Any first hand experience with “fromjapan-kt.com”or “j-bonsai.com”?

[geargarcon]

I scoured the forum and I was only able to find a single person who purchased from one of these stores. I’m sure I missed many other responses.

For the benefit of myself and others, I though I’d throw up a poll to pool our collective experiences and see which (if either) of these is trustworthy.

 

[geargarcon]

Oh and for the record the one post I found was an account of a successful purchase from fromjapan-kt.com

 

[sorce]

The website name format seems like one of those you get in a text from a bank that you don't use that found a way to "save you money".

Like they may actually have product to send you, but then in 5 years they clean you out and steal your identity!

Sorce

 

[rockm]

J-Bonsai has been around for some time. It's owned now by Yoshihiro Nakamizu and part of Bonsai Network Japan. He does a lot of bonsai stuff in Japan, including bonsai tours. I ordered a pot from them a very very long time ago. I vaguely remember the transaction--which involved a bank transfer and a month long wait on the shipment.

The J-bonsai site has been around a while in one shape or another, used to be primarily stock trees and semi-finished trees for sale. Impractical mostly for buying those trees in the U.S., unless you want to wait on the importation process to grind ahead. I think there are some folks who have done that, but they're not numerous.

I don't really see any reason to order stuff from there, as most of the things (with the exception of some of the trees) can be found more immediately here in the U.S. But if you have a craving for "Japan centric" stuff, there's an argument to be made otherwise

Not sure about the fromjapan site. Looks to be following J-Bonsai's model.

I don't think either is out to rip you off, but you'd be ordering from Japan, with associated import fees (which could be expensive depending on what you get) and delay in getting whatever you ordered.

 

[geargarcon]

J-Bonsai has been around for some time. It's owned now by Yoshihiro Nakamizu and part of Bonsai Network Japan. He does a lot of bonsai stuff in Japan, including bonsai tours. I ordered a pot from them a very very long time ago. I vaguely remember the transaction--which involved a bank transfer and a month long wait on the shipment.

The J-bonsai site has been around a while in one shape or another, used to be primarily stock trees and semi-finished trees for sale. Impractical mostly for buying those trees in the U.S., unless you want to wait on the importation process to grind ahead. I think there are some folks who have done that, but they're not numerous.

I don't really see any reason to order stuff from there, as most of the things (with the exception of some of the trees) can be found more immediately here in the U.S. But if you have a craving for "Japan centric" stuff, there's an argument to be made otherwise

Not sure about the fromjapan site. Looks to be following J-Bonsai's model.

I don't think either is out to rip you off, but you'd be ordering from Japan, with associated import fees (which could be expensive depending on what you get) and delay in getting whatever you ordered.

Thank you for all of the info. The primary motivation is to get access to all of the tools. There are several items like the 6” Kikuwa scissor style wire cutter that aren’t available anywhere in the US (at least not that I can find).

Call me a cynic, but I’m often distrusting of websites I’m not familiar with that I cannot verify.

I ended up contacting j-bonsai through their website and received a prompt response. They are working in a shipping quote for me and I may move forward with a purchase shortly.

 

[geargarcon]

Placed an order with j-bonsai. The shipping was pretty high at 5,000 jpy. (Kaneshin shipping for the same weight is about 4,000 jpy). Everything showed up exactly as expected 4 days later.

I would highly recommend them if anyone is considering ordering from them.

 

[nixon451]

I have ordered from fromjapan-kt.com and everything went well.

After you place your order they figure out the shipping cost and email you the total price. If you agree to it, they send you a PayPal invoice.

 

[bonsaiDerek]

did you order trees? are they able to ship to the United states?

 

[yenling83]

I've purchased from J Bonsai with success. Certain items they have can work out to be cheaper than you can find them in the US. Good tip is to buy when the value of the dollar is high compared to the Yen. Also, if you use their slowest and cheapest shipping option-which takes a very long time(like 3-4 months) it can work out to much cheaper than you can find in the US. I would not ship pots via this method as things tend to get more beat up.

 

[Deep Sea Diver]

Also ordered from J-Bonsai at least three times in the past two years. … and vendors out of Japan and China for pots. No issues.

All tools. J-Bonsai arrival time was 2-4 weeks. Other vendors products arrived in 3 weeks to 1.5 months. A couple one offs were really fast… like less than 2 weeks.

There is a fine line between supporting the American potters and getting what one wants fairly quickly.

best
DSD

 

[Wood]

I ordered Masakuni tools (specifically the convex cutters) and large bundles of wire from j-bonsai.com and it went smooth. Took a little while to get the cutters in stock, but they were out of stock absolutely everywhere

 

[Wood]

vendors out of Japan and China for pots

which vendors, if you don't mind me asking? I've been curious about ordering pots from Japan but haven't found a good place

 

[Deep Sea Diver]

Convex cutters were impossible to get during COVID as their production lines all shut down due to loose demand. Waited two years. Ended up finding mine elsewhere. Glad to see the lines are back up

There is a seller on Facebook Mr Watsnabe who resides in Japan. He has a variety of stock. Once we purchased from him just messengered and he short me stock on hand that fit my needs.

A number of Chinese sellers work via Etsy. Here’s one.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/Zishacera...-name&listing_id=1094399469&from_page=listing

Cheers
DSD sends