Thread: Tosuke Japanese Straight Razor

If you are really serious about buying one of those, I could ask a friend in Japan to act as an intermediary. He speaks, reads and write Japanese, so he should be able to get through.

If Bruno's friend can't get it I have no doubt my contact in japan can for sure. You need to have someone check because sometimes these sites are old and the items are no longer available. It just seems like alot of money for what looks like the Tosuke razor. It says swedish steel so I don't know whats so special about it. It looks kind of like a leap of faith based on an advertisement eh?

Shigeyoshi Iwasaki is a licensed sword maker in Japan. He is listed in books and other sites. The level of craftsmanship in this razor must be amazing.

The guy who makes the Tosuke razor is a highly skilled swordmaker also and they cost a fraction of the price. So I still say what's so special about these? Actually there is another family who are probably the #1 swordmakers in japan who do traditional straights also. When I was doing research on the Tosuke I stumbled on their site but I don't remember the name or their site. Their straights go for about $400 and they have to be ordered years in advance. They only do a run of straights every couple of years and their stuff is all spoken for way in advance.

I know that the Japanese government only allows a certain number of swords to be made per year. I wonder if that holds true for all Japanese steel bladed instruments thus the reason why there would be a long delay in some of these productions.

Originally Posted by steve

I know that the Japanese government only allows a certain number of swords to be made per year. I wonder if that holds true for all Japanese steel bladed instruments thus the reason why there would be a long delay in some of these productions.

Considering the vast number of Japanese kitchen knives produced annually, it's likely a little more complex than that.

X

Originally Posted by xman

Considering the vast number of Japanese kitchen knives produced annually, it's likely a little more complex than that.

X

Yep, hadn't thought of the kitchen knives. Good point, X.