Editorial Standards
Editorial Standards
Every article published by Japanese Knife Lab follows the standards and procedures set out below. This page documents how we work, so readers can judge our reporting against a clear and public benchmark.
Sources
The credibility of a knife article depends on where its information comes from. We prioritize primary sources whenever possible.
Primary Sources (preferred)
- • Editor visits to Kappabashi, Sakai, Seki, Echizen, Tsubame-Sanjo, and Tosa
- • Direct conversations with bladesmiths and shop owners
- • Hands-on cutting and use tests by the editor (minimum 4 weeks)
- • Pricing from actual purchase receipts
Secondary Sources (supporting)
- • Manufacturer spec sheets and official catalogs
- • Peer-reviewed metallurgy and materials science papers
- • Official publications from METI and traditional-craft associations
- • Specialist books (with full bibliographic citations)
What we don't use
- • Anonymous forum or social-media claims
- • Undisclosed paid reviews or sponsored content presented as editorial
- • Numbers we can't trace back to a verifiable original source
- • Unverified AI-generated assertions
Fact-Checking
Every numerical claim in an article — HRC hardness, price, blade length in millimeters, weight in grams, release year — must be backed by a verifiable source. The editor-in-chief checks each article before publication.
Verification process
- 1.The writing editor attaches a source to every factual claim, inline or in footnotes.
- 2.The editor-in-chief cross-references every number against its source.
- 3.Unverifiable claims are either removed or labelled "Japanese Knife Lab estimate".
- 4.If an error surfaces after publication, we correct it within 24 hours of detection.
Affiliate Disclosure
Japanese Knife Lab may earn commission when readers click through to retailers (Amazon Associates, Rakuten Affiliate, and direct retail programs) and complete a purchase. This is disclosed on our main about page and on individual articles where applicable.
Our commitments
- • Affiliate links never influence ranking position or rating in our articles.
- • Partner shops (including Kappabashi retailers we have commercial relationships with) receive no ranking preference.
- • Any sponsored content is clearly labeled "Sponsored" at the top of the page.
- • We only feature products we've personally evaluated, with or without an affiliate program.
We comply with the FTC Endorsement Guides (U.S.), the EU Unfair Commercial Practices Directive, and Japan's stealth-marketing regulations enforced by the Consumer Affairs Agency since October 2023.
Corrections Policy
Errors are always logged, never silently overwritten. Readers' trust depends on the transparency of our corrections.
Minor corrections
Typos and formatting fixes. We log the correction date and the change at the bottom of the article.
Factual corrections
Corrections to HRC, prices, dimensions, or dates. A correction box appears at the top of the article, and the URL is resubmitted via the Indexing API.
Major errors
Errors that change the article's conclusion trigger a retraction. The retracted page redirects to a corrected version with a public note.
AI Usage Policy
We use AI tools as part of our editorial workflow — but no article on this site is published without human editorial review. AI-only content is never published.
How we use AI
- • Permitted uses: initial translation drafts (JA → EN/FR/DE), outline assistance, grammar and style checks.
- • Prohibited uses: generating facts or numbers, writing review conclusions, filling gaps in unverified data.
Every published article goes through human fact-checking and a final editorial pass. For French and German content, a native-language editor also reviews translations before publication.
Conflict of Interest
When editorial team members have personal or commercial relationships with shops, bladesmiths, or brands, we disclose them individually on our team page.
No member of our team accepts payment from any retailer or manufacturer in exchange for ranking position or favorable coverage. This rule is absolute and non-negotiable.