I see a lot of hype about American knife companies who manufacture in Japan, or Chinese companies using Japanese steel, and even Japanese knife companies manufacturing in America. I don’t see a lot of hype about folding knives that are designed and made in Japan by Japanese companies.
So I thought it would be cool to look around and see what the options were in that category, and ended up finding a whole new category of neat gentleman carries. A lot of these companies I hadn’t heard of before, but they’ve been making some pretty cool stuff for a while (although, to be fair, I’d mostly only known about the companies that make kitchen knives). Most of it is on the smaller side, possibly due to Japan’s highly restrictive knife laws, but they still boast fine-tuned steel on some interesting designs that range from hard-use EDC to collectable gentleman folders.
Here Are My Top Pocket Knife Picks from Japan.
- Katsu Bamboo
- Katsu Camping Pocket Folder
- Mcusta 146 Bamboo
- Mcusta Katana
- Moki Kronos Lockback
- Moki 107AP Pendant
Japanese Friction Folders
All these are based on one style of friction folder that cropped up in Japan in the late 1800s. They were always very small, and mostly used for mundane household tasks. The design has gotten a pretty severe update in recent years, though.
Ohta FK5
| Overall Length: | 5.5″ |
| Blade Length: | 2.1″ |
| Blade Style: | Reverse Tanto |
| Steel: | D2 |
| Grind: | Flat |
| Handle Material: | Cocobolo wood |
| Open System: | Tang |
| Carry System: | |
| Price Range: | $50 – 75 |
This is a pretty serious update on the Japanese friction folder design. The manufacturing is a little more refined, it’s using a tougher steel and a much nicer handle material. Ohta has actually gone so far as to make a version with a carbon fiber handle as well. The leather sheath it comes with is a nice touch too since a knife this small could disappear in the pocket really fast if you’re like me and really bad at taking things out of your pocket.
It’s a little hard to reconcile the size with the price, so the FK5 might be more in the “cool collectible” range for a lot of people rather than a handy EDC. But it would be a handy collectible.
Click here to read our in-depth review of the Ohta FK5.
Higonokami Friction Folder
| Overall Length: | 6.25″ |
| Blade Length: | 2.6″ |
| Blade Style: | Reverse Tanto |
| Steel: | Blue paper steel |
| Grind: | Flat |
| Handle Material: | Brass |
| Open System: | Tang |
| Carry System: | |
| Price Range: | $15 – 30 |
This is the original Higonokami folder. Or at least, it’s a folder from the original manufacturer that started making them well over a hundred years ago. The tradition of making these was handed down through family apprenticeship within the Nagao Kanekoma Knife company over the years, but the design, especially in the grind of the blade, has changed over generations.
Currently Mitsuo Nagao is still making these and variations of them by hand under the Nagao Kanekoma Knife name. Since that company has the trademark on the “Higonokami” brand, the knives made by Mitsuo are the only genuine Higonokami knives. That’s important to remember, because there are a lot of fakes getting pushed around these days.
If you just typed in “Higonokami knife” you would find a huge variety of styles from steel types and handle materials and lengths (and price). The brass is probably the most recognizable as the “traditional” style, though. For the price it’s definitely worth getting as a cool letter opener for your desk. This was not made to be a hard-use EDCs, and some people complain that the blade is often off center, but it still cuts fine, and it carries light. When these first came into use in Japan in the late 19th century they were mostly used for things like sharpening pencils. Since modern technology has made both pencil sharpeners and pencils obsolete, this is mostly a cool letter opener. But it’s neat all the same.
Modern Style Japanese Folders
Now we’re back in familiar territory, more or less. Turns out Japanese knife companies aren’t all about making traditional Japanese stuff, although some of them do still utilize a “Japanese” aesthetic that turns into something a little different from the EDCs we’re swinging over here all the time.
Katsu Bamboo
| Overall Length: | 7.5″ |
| Blade Length: | 3.0″ |
| Blade Style: | Reverse tanto |
| Steel: | D2 |
| Grind: | Hollow |
| Handle Material: | G-10 |
| Open System: | Tang |
| Carry System: | Tip-up clip |
| Lock Type: | Liner |
| Price Range: | $50 |
Katsu is a fairly new company but they’ve come onto the scene with a clear mission to drag the Higonokami style all the way into the 21st century. Not only did they slap G10 scales and a pocket clip on it, they blew it up to an American-sized 7.5 inches. I don’t know what traditionalists think about their stuff, but speaking as someone who is fond of pocket clips and loses small knives almost immediately, I can say without shame that I enjoy being patronized like this.
