- Japanese kitchen knives are generally sharper than other styles of knife. They are made of harder steel and they will cut better, but they do have their limitations. Some care is recommended to minimise damage.

(think of it like an exotic sports car, they can be the highest performing, but only when used correctly and in the correct environment. Taking an F1 car on an off-road track for instance won’t go well, nor will crashing it into a pole 😊)

- Be careful of what you are cutting, and where. Try not to cut on stone, glass, bamboo, steel, ceramics or hard plastic surfaces. End-grain timber, soft solid timbers, or soft plastic surfaces are recommended. There are many variations of plastic chopping boards, be careful that yours are not the hard variant.

- Avoid cutting bones, frozen foods or anything of similar hardness.

- Use a straight and smooth cutting action. Do not twist the blade or apply lateral edge pressure. These knives have high perpendicular strength but will chip or crack if the blade is twisted or hit from the side. Twisting a knife while in a cut or on the board is the most common cause of chips

- Although stainless steel kitchen knives are easier to maintain than high carbon, rust spots may occur if left wet or in damp environments for extended periods. The steel is "stainless" not "stainfree", stainless steel can still rust.

- Hand-Wash Only: the heat & chemicals in a dishwasher will damage your knife, affect the handle and degrade the steel.

- Dry Thoroughly: paper towel is preferred as kitchen cloths or tea towels can leave residue.

- Stainless Clad Carbon Japanese kitchen knives have a stainless steel cladding (or body) and high carbon steel core (exposed on the edge of the knife). High carbon steel naturally develops a dark grey or black patina over time, this is normal and aids in protection of your knife. Rust may occur however if left wet or in damp environments for extended periods. This is especially true of acidic cutting, like that of lemons, onions or tomatoes

- Hand-Wash Only: the heat & chemicals in a dishwasher will damage your knife, affect the handle and degrade the steel.

- Dry Thoroughly: paper towel is preferred as kitchen cloths or tea towels can leave residue.

- Apply Tsubaki Oil if your kitchen knife will not be used for an extended period of time.

- High Carbon Japanese kitchen knives are crafted completely from high carbon steel. Carbon steel is generally sharper than stainless steel and easier to sharpen, but it can chip and/or rust if used incorrectly or not cared for.

- Carbon knives will naturally develops a patina over time (generally grey, dark grey or blue), this is normal and aids in protection of your knife. If you take a little extra time caring for your carbon knives when you first use them, you can build a patina which will help protect the knife long term and reduce the amount of care required. If you see any red or orange on the blade, this is rust, and should be taken off as soon as possible. You can use a rust eraser to do this, but any mild abrasive will work. High grit sand paper from a hardware store, barkeepers friend or even metal polish like AutoSol will do a good job.

- Rust will occur on carbon knives if left wet or in damp environments, even for a short period of time. This is even more so with acidic foods like lemon or onion, it is important to clean your knife straight after use when cutting these ingredients. Leaving acidic foods on a carbon steel knife will develop rust very quickly (depending on the steel, it could occur in just a few minutes). Conversely so, cutting something fatty, like meat, will take longer for rust to occur as the fats will help protect the blade from oxygen.

- Hand-Wash Only: the heat & chemicals in a dishwasher will damage your knife, affect the handle and degrade the steel. It will also speed rust development on carbon steel knives.

- Dry thoroughly and immediately after use. Using paper towel is preferred as kitchen cloths or tea towels can leave moisture.

- Apply Tsubaki Oil if your kitchen knife will not be used regularly or if you are in a damp environment. Oil on a carbon steel knife will help prevent rust. You can use any type of oil but a mineral oil like Tsubaki is preferred as something like an olive oil will go rancid over time and permanently mark the blade. It can obviously also make you sick.

Yes, we accept payments via PayPal.

We also have the option of a PayPal Express Checkout to make the process as fast and easy as possible.

Yes, we offer Afterpay as a payment option during checkout.

Afterpay allows you to pay for your woodworking tool, kitchen knife or whetstone over 4 equal payments, allowing you to have the product faster and pay it off over time.

You get the tool, knife or whetstone straight away and pay in 4 fortnightly repayments, all with no interest or fees charged to you. So what's the catch...

Firstly, we pay a percentage to Afterpay, so we are paying to provide this service, this cost isn't passed on to you, we gladly do so to provide an extra service to our valued clients. The only risk of charge to you is if a scheduled payment is missed, if so a service charge is applied ($10 from what we understand but check with Afterpay for more detail).

Short Answer: Add an email address to you checkout details and try again.

Long Answer: ProTooling, as many other stores, allows you to checkout without entering an email address, allowing a phone number to be used as a convenience for some clients. This option does however conflict with the Afterpay system as they require an email address to process their payments.

If you do not have an email address entered and choose Afterpay as your payment method the page will attempt to link to the external Afterpay website(as normal), then automatically loop back to our site when it does not see the correct data.

