples, and display them smallest to Tokudai.

Now I’ll close with a list of some other retailers that seem to sell the genuine article. Please be sure to note I am not staking any claim on these being genuine (don’t come complaining to me if they aren’t), but rather they are some of the places that seem to list them the best and most promising looking ways.

https://hasuseizo.com/search?q=Higonokami

https://www.hocho-knife.com/nagao-kanekoma/

https://daitool.com/collections/kanekoma?srsltid=AfmBOopFFA4l9OA_mt5tlpyA5LLgudcvZVuvG9FEwZURWo3d7wAEXwWY

https://kakushin.ca/collections/higonokami

https://omakase-forest.com/collections/higonokami

The final one I will list with a disclaimer, they seem to sell generic non-Nagao Kanekoma Factory made knives, along with genuine ones. I believe (aside from the obvious price differences) that they seem to list certain models as “boxed” or not, potentially meaning that they come in the classic OG blue and yellow box. If so, they may indeed be real. Some of their offerings are not.

https://www.knifecountryusa.com/store/manufacturer/752/higonokami-knives.html

Thanks for reading, I hope you found it informative for the beginning collector of this brand. Remember, always look for ‘Nagao Kanekoma Factory’ in the listing. It’s the best term to use for googling authentic models. Happy collecting.

With my new signature handle

Love putting this one in my knife rotation, really enjoy this using this knife. Incredible handle, steel, and razor edge

Any ideas?

I brought this home from a swap meet. It is 210 mm or so. I google reverse image searched it and it appears to be a Masamoto, but beyond that, I have no idea. The blade is very thick. About 6.35mm. I appreciate the help.

I recently bought this knife from a Japanese surplus/Japanese secondhand store for around $20. I don't know much about it, but it felt really nice so I decided to use it for butchering pork for grilling.

After I finished, I left it in the kitchen for about an hour before washing it. Now it has these mixed brown and blue spots all over the blade. I'm guessing it's some kind of patina or maybe rust?

Is there a way to make it shiny silver again, or is this permanent? Any tips on what I should use to clean or polish it without damaging the knife?

Got this knife from my parents who bought it from japanesechefsknife many years ago. I really like it but just wonder if that pattern is fake.

Hi everyone, I received a chef's knife from Katto as a gift. I'm aware that they aren't thought of too highly on here but it was a gift and I'd like to make the most of it. The main complaints that I've seen are that it's overpriced and too thick (wedge shaped).

The knife is 3mm thick at the back. I'm no expert but I've been practicing sharpening with whetstones and watching a lot of videos on the topic. I was wondering if adding a second bevel, just below the decorative pattern, would be a good way to improve the knife? Any other suggestions are also welcome.

The blade is made of AUS-10 steel, which I'm aware isn't the best Japanese steel, but hopefully not terrible either. It's supposedly a well balanced knife too. I'm hoping I can turn this into something decent with some advice from you guys!

Edit: there's currently only one bevel on the knife, the image looks a little like there might be a second bevel but it's just a reflection

Decided to try out this Nakamura Hamono O-bocho 180mm, which is basically just a santoku with a generic name. I was interested to try something from Nakamura (Miyazaki) and I don't have a knife with this profile, so I added it to an Okubo gyuto order I made and it shipped while I wait for the gyuto. It's a thick rustic little guy that fits the knives I've been adding lately.

Sharp out of the box, it falls through most veggies so far. I haven't tested it too much yet, but will give it some work in the next week or so. Mostly bought it for my wife, who like a smaller profile in the bunka/santoku range. I'm not a huge fan of the type of handle it came with, so I swapped it out for another u/khoosyi handle I had on hand.

Rule #5

Blade steel: Aogami #1

Blade length: 180mm

Overall Length: 325mm

Blade height: 46mm

Blade spine: 3mm

Weight in hand: 128g

Hi everyone. I’m thinking about buying this Hatsukokoro as my first Japanese knife. I tend to start a new hobby by researching far too much before even enjoying said hobby. That’s where I find myself with Japanese knives. I’m an avid home cook. I’ve been using cheap German knives for a long time and I want to get started with Japanese. I figured I’d start with a Gyuto as I do a little bit of everything prep wise. Eventually I’d like a couple specialty knives since I break down a chicken once a week, break down large proteins once a month, prep some saahimi/nigiri here and there, etc. But again, for now I figured I’d start with a 240 Gyuto. I’ve been researching for the last week and can’t seem to catch a break in the ~$300 range of Gyutos. Every lead I follow from this forum and others ends in “out of stock” or recent price hikes/tax&import fee problems (I’m in the US). I almost bought a Shiro Kamo Shirogami but then realized how much flex the blade has and definitely don’t want that. I like the idea of knowing exactly who made/sharpened the knife but again, every lead I followed ended with no stock or a huge price tag. I’ve looked for Ashi, yoshimi, yoshikane, Shiro kamo, matsubara, anryu, mazaki, kochi, watanabe, and many others, all either out of stock, or price hiked since posts where I saw them recommended. Or I’d get close to pulling the trigger and then find a bunch of people online saying “not worth it” or “there are better options”. Anyways… finally found this Hatsukokoro and feel like I should just buy it and get started. I’m sure I’ll end up buying other knives down the line so I really just want to get to know Japanese steel, how to sharpen/care for the blade, how to use it properly, etc. Is this a good starting place considering all my ramblings above?
If anyone has recs I’ll take them! Any links would be great. I’m sure I’m missing something here so feel free to call me out.

A couple early preferences I’ll add would be:

1. On the spectrum between workhorse and laser, I guess somewhere middle, approaching laser would be nice. I love the geometry I’ve seen from yoshikane—thick spine at the bolster but good tapering and gradual thinning behind the edge. But I definitely don’t want an absolute laser—I don’t want much (if any) flex.

2. I don’t want stainless core. I’m still a little lost in all the different types of steel—white, blue, etc. Stainless cladding is fine. I’m ok with something I might need to work with/sharpen. But I am very inexperienced with sharpening. I have king whetstones that I’ve sharpened German steel with. I’d love a balance of edge retention and sharpness, but if I had to pick one I’d say I want a really sharp knife. Been using not very sharp knives forever. (Of course they’re sharp after I sharpen them, but I assume Japanese steel will be better).

3. Finish doesn’t matter too much to me other than I don’t like high shine. It would be preferable for food not to stick to the knife but again, finish is least important to me as long as it isn’t super high polish. But even that is negotiable.

4. As stated before, looking around the $300 mark and wanting actual value. I almost bought a Masakage Koishi but stopped myself because I read a lot of people saying it’s not worth it/better knives exist for less money. $400 is definitely the most I’ll spend for now.

5. 240mm is preferred as I have big hands and enough counter space for it. But not opposed to 210 if the geometry/price is right.

Again, let me know if I should just go for the Hatsukokoro and ignore all the other stuff for now. Thanks y’all!