This particular model does fall short of what you’d hope it would be in practice. It has all the look of an elegant, modernized Higinokami, and it does serve as a fun gentleman carry to pack around town. There are just a few strange elements that don’t quite work together well enough to make it the phenomenal budget knife it could have been. It has an incredible blade that’s held back some by an awkward handle, but it still serves as a different route to take with your $50.
Click here to read our in depth review of the Katsu Bamboo.
Katsu Camping Pocket Folder
| Overall Length: | 9.0″ |
| Blade Length: | 3.9″ |
| Blade Style: | Reverse tanto |
| Steel: | VG-10 |
| Grind: | Flat |
| Handle Material: | Titanium w/ carbon fiber inlays |
| Open System: | Tang |
| Carry System: | Tip-up clip |
| Lock Type: | Frame |
| Price Range: | $115 – 120 |
Katsu continues taking that Higonokami design and bashing their way through the millennium with this oddly named, and possibly overbuilt, knife. Here they’ve basically taken that original friction folder design, kept the blade style (kind of) and the front flip opening, then made it lift weights. Between the titanium handle and the frame lock, this thing is a monster with really no regard for what the friction folder design they’re building off of was meant for, and I love it.
They do a lot of things with this model that they should have done with the cheaper Bamboo model in G10. I know the two look like identical cousins, but this titanium model has all the little details worked into it that I was pining for in handling the Katsu Bamboo. So this knife easily justifies its price for people who like larger pocket knives.
I’m a little confused by them calling it a “camping pocket folder”, though. Not that it wouldn’t be a good camping knife. There’s just nothing about the knife that seems to emphasize that. I kind of wonder if that was a mis-translation for its name in Japanese, which I assume must be something along the lines of “Bear Killer”. But that’s none of my business.
Check out our in-depth review of the Katsu JT01 to learn more about this knife.
Mcusta 146 Bamboo
| Overall Length: | 6.5″ |
| Blade Length: | 2.75″ |
| Blade Style: | Drop point |
| Steel: | VG-10 |
| Grind: | Hollow |
| Handle Material: | Ebonywood w/ steel bolster |
| Open System: | Thumb stud |
| Carry System: | Reversible tip-up clip and nylon / leather pouch |
| Lock Type: | Liner |
| Price Range: | $220 – 230 |
The 146 Bamboo is a good example of Mcusta’s overall approach to design. They have an interesting way of making knives that look modern with some kind of call back to traditional Japanese style. It doesn’t necessarily work well with all their knives, but in this case they’ve made a pretty cool handle and utilized some top-notch materials. The blade itself is a little boring, but they do make a decent Damascus steel version that makes it more interesting. Far be it from me to stoop so low as to call it “elegant”, but I can think of a few people who would belch out a heartfelt “that’s some fancy shit” if I were to take this out of my pocket.
Mcusta Katana
| Overall Length: | 7.5″ |
| Blade Length: | 3.25″ |
| Blade Style: | Tanto |
| Steel: | VG-10 |
| Grind: | Hollow |
| Handle Material: | Aluminum |
| Open System: | Thumb stud |
| Carry System: | Tip-down clip |
| Lock Type: | Liner |
| Price Range: | $120 – 150 |
This is more in the style that most people expect when they hear “Japanese folder”. It’s a mean looking tanto blade with a sleek handle and vague leanings toward a minimalist aesthetic. It would make a great gift for a thirteen year old boy who just discovered anime, or possibly a thirty year old boy who has just built up enough confidence to admit in public that he likes anime. In either case, it’s a solid gift. The Katana by Mcusta has a smooth action and a slicey profile. I’m always on the fence about aluminum handles, but this one looks nice, the indents should help with grip quite a bit, and I’m half certain that it’s part of the reason the price is usually around $100 instead of $200.
