Ameican Bonsai Tools?

RPJR

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I am new to this hobby. I was wondering if anyone has used American Bonsai Tools? They look like well-made, high-quality tools. My problem is that the company won't communicate with me. I have contacted them several times to ask a few questions about the different tools and materials they are made of, and about shipping methods. No answer.
Perhaps some of you know if this company is okay to do business with. Thanks.
 

shimbrypaku

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Good tools,I have had the same issue with communication.

I believe they are expanding and in the middle of moving to a new site, still I would hope for better customer service.
Thanks
 

RPJR

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Thank you for the information.😀
 

Carkybones

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I just purchased wire cutters and wire. Very good products and shipped fast. As someone else mentioned, they are moving so that could be the reason for the delay.
 

Cable

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I use a different brand but I've always heard good things about them and wouldn't hesitate to buy
 
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I have always had a good experience. I'm waiting on an order and a response to an email as well, it has been awhile but my assumption is that they are heads down on the move and that it isn't an operation with a fleet of customer service reps sitting around ignoring me :)

Good experience with their tools so far. I think I prefer carbon steel though.
 

Hartinez

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I’ve never had a problem with the tools, though I will say. They don’t stay as sharp as I would like. Fortunately they typically have good customer service. I think as another user said also, they are in the middle Of expansion into a new space, which would leave me to believe though that the communication would be a bit more on point. You may want to consider kaneshin tools also. I’ve heard great things. Japanese made, but one of our resident BNutters @Eric Schrader has a great collection of those tools on his site.
 

Forsoothe!

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They are best known for their stainless steal line which is affordable. Bonsai tools are kind of like cars: pick a price range and I'll show you a product. They all do the job, but some are really pricey. Are they worth it? The people paying big bucks swear by theirs, but the cheaper lines also work just fine. Like anything else, you buy as good as you can. Here's a picture of my favorite American Bonsai flush cutter. It's embossed, "People's Choice Award". It has a special place in my heart...
AABS HLS 2021 People's Choice Award.JPG
 

ShimpakuBonsai

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If I look at the tools of American Bonsai and some other brands like Ruyga and Matsu I always think that those tools are made by Tian Bonsai in China because the looks very much te same.
Tian Bonsai sells their own products but they also are an OEM manifacturer for many famous brands (according to their website).
 

Eric Schrader

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If I look at the tools of American Bonsai and some other brands like Ruyga and Matsu I always think that those tools are made by Tian Bonsai in China because the looks very much te same.
Tian Bonsai sells their own products but they also are an OEM manifacturer for many famous brands (according to their website).
I believe you are 100% correct.
However, you might also note that not even Kaneshin, or Joshua Roth make their own tools. I think Masakuni may be the only brand that doesn't outsource production to Chinese firms. (Don't quote me on that though.)
But, tool quality is a subtle thing, I stock tools that I like and have used, but there are better tools out there. I used a $22 ARS scissor for ten years when I had a $200 Masakuni scissor in my tool bag the whole time. Then my entire bag got stolen and I had to think about what I was using again.
 

Dzhokar

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I believe you are 100% correct.
However, you might also note that not even Kaneshin, or .......... make their own tools.
Are you sure about this? Kaneshin's website talks about training younger craftsmen and the difference in quality from a 10yr experienced craftsman and one who has 20+ yrs experience.
They even have videos of the forging and sharpening of some tools.
 

Eric Schrader

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Are you sure about this? Kaneshin's website talks about training younger craftsmen and the difference in quality from a 10yr experienced craftsman and one who has 20+ yrs experience.
They even have videos of the forging and sharpening of some tools.
They have multiple lines of tools. I believe that they may make the tools that are marketed as "hand made" and they outsource the production of the tools that are on the lower end.
I was told this by a person who orders from them wholesale, but no I'm not 100% sure.
 

Forsoothe!

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A couple observations: High quality is a product of high standards, and having some or all the work preformed by outside vendors doesn't preclude the highest standard goods. A company can enforce high standards inside or outside the company by strict inspection regimen, inside or outside the company's premises and employing suitable vendors. Doing the work inside the company does allow for better control of the flow of goods in that when you are your own customer, your goods go to the head of the line, but quality can be at whatever level you insist upon as long as you are willing to pay for it. You don't always get what you pay for, but you always pay for what you get. If you always let the job to the lowest bidder, you get the lowest price goods. If the lowest price goods is not your goal, then you are more careful about who does the work.
 

