News

Annual Japan Trip (Sept 19th - Oct 20)
Its coming close to that time again for us. Every year, we close down for a bit so we can go back to Japan and i can train with the craftsmen in sharpening and blacksmithing. We also meet with most of the knife makers we work with and a few new ones too. This year, we will be going from September 19th to October 20th. As usual, we will not be shipping during this time. However, that does not mean you can not place orders. All orders will be shipped... Read more...
A Bunch Of New Product Videos
In response to our last blog post, we have begun working on your suggestions. Here are a bunch of new product videos we shot last night: And for those of you who want to see all of the product videos we have, they are organized into a nice little playlist here: Read more...
We need your help (read:opinion)
I was hoping you guys could help us out... here are a few questions i have for everyone here...First... on the subject of videosWhat, if any, subjects do you guys think we are missing in our youtube video series?I've got a list of things i want to get around to as soon as i have time, but its always helpful to hear from you guys since i dont always run into the same problems anymore.And second, on our product lineupWe constantly have new product lines in various stages of development... Read more...
Sharpening Japanese Knives
Do you sharpen your own knives?  I do.  In fact, I’m kind of obsessed with it.  I firmly believe that everyone should learn how to sharpen their own knives.  You can’t really get the best out of your knives until you really understand sharpening.  Once you have it down, you can change your knives to better suit your style (or even just the task at hand).  If you are rough with knives, you can increase the angle of your bevel to create a more robust edge.  If you have a... Read more...
Introducing Gesshin Kagero
Introducing Gesshin Kagero... the first powdered steel knife in the Japanese Knife Imports lineup. Check out the sweet knife cases these guys come with.http://www.japaneseknifeimports.com/...in-kagero.html From the Product Description:"Gesshin Kagero knives are constructed with a stainless powdered steel core and softer stainless cladding. They have very good edge retention and take a very good edge. These knives have a really nice distal taper, rounded spine and choil, and good edge geometry. They are not as brittle as some other powdered steels, such as SG1 or SG2, but have equal (and sometimes... Read more...
A Quick Summary of Hitachi Carbon Steels Common in Knives
Hitachi makes a number of carbon steels. Here are the common ones found in knives.SK Steels (sk5, sk4, sk3)- the least expensive of the carbon steels and the lowest carbon content (#5 has the least carbon, #3 the most). This steel has higher amounts of phosphorus and sulfur than the other steels i'm about to mention. This steel tends to be tough (due to the lower carbon content and thus lower hardness). It also tends to be more reactive.Yellow Steel (yellow 3, yellow 2)- This steel is more pure (less... Read more...
Dispelling Myths
There are a lot of things i hear on a daily basis from my customers or read online and every once in a while, i come across commonly misunderstood things or myths relating to japanese knives. I thought i'd start a thread where i can post things like that when i remember (or when someone asks me about them). If you have something to add, please feel free (just do a little fact checking first )... so here we go...*Last updated 8-6-12 @ 12:40pmMyth- Japanese single bevel knives have hollow... Read more...
New Videos On Sharpening
Last night i set aside some time to shoot some videos. Recently, there's been a lot of discussion about thinning... how to do it, when to do it, etc. So, i shot a couple of videos on thinning (one lecture and one demonstration). Here they are:In addition, i decided to re-shoot my video on sharpening single bevel knives (cause the lighting sucked in my last one and because we now have a nice lecture to go along with it). Here is the new single bevel knife video:and the lecture to... Read more...
July 3rd Japanese Craftsmen Event at JKI
So, on July 3rd (in the evening after the store closes... around 6:30pm or so), we will have a couple craftsmen visiting the store from Japan. We will be discussing sharpening, having a sharpening demo, doing knife sharpening, and talking about all things knives (with translation of course). As our store is tiny, space will be limited (sorry).If you're interested in attending, please e-mail me at Jon@JapaneseKnifeImports.com or call at 310-399-0300.Again, space is limited and this is an RSVP ONLY event.More Information upon RSVP. Read more...
Sharpening Study Images
Recently, we shot a couple of video lectures on sharpening.  The images I show in them didnt show up the way I had hoped in the video, so I thought I'd post them here.  Click the images to see them in a larger size. Here we go... First up... Double Bevel Knives And now, Single Bevel Knives If you're interested in checking out some of our other sharpening videos, you can find our sharpening playlist here: Japanese Knife Imports- Sharpening Playlist Read more...
Remembering 3-11-11 - The Great Tohoku Earthquake
One year ago today, the Tohoku region of Japan was struck with a massive earthquake that crippled the area... many of our friends, family, and business partners suffered at the hands of the natural disaster.  Today, one year later, Japan is still struggling with the aftermath.  Though some things are starting to normalize a bit, the radiation and long lasting damage is still visible today.  We hope that on this day, you will take some time to remember this tragedy.Sara and I are planning on making a donation to assist... Read more...
Dinner at Alma - A New Kick Ass Popup by Ari Taymor
Sorry for the lack of words in this post, but i'd rather let the food speak for itself... EDIT- decided  to add the menu... Amuse: Seaweed Beignet, yuzu koshu and lime 1st: Garlic and Oyster stew 2nd: Artichoke: anchovy, sunchoke and apple 3rd: Carrot: smoked lentil, milk skin and new zealand spinach 4th: Jimenez Lamb: hibiscus, beet, ancho and nettle 5th: Popcorn: Chocolate and soy caramel But most important, the Crew that put it all together... Read more...