This is a known conflict that is experienced with many online stores, all that's required to fix this is to add your email address.

Yes, we stand by the products we sell.

Just return the product(s) as you received them and we will organize an exchange. Contact us for more detail but we do need the product and original packaging in new condition.

We are proud to offer same-day fulfilment on all of our products.

Our same-day dispatch is available for all orders received before 2.00pm Monday - Friday (excluding public holidays).

Orders received after these times will still be attempted to send same-day, otherwise they will leave first thing on the next business day.

Yes, we guarantee you will receive your products in new condition (unless otherwise stated).

Please contact us as soon as possible if you have not received your item or if they have been damaged during transport.

We pack all of our items to handle the rigors of courier transport and provide tracking detail on all of our shipments.

Click & collect is available on our website, our showroom is by appointment so contact us to arrange a time.

Within Australia, we primarily use Australia Post. All shipments come with tracking, and all are guaranteed to arrive in new condition (unless otherwise stated).

For larger items or faster delivery times we generally use DHL Express, this also applies for international shipments in most cases with some exceptions.

Yes, we do ship internationally on most items.

International shipping prices are generally given at check-out or within the cart shipping calculator. Please contact us if your country is not listed or you would like a personalised quotation.

As is the case with all international purchasing, local fees, charges and duties may apply within your country. These charges are the sole responsibility of the buyer, we unfortunately cannot keep track or cover the multitude of fees and laws for each individual country.

We certainly can't give a blanket statement that Japanese hand saws are better than all western style saws, but overall they do perform better, especially when comparing the price.

Japanese hand saws are extremely accurate, beautiful saws to use. They represent great value for money and are widely considered to be one of the best value upgrades you can make to your woodworking.

View our range of Japanese Pull-Saws here...

The primary models of Japanese hand saws (Nokogiri) are...

Ryoba Saw - this is a double sided hand saw, with different teeth configurations on either side of the saw blade. If you don't buy one of our kits (which are great value by the way, cough, just saying), then a Ryoba saw is a great first buy. Double sided for wider applications, this is the most usable Japanese hand saw and one of the best starting points into the world of Japanese hand tools.

Kataba Saw - this is probably the closest hand saw to what we see outside of Japan. Obviously your woodworking applications may be different but I would rate this as the next useful saw after the Ryoba. Made for deep cutting and ripping applications, the 2 main types of Kataba saw are the Universal and the Cross-Cut. The cross-cut saw is made for cutting across the grain of timber, while the universal hand saw is used for cutting both with and across the grain. Universal saws are also know as Hybrid Saws, just to make it more complicated. We tend to recommend the universal variant of Kataba saw as this is the most flexible in application for someone starting out.

Dozuki Saw - Technically this is also a kataba, but most do categorize them individually. All Japanese saws are precise, the dozuki saw is next level precision. If you need something for ultra fine joinery, start here. You cannot go as deep with these hand saws due to the wide spine on the back of the saw blade, but this strengthening element makes the saw ultra precise, great for dovetail joints and the like.

Flush-Cut Saw - Known as a Kugihiki saw in Japan, this hand saw has an ultra flexible blade that can cut flush against another surface.

View our range of Japanese Pull-Saws here...

Yes! All of our Japanese woodworking tools and kitchen knives are made in Japan.

Most of the woodworking tools and knives we stock are hand made, hand forged and hand assembled by skilled, specialised craftsman within Japan.

Japanese Chisels (or "Nomi" in Japan) do require some set-up (also known as "tuning") before use to their full potential.

Depending on the chisel, usually fitment of the rear iron hoop is required, along with flattening the back of the blade and sharpening the bevel. Many of our Japanese chisels do come pre-sharpened, so this step is often not required. We recommend watching one of the many online video tutorials available showing this process. Please contact us if you would like specific links.

Japanese Chisels are bespoke woodworking tools that are usually made by multiple specialist craftsmen in a tradition that dates back hundreds of years. A specialist blacksmith will forge the steel blades and then pass the tool to a second specialist who will then craft and fit a timber handle for the chisel. As timber can change over time and in different climates (such as here in Australia), the specialist will leave some leeway for fine tuning and fitment when fianally employed for use.

View our range of Japanese Chisels here...

As is the case with Japanese Chisels, Japanese Woodworking Planes (known as "Kanna" in Japan) do require some set-up or "tuning" before use.

Like Japanese chisels, their woodworking planes will require the blade to be flattened and sharpened. Along with this process, the blade will need to be tuned to fit the body along with the base being flattened.

Japanese Woodworking planes are deliberately manufactured for the body to be too tight for the blade. This is to account for any shift that may occur with the timber body during time or climate changes. We recommend watching one of the many online video tutorials available showing this process. Please contact us if you would like specific links.

View our range of Japanese Woodworking Planes here...

