Japanese Straights in Japan?

[The Nid Hog]

I've been thinking about making a move to straight shaving. I'm going to be in Tokyo for a couple of months this summer and I was wondering if anybody could recommend a B&M establishment that would handle straights. It doesn't have to be in Tokyo, or even in Kanto. I'm going to be traveling and will definitely be in Niigata for a while.

I'm not interested in making any business contacts or anything like that. I just thought that it would be nice to look at the razors in person and to talk with a local expert before I jumped in. Any suggestions?

 

[Thebigspendur]

The problem is the use of straights in Japan is a faint echo of what it is here so there are no razors being produced in such quantity for a store to stock them. If you were really lucky you might find a left over Tosuke or Iwasaki but in general most straights are limited production and you need to locate someone to order from. So anotherwords it's probably easier to find someone here or at SRP who can get one for you then find one yourself in Japan.

 

[Seraphim]

The problem is the use of straights in Japan is a faint echo of what it is here so there are no razors being produced in such quantity for a store to stock them. If you were really lucky you might find a left over Tosuke or Iwasaki but in general most straights are limited production and you need to locate someone to order from. So anotherwords it's probably easier to find someone here or at SRP who can get one for you then find one yourself in Japan.

I olnly know of two stores that I found with actual straights in them at a shopping district/mall in Kyoto. The pickings were rather meager...

See here for related thread.

 

[The Nid Hog]

Thanks for the tips so far. I don't mind digging around--I spend most of my time in Japan doing that anyway. Any other obscure or elusive suggestions will be much appreciated.

 

[thanks]

For what it's worth, in a thread dating back a couple of years Joel has said that buying an authentic Tosuke in Japan proved to be an absolute nightmare. I couldn't imagine the situation being any better now... So if traditional non-folding Japanese straights are what you're after, then an Iwasaki is probably a better bet. ZethLent seems to be the straight razor man in Japan for our forums, so you might want to shoot him a PM to see what's up.

 

[JeffE]

Old School also has some new Japanese straights in stock, and they are very nice. I bought one recently and was very impressed. His site is www.oldschoolshaving.net.

 

[ZethLent]

ZethLent seems to be the straight razor man in Japan for our forums, so you might want to shoot him a PM to see what's up.

Thanks. If its stores in Tokyo I know a few but to be honest, it is more about meeting the right person at the right time.

I think that if you speak some Japanese that you should hit the really old looking 'Barber' shops while you are out in the country in Niigata. You never know what they might have and you might hit the jackpot. Sometimes its like shooting in the dark though. A lot of misses befor a hit.

Good Luck.

 

[The Nid Hog]

Thanks guys--I appreciate the suggestions.