Katie0317

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A couple observations: High quality is a product of high standards, and having some or all the work preformed by outside vendors doesn't preclude the highest standard goods. A company can enforce high standards inside or outside the company by strict inspection regimen, inside or outside the company's premises and employing suitable vendors. Doing the work inside the company does allow for better control of the flow of goods in that when you are your own customer, your goods go to the head of the line, but quality can be at whatever level you insist upon as long as you are willing to pay for it. You don't always get what you pay for, but you always pay for what you get. If you always let the job to the lowest bidder, you get the lowest price goods. If the lowest price goods is not your goal, then you are more careful about who does the work.
i believe this is true. There are only a few places anymore in the world that grind lenses. So the same cheap camera lenses you see might be ground by the same company that grinds Nikon's lenses but they're done to an entirely different standard. A company pays a certain price point and they get what they pay for. Quality control assures that the expensive lenses are done to the specifications ordered etc...

I happened to meet @Jeramiah owner of Sumo Bonsai Supply on Bonsainut and via messaging he knew I was shopping for a pair of concave cutters. He's a very honest person and said that AB tools were fine...He didn't knock them at all. AB was what I was planning to buy. I really wanted to support his Sumo business on one hand but living in Florida I knew I needed to go with stainless steel. I couldn't imagine paying that much for Kaneshin cutters but then my husband got on board with bonsai and I thought that seemed more reasonable since it would be two of us using them. (Rationalizing...)

In one pm Jeramiah said 'You get what you pay for" and based on my experience with various tools it was as if a light bulb went off in my head and I went ahead and splurged on the Kaneshin. He was putting in an order to Japan so paying half on paypal didn't seem so bad. They're on their way to me now and I'd be lying if I said I'm not excited and looking forward to getting them. They'll last a lifetime. I'm going to wrap a thin piece of colored tape on the upper handle so in a classroom situation they're easy to identify.
 

Dzhokar

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They have multiple lines of tools. I believe that they may make the tools that are marketed as "hand made" and they outsource the production of the tools that are on the lower end.
I was told this by a person who orders from them wholesale, but no I'm not 100% sure.
Ah k. Was just wondering if you might have some inside info. Wouldn't change my enjoyment of the tools I've purchased from them :)
As Forsoothe said, outsourcing isn't necessarily an indication of lesser quality. But as a consumer, it would be nice to know.
 

Lorax7

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If I look at the tools of American Bonsai and some other brands like Ruyga and Matsu I always think that those tools are made by Tian Bonsai in China because the looks very much te same.
Tian Bonsai sells their own products but they also are an OEM manifacturer for many famous brands (according to their website).
I have no experience with American Bonsai Tools, although I've heard good things about them.

I do have some experience with Tian Bonsai's "beginner" line of bonsai tools and cannot recommend them. I bought their 7-piece beginner bonsai tool kit (BBTKS-01). I'm still using 6 of the 7 tools. The scissors from the toolkit are now unusable. They bent significantly just from cutting a branch that they should've been able to cut without problem. That shouldn't have happened. Either the steel was too soft in the first place to be suitable for use in tools or they weren't forged and heat treated correctly.
 

Bonsai Nut

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If I look at the tools of American Bonsai and some other brands like Ruyga and Matsu I always think that those tools are made by Tian Bonsai in China because the looks very much te same.
Tian Bonsai sells their own products but they also are an OEM manifacturer for many famous brands (according to their website).

Last time I checked the majority of American Bonsai tools were designed and manufactured here in the US in central Florida.

We started our first business in 2002. By 2012, our product line included over 300 machined and fabricated components. All of our products were designed and engineered in-house, 100% made in the USA, and covered by our Lifetime Warranty.

I asked them about this when I was at the Bonsaiathon a couple of years ago - in 2018 I believe. At the time they said they manufactured about 95% of all of their products in the US - and were hoping to get to 100%. I believe their background in manufacturing was in custom auto part manufacturing for high-end performance cars, so they are used to manufacturing to extremely tight tolerances. Having your tool manufactured by a computer-controlled machine is a completely different approach versus the classic handmade approach... kinda like how some people swear by hand-forged kitchen knives.
 

Eric Schrader

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Last time I checked the majority of American Bonsai tools were designed and manufactured here in the US in central Florida.

We started our first business in 2002. By 2012, our product line included over 300 machined and fabricated components. All of our products were designed and engineered in-house, 100% made in the USA, and covered by our Lifetime Warranty.

I asked them about this when I was at the Bonsaiathon a couple of years ago - in 2018 I believe. At the time they said they manufactured about 95% of all of their products in the US - and were hoping to get to 100%. I believe their background in manufacturing was in custom auto part manufacturing for high-end performance cars, so they are used to manufacturing to extremely tight tolerances. Having your tool manufactured by a computer-controlled machine is a completely different approach versus the classic handmade approach... kinda like how some people swear by hand-forged kitchen knives.
Word on the street does contradict this. But I'm no authority.
 
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