Japanese kitchen knives are generally sharper and lighter than their western kitchen knife counterparts, with different variations to the shape, size and edge geometry specific to ingredients or kitchen tasks. Japanese kitchen knives broadly use harder, more refined steels and narrower grinds that can retain much sharper edges, along with overall being thinner and lighter than German or western knife variants.

The blanket statements of old are becoming blurred, many high end blacksmiths in the west are now employing traditional Japanese techniques and materials in their knife making. Conversely, some Japanese kitchen knives are now made in the shape of western knives. When comparing high end kitchen knives at this level, we normally find that Japanese kitchen knives are better value for the performance levels achieved.

As the steels used in most Japanese knives are harder, they should be more difficult to sharpen, but the thickness difference means they are actually easier to sharpen than most western knife counterparts.

As is the case with all of the products we source from Japan, the craftsmanship, attention to detail and quality control is much higher than kitchen knives or tools produced elsewhere.

Generally we recommend a "Santoku" or "Gyuto" knife as your first Japanese kitchen knife, both of these knives are of similar shape to western "chef knives" and are great all-round performers for all tasks within the kitchen.

Another consideration is which type of steel to choose. Generally we recommend a stainless steel kitchen knife as your first experience before stepping up to carbon steel knives at a later point.

We have a dedicated page for the care and maintenance of Japanese kitchen knives... view the page here

Damascus Steel is a traditional method of layering and folding different steels to achieve certain physical characteristics. With ancient legend of Damascus steel swords cutting through the barrel of a gun, it has been the choice for use in high end kitchen knives for hundreds of years. Modern steel production can now out perform damascus steel, and as with all products, the quality and performance comes down to the individual craftsmen, what techniques are employed and to which type of steels are within each kitchen knife. We meticulously select and specify all steel types used within the knives we stock, specialising in high quality artisan products.

There are examples of fake Damascus steel kitchen knives, with the wave like pattern being etched onto the knife blade to give the appearance of Damascus Steel. All of our Damascus steel knives are sourced from premium manufacturers who in turn select only high quality materials.

View our range of Japanese Damascus Knives here...

Short Answer... no, it is not recommended.

Oil stones & diamond plates are generally too coarse and too aggressive for use on high HRC (hardness) steel like that used in most Japanese kitchen knives.

Honing steels, or sharpening steels do come in many variants with a small number being suitable to a point. Fine ceramic hones are sometimes recommended for Japanese knives but we generally advise against their use.

We recommend Japanese Whetstones for all aspects of sharpening, including daily honing where a few passes on a high grit stone is enough to maintain a very sharp edge. Whetstones can be quite inexpensive and are not as difficult to use as many would have you believe.

View our range of Japanese Whetstones here...

Generally, people do prefer the balance of Japanese kitchen knives. This is a personal choice, and there are many examples of good and bad knives on both sides of the coin, however, Japanese kitchen knives are usually lighter than their German or western counterparts with a more neutral balance that is easier to hold with a light grip and for longer periods of use.

Short Answer... no, it is not recommended.

Oil stones & diamond plates are generally too coarse and too aggressive for use on high HRC (hardness) steel like that used in most Japanese kitchen knives.

Honing steels, or sharpening steels do come in many variants with a small number being suitable to a point. Fine ceramic hones are sometime recommended for Japanese kitchen knives but we generally advise against their use.

We recommend Japanese Whetstones for all aspects of sharpening, including daily honing where a few passes on a high grit stone is enough to maintain a very sharp edge. Whetstones can be quite inexpensive and are not as difficult to use as many would have you believe.

View our range of Japanese Whetstones here...

Most whetstones available on the market today are synthetic, or man-made. Some synthetic whetstones, like our Morihei Karasu are made using natural stone powder (which we really like to use), but mainly whetstones from all over the globe (not just Japan) are man-made using various synthetic compounds.

Natural Whetstones are as they sound, they are naturally occurring stone that is literally mined from the earth. These stones are what has traditionally been used for thousands of years to sharpen tools and knives but are becoming more rare and hard to source.

The composition of a natural whetstone has varying grit level throughout, it is said that this contrast imparts microscopic variation to a sharpened edge which results in slightly different wear rates and longer edge retention. There is something very special about sharpening knives or tools on a natural, mined stone.

View our range of natural Japanese whetstones here...

On the flip side, synthetic whetstones are made with exacting standards and repeatable results, they can last longer than natural stones and are more predicable in use. Synthetic stones are recommended as your first purchase, with the view to add some "flavour" with natural sharpening stones at a later point. These whetstones are more forgiving in use, cheaper to purchase and available in wider range of grit levels, sizes and shapes for use in different applications.

Finger stones are very thin natural whetstones used for polishing. Traditionally used for sword polishing in Japan, finger stones are now often used to polish woodworking tools and kitchen knives.

Finger stones are very rare, all of our stones are one off products, once sold they are extremely hard to source replacements for. There are many resources online showing the use of these special stones.

View our range of Japanese Finger Stones here...