Help identifying makers of Japanese chisels

Lee Laird

Member
Messages
405
Location
Austin TX
I purchased a couple of chisels in Japan when we visited in 2001. I really like the quality of these chisels. I didn't think to ask my extended family in Japan who made the chisels and was wondering if anyone could give me some help. I'm attaching the photos (not sure if the same person made both chisels) below. Let me know if you need a larger picture and I'll send one directly to you via email.

I'd really like to know who the maker(s) are.

Thanks in advance,
 

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Hi Lee

I can read the Katakana on the sticker, it says "Takahashi", that would be the maker of the chisels, and the other Kanji on there looks like "En-Jyu" which would roughly translate to "Extended Happiness" :dunno:

>> 延寿 <<

Japanese script above

Other than that, the pictures are a bit hard to make out, I know it is not an easy thing to take picture of.

Cheers!
 
Stu,

I didn't know if the sticker was the maker or might be the store name. The two chisels I bought seem to have different kanji on the back of the blade. I'll see if I can coax a better picture out of my camera.

Greg,

8000 yen seemed like a lot at the time to me, too. The other was 9500 yen but thought it was going to be a once in a lifetime chance to buy some good ones. The shop I was at had four walls of chisels. I was so hard to choose. The owner even burned my name into the handle using romanji (english). Hoping to go back over in a couple of years.

Thanks again.
 
new photos

Here are updated photos of the chisels. Hope these seem better than the first attempt.

Thanks.
 

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Here are updated photos of the chisels. Hope these seem better than the first attempt.

Thanks.

Lee, in the first photo the chisel maker is as Stu said Mr. Takahashi. After TakahashiSan's name is written "toubutsu", which roughly translates to sword thing. A search for Takahashi toubutsu received no hits. In the second photo the chisel has a very cursive script so it is difficult for me to make out. I can tell you though it is it is not made by the same maker as the first. I'll ask my wife and see what she says about the second.

Where in Japan did you buy them?
 
Al,

I was in Kumumoto, in 2001, visiting some of my wife's family and they drove me around trying to find some good chisels. First place they stopped was what would seem to be their version of a Home Depot. After seeing the kinda "cheepie" chisels they remembered a place that has what I was told were hand made. It was a small little building/house and had walls of chisels and I think they also had some saws and maybe planes. The owner burned in my name on the handle.

I thought there was a good chance that there was two makers involved. Both really seem to be well made and hold an edge. The smaller of the two chisels has two hollows on the back while the larger has only one. I hoped someone could help identify the makers so I might buy some more from the same maker.

Really appreciate you and your wife's assistance.

Regards.
 
Lee,

I got a make on the first. It is as said before Takahashi but the second kanji is pronounced hamono so a search on TakahashiHamono brought up a web site. As a matter of fact Takahashi Hamono is a rather famous brand in Japan. The web site below is in Japanese so you will need a Japanese language set up on your PC to view properly. With a language package installed on your PC you can do a search for hamono from Yahoo Japan and you will get many hits.

http://www.takahashihamono.jp/

The second one is too difficult to read. A little bit like old English calligraphy. It could be Takahashi but it is too cursive to read clearly.
 
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Al, Stu, and all who took a look,

Thanks again for the extra effort. :clap: I've had an interest in Japanese tools since I was a teenager. My next door neighbor's mom is Japanese and my friends dad had some saws and hammers that caught my eye, even then.

Al, when you say this maker is rather famous in Japan, how would it relate to someone here in the U.S.? I'm sure this relates to the cost of the chisels I bought. 8000 yen for the small and 9500 yen for the larger was quite a bit of money in 2001. I'm curious why the larger chisel wouldn't have the twin reliefs on the back as does the smaller chisel. If they were made by different makers, are there many that are more desirable than Takahashi?

Regards.
 
When I say famous I mean there are some brands that stick out more than others. This may be because they mass produce more and get their product out there or they may be top of the line. The thing is there are so many makers working small companies. If you are looking for a nice set take your time and look around.

Here is a link to one site that sells a few different makers. I have had this site bookmarked for a couple of years.

http://www.hamono.gr.jp/
 
Al,

Thanks for the additional info. I hoped I was buying some really good chisels while I was in Japan, but really didn't have a lot of choices. Who knows, I may have picked up a better chisel and set it back down without even knowing it. Had a language barrier even though some of my wife's relatives can speak ok english (better than my japanese). I'll take a look at the site you listed. Do you use japanese tools often in your work? And for your woodworking, extremely nice designs and execution. I enjoyed looking through your website.

Regards.
 
By the price tag on your chisel I would say you probably have a nice one there. I imagine the shop owner wasn't trying to trick you. I particularly like Japanese chisels and hand saws. For planes I can go either western or Japanese but I like the adjustibility of western planes. Also in Japan you can get these little cutter knives that are called kogatana or kiridashi. They are very nice for scribing layout. And of course Japanese waterstones.
 
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Same for me and the chisels and saws. Each of the chisels I bought in Japan have a light score line across the top side of the chisel about a 1/2" from the edge. I always wondered if this indicated anything. Any ideas.

Up until about a year ago, I used only Japanese saws. I found one dovetail saw that seems to work better for me than it's Japanese relative. The Lie-Nielsen dovetail saw. I cut equally as well with both saws but for some reason the Japanese saw's straight handle hurts my wrist when I'm cutting dovetails.

I bought a Japanese laminated marking knife which I wonder if that is the same as the kogatana or kiridashi?? It is about 6" long, a little over 1/8" thick, about 1" wide, and the cutting end a point which is in line with one of the edges (not centered on the knife).

I, too, have some of the Japanese water stones. None of them are the natural stone but I've always loved the way they sharpen quickly. Wish I'd had someone guide me a little at first, so I wouldn't have had to grind so much material from my old chisels. Wow they seemed to dish quickly. Now I know what to expect and how to use them better.
 
I am new to this forum and just learning how to use it. I would appreciate any help identifying the maker of a set of Japanese chisels I just acquired. If anyone can identify the maker and interpret the writing on the label I would be most appreciative. 2 pictures of the label are attached. Thanks. JohnP1100767.jpgP1100769.jpg
 
Thank you Carol, I sent a private message to Stu Ablett, but do not know if he received it. Was unable to attach a photo to the message, but referred him to this thread. Thanks for your input, I'm just starting to learn how to navigate this site. John
 
Hello John, welcome to the Family :wave:

The Kanji read Toshihiromaru to my eye, but being name Kanji and being a maker's mark on a chisel I'll have to look further into that to see the actual pronunciation.

https://www.monotaro.com/g/00702607/

It looks like they are a fairly common chisel, not cheap, but not expensive, most likely partly machine made, that being said they should be good every day user chisels.

Might be "Shuhimashimaru" for a name.

Sorry but that is all I can do until my lovely wife comes back, she is the Japanese expert :D

I hope this helps.
 
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