Moki Kronos Lockback
| Overall Length: | 6.5″ |
| Blade Length: | 2.75″ |
| Blade Style: | Drop point |
| Steel: | VG-10 |
| Grind: | Flat |
| Handle Material: | Stag bone w/ steel bolster |
| Open System: | Nail nick |
| Carry System: | Cavas sheath |
| Lock Type: | Lockback |
| Price Range: | $140 – 150 |
The majority of Moki’s folding knives seem to follow this old school lockback design. They make a lot of nice looking lockbacks with a kind of American vintage swing. It comes with a canvas sheath too, which isn’t something you see too often, but definitely makes it stand out. As much as I like the look of it, though, it makes me worry that if I carry it too long someone with a tweed jacket and an ironic curly mustache will ask where I got it, and I’m just not ready to handle that situation gracefully.
The pricing of this knife is not exactly vintage. You could probably pick up something that looks exactly like this for literally a tenth of the price at Walmart. But before you judge it too harshly on price, look at who you’re getting it from. Moki is not a shoddy budget brand. In fact, it’s likely you’ve already handled a Moki-made knife without knowing it. They’re a Seki-based manufacturer and have produced stuff for a lot of larger companies in the past, including Spyderco, Kershaw, and Al Mar (unless my loose research is mistaken). All that to say is they know their way around a quality knife, and it’s only fair that the price reflect that.
Moki 107AP Pendant
| Overall Length: | 2.75″ |
| Blade Length: | 1.13″ |
| Blade Style: | Drop point |
| Steel: | VG-10 |
| Grind: | Flat |
| Handle Material: | Mother of pearl |
| Open System: | Nail nick |
| Carry System: | Keychain or leather pouch |
| Lock Type: | Slip joint |
| Price Range: | $60 – 65 |
I disapprove of this knife wholeheartedly.
Never mind that it’s made by Moki, or that it has some kind of fancy mother-of-pearl inlay, or that it’s VG-10 steel, or that it is not only conveniently sized for a key ring, but comes with a sweet leather pouch and a cord to wear around your neck. I’m sure if I mustered the strength to take this outside I would end up using it a lot, because it’s super convenient to have a small knife on your keys or hanging around your neck. That’s a fantastic idea, and who knows what aspects of my life might change forever if I could just square my shoulders and take it out the door with any amount of pride.
I will not say this wouldn’t be a useful knife for a lot of people to have. I will say that, at the end of the day, my muscles are not big enough to carry it.
Katsu is not a Japanese company. And that knife shouldn’t be on any list..
It’s hard to tell where Katsu manufactures, but the company itself is based in Japan, and they use Japanese steel on several of their models. As far as the Katsu Bamboo goes, it has some issues, but I think it’s an interesting example of how the Higo no Kami knife is being adapted in the modern industry.
If it is hard to tell that means they are most likely made in China. If it was made in Japan they probably would be proud to mention on their website and stamp on their product.
Yeah, that’s a universal possibility in most industries. I award you one (1) “You’re Probably Right” star.
The other side is that contact with the company itself got a response that the knives are made in Japan. That could be a loose interpretation of what “making” is, or an outright lie, but until I find definitive proof otherwise, I consider Katsu knives to be Japanese made, for better or worse.
I agree with your comment regarding the “bamboo knife” ….., ordered one because of its size and had to take it apart to make it open smoother and faster. It is still not perfect , but I cannot figure it out why? Will try to use different lubricant to see if that would help…., overall it is 5.5 out of 10 in my scale.
Purchased an Moki Japanese “made” folding lockback.. once received it is Made in China even though advertised as Japanese
I’m guessing what you got was a clone. Moki is a pretty well established Japanese manufacturer, and it doesn’t look like they currently have any designs made anywhere else.
you got a “clone” …sorry to hear that..:(
Moki is made in China.
Don’t suppose you have a link to back that up? Because I keep hearing that, but I can’t find anything that indicates Moki is manufacturing in China now.
I am pretty sure that Katsu knives are not made in Japan. I live in Japan. i speak and read Japanese. I looked around and could not find a Japanese website or any information anywhere about a factory in Japan.
Made in that country is not always true. Parts are made in a country but assembled in another country to reduce labor cost. It is a thing these days to reduce the cost of an item.
Welcome to global economy.