Attention: Japanese knife guys, I need help.

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DerHusker

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I have this Japanese knife that's been sitting in a drawer. I inherited this knife when my parents died 19 years ago. I believe they probably picked it up at a garage sale as they frequented them before they past. It's in horrible shape and needs a lot of work.

It has some markings in Japanese and only Japan in English.

Over all pic.

Close up.

Back side.

As you can see the tip is broken off and there are visible chips in the edge.

It's probably a cheapy but can anybody help me identify it?

Thanks in advance for any help.
 
Landarc may be your best bet... Or Buccs maybe. Looks like a petty maybe? It'd be fun to sharpen back up to usable condition. Sorry I can't help with the brand
 
Shagdog said:
Landarc may be your best bet... Or Buccs maybe. Looks like a petty maybe? It'd be fun to sharpen back up to usable condition. Sorry I can't help with the brand
Click to expand...
Thanks Matt. They were a few of who I was thinking about when I posted. I'm in the process of trying to restore it but was wanting to know more about it. Yes it's a petty but that all I know about it.
 
hum... I'm not an expert and, if you want, I can ask to my sensei next month, but the kanji looks more chinese than japanese to me...
maybe I'm wrong, he.
 
mbt said:
hum... I'm not an expert and, if you want, I can ask to my sensei next month, but the kanji looks more chinese than japanese to me...
maybe I'm wrong, he.
Click to expand...
Not saying you're wrong but it does have Japan stamped on it.
 
I would give the edge a good sharpening along the same dimensions as it had originally. I would not be very concerned about any rust and pitting on the flat sides... I would cherish and enjoy using it. I would think about them every time I used the knife.
 
mbt said:
hum... I'm not an expert and, if you want, I can ask to my sensei next month, but the kanji looks more chinese than japanese to me...
maybe I'm wrong, he.
Click to expand...

On a trip to Japan, I was told that the Japanese have two alphabets and that there is significant overlap with Chinese characters so it is probably a tough call.

The knife looks like a 4-5" petty made of carbon steel and sharpened on one side for right-handed use (more traditional). ref:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_cutlery


If you can get it sharpened by someone who knows what they are doing, you are likely to be surprised by how sharp it will be. Nice find and a great memento!

.
 
Looks like a cheap ordinary knife you can buy here at any department store. You can sharpen it with a fine wet stone. Those style of knives you only sharpen on one side. Yes that knife is for a right handed person or if you use your right hand to cut with.
I'll ask my wife when I get home to see what the name is stamped on the blade.
 
Can't help with the brand etc, but I would put the blade in coca cola for a couple of hours to get rid of the rust and to give a patina.
Make sure you rinse it properly with water afterwards.

Any which way: good luck :thumb:
 
COS said:
Looks like a cheap ordinary knife you can buy here at any department store. You can sharpen it with a fine wet stone. Those style of knives you only sharpen on one side. Yes that knife is for a right handed person or if you use your right hand to cut with.
I'll ask my wife when I get home to see what the name is stamped on the blade.
Click to expand...
I suspected it's a cheap knife. Still I'd like to know more about it. A brand name would be wonderful.

Thanks in advance.
 
Sorry, wife is in one of those moods. I leave in the morning for a business trip and won't get a crack at it again for a few days.
 
DerHusker said:
Not saying you're wrong but it does have Japan stamped on it.
Click to expand...

Ops... sorry! You are right !

jazzbert said:
On a trip to Japan, I was told that the Japanese have two alphabets and that there is significant overlap with Chinese characters so it is probably a tough call.
.
Click to expand...

Actually, as far as I know, Jap have three alphabets. Hiragana, Katakana and Kanji. The last one is very similar to the chinese
 
You can try getting ahold of Ken Schwartz. He's a very knowledgeable knife sharpener that specializes in Japanese cutlery, and Japanese waterstones. I know him from some knife forums, it looks like he doesn't have a business page yet, but he does have a FB page.

Good Lick! If you were closer I'd take care of fixing it up for you!
 
Looks interesting. I would take this knife to my sharpening pro and spend $20 and have him reset the edge, regrind the tip and put an razor hone on it. It could be a killer blade, it looks high carbon and they really can rock when done right.
 
DerHusker said:
Thanks. That would be appreciated.
Click to expand...

I spoke with my buddy this morning at work. He said his wife replied that the markings are a guys name (I take it's the makers name) in the region where the knife came from. She also said that it was a fisherman's knife, and was used for cutting up and scaling fish. He said she did some research on it and it's value is around $60 USD. He told me he would speak with her again and get the exact name and the region as well as Internet sites that she looked it up on. I won't see him again until Monday but I'll let you know what he says.
 
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