Machida Tadashi

[ZethLent]

Here is the one that I saw in the store today. It was made in January of 2009 and is made from K990 steel. The store price is on the third picture. I picked it up and handled it and it had a very nice feel to it. Very tempting...

[SiRed8]

Seth do they normally come shave-ready? If you don't mind as to ask the vendor if Machida or someone else hones them.

I know the Iwasaki's are honed by Mizuoichi Ryuichi successor to Iwasaki Shigeyoshi ( thanks Jim ).

Thanks

[BigBubba]

I posted in the other thread to ask you but that's ok everyone ( myself included ) was too busy quoting your pics :P

Have you by any chance honed it yet? Been at least 5 months now how is it?

Thanks mate!

Seth do they normally come shave-ready? If you don't mind as to ask the vendor if Machida or someone else hones them.

I know the Iwasaki's are honed by Mizuoichi Ryuichi successor to Iwasaki Shigeyoshi ( thanks Jim ).

Thanks

Sorry for not replying to the other post. I didn't want to
Personally, I found that either the razor was not quite shave ready or my technique was really poor. I researched here for a bit and honed it up to the best of my abilities and the shave was much improved.

I'm still learning how to shave with this razor. I reserve it for slow weekend shaves when I'm not in any hurry. I also took a month off of trying it due to some decent cuts in the 1st few shaves.

[SiRed8]

Thanks Paul.

I've yet to hone any of my razors and I didn't want to make a mistake with a pricey razor. I've couple used razors but they don't need to be honed for some time. Thanks to Jim's video it gives me an idea of how to hone these when time comes.

How many shaves have you gotten with it thus far? I've been rotating between the Iwasaki and Livi for well over month.

[BigBubba]

Probably around 15 times. I'm definitely still learning to use it.

I do enjoy looking at it daily though.

[SiRed8]

You know I think you owe it to those who haven't gotten enough of the pics I posted to post additional ones like cross section

BTW Paul would you kindly post the dimensions?
Overall length? Length of blade?

I'm curious how the size 2 is in comparison to yours.

My Iwasaki is 16.5cm and 5cm blade.

When you get a chance please get on SRP chat.

Thanks mate

[JonnyO]

The price is pretty reasonable all things considered. Comes out to $625 which is going price for a custom. Where can you source one?

[ZethLent]

I was wrong!!!

I made a post earlier in the tread that was correcting Ivan on his spelling of Mr. Machida's name. It turn's out I was wrong too.

The reason for this foible was because of the 'kanji' that is posted at the store. It reads: 町田　正 (Machida Tadashi).

But it should read: 町田　一止　(Machida Isshi).

The store clerk was wrong!! I was wrong!! We were all wrong!!

I thought it was so strange that I couldn't find any information on him through a multitude of search topics.

Here is the best post from another knife forum that I found about him and his work in English:

Machida Isshi
Machida Isshi is a former swordsmith. Machida Isshi uses Takefu V1, but he forges this to yield a product that resembles Tougou-kou ie a modern replica of Tougou Reigou.

The original Tougou Kou (To-go Ko) were made by Andrews Steel company from Swedish sand irons during the 19th century. Tougou Kou are essentially carbon steels, but with enough alloying elements to become distinct from white steel. The two most charismatic of the 11 labels are Inukubi, which is closest to conventional white steel, and Tougou Reigou or Tougou #0. Tougou Reigou is probably the highest performing steel for edged implements ever forged in Japan; in use it has the combined sharpness of White #1 and the edge retention of Blue Super.

The modern replica of Tougou Reigou is almost as good as the original. Also, many modern steels coming out of Sweden are as good or better than anything the Japanese used for their original purposes. Assab K120 and Boeler K990 from Uddeholm are practically impossible to differentiate from Tamahagane after forging.

From what I know, one of the primary characteristics that supplies the performance of Machida Isshi’s steel is its toughness. For Japanese steel, it is unusually tough, and is tempered well. Relative toughness is more usually a trait of Western steels.

Machida Isshi and the chisel maker, Tasai, are probably the only blacksmiths capable of rendering blue steel into a friendly steel for knife sharpening. Tasai does not make knives, although the son recently became a swordsmith, and Isshi uses an analog of white steel, with some alloy traces.

Opinions will vary, but Machida Isshi’s Takefu V1 is at the highest standard for traditional use. The quality is thought to be matched only by Tougou Reigou as forged by the single living blacksmith capable of using that steel, Yokoyama Kunio. Yokayama makes plane blades primarily, I suppose where the attributes of such steels are well observed. Simply put, Yokayama’s Reigou and Tougou-kou plane blades cut a range of timbers soft to hard and through knots that all other plane blades do not. For perspective, Yokoyama Kunio is possibly the best contemporary blacksmith.

[ZethLent]

I just got off the phone with Mr. Machida, and after a mini interview I am able to clear a few things up.

First of all he makes two sizes of razor. The width of the razor is one difference (smaller and larger). Another difference is he uses two kinds of steel to make them: white paper #3, and bohler K990 (a swedish steel). He mentioned that the white paper #3 is easier to hone and the K990 is harder. He also said that the K990 is nearly indistinguishable from tamahagane.

Because of a lack of interest in these types of products he only makes them when he feels like it. And right now he doesn't feel like it.

He said that the razors were only made for demonstration/display purposes for collectors (like the Tamahagane Iwasakis) but are obvioulsly fully functional.


He was very forthcoming in answering my few questions and sounds like a very nice man. I have also read that he is around 60 years old and only uses hand hammers to finish all of his work (even at 60). He is of the opinion that power hammers allow the piece to take form too quickly and that all of the hand hammering on the steel 'evens out' the piece internally.


I would like to meet him; so I may plan a trip to Nagano 'to go to some hot springs' (my wife loves hot springs) and nonchalantly pay a visit to his workshop and store....

Now that the air is clear, have a nice day. (BTW the air in Tokyo actually is really clear right now, after a typhoon blew through last night. Mt. Fuji is very clear on the horizon and is as beautiful as the picutres.)

[SiRed8]

Seth thank you so much for going above and beyond! Awesome info!

When you talk to Machida Isshi next time please ask him if he's any apprentices working with or for him. From my understanding, there's very little interest when it comes to forging these and sadly it is dying breed.

Thanks