Feel free to move this post if needed. wondering if anyone has any basic bonsai tools available for a reasonable price or... maybe donate to a beginne

[bonsaiboy60077]

Wondering if anyone in the chicago area, I'm on the north side of chicago, near evanston, has any basic beginner bonasi tools they would be willing to donate or sell cheaply to a beginner?

thanks much in advance. have some nice trees but need the care tools.

 

[Pitoon]

You don't need "Bonsai Tools" to practice bonsai, but if you need "Bonsai Tools" on the cheap I would hit up Ebay.

 

[bonsaiboy60077]

actually only have some kinda crappy pruners and then a very small pruner type cutter.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

All you really need is a hardware store.
My snub nose wire cutters were 14 euros.
My flat branch cutter is a nail remover, 3 euro. Filed down flat.
My bonsai scissors are hobby store, 99 cents.
Root rake? A bent fork with a paracord wrapped handle.
Chop sticks from take away food.
I ditched my 50 dollar grafting knife for a 2 dollar box cutter.

Carving tools, branch splitters? Check out horse smithing goods. Same tools, half the price.

I got a concave cutter from china/ebay for 20 dollars.
Tools don't make the tree. They can make it slightly better, but it's mostly the person that does the work.

 

[BeepBeepBonsaiSheep]

Harbor Freight should have pruning shears ($11). Def will have wire cutters ($3.50)

That’s all you really need as a beginner

 

[Frozentreehugger]

A friend of mine has a amazing work of art . The realism is unbelievable. It’s a portrait of his face in charcoal on wood . The artist was a 11 year old girl in Haiti when he was stationed there in the military . During a disaster relief mission . She used a piece of burnt wood . From her families cooking fire on the side of the road . The canvass is a scrap of construction wood .

 

[ShadyStump]

Didn't Peter Chan of Herons Bonsai write a book in the 80s or 90s where every tree he styled for it was done with regular garden pruners?

I use kitchen shears, but splurged once on some decent hair cutting scissors for finer work. Walmart: $10
My Gerber multi tool gets put away in the kitchen utensil drawer next to the stove. I use those things for EVERYTHING. Thinking of upgrading to a Leatherman and giving the Gerber to my oldest daughter for her 1st pocket knife.

Chop sticks from take away food.

Break too easily for me, so I just skip the tomien poisoning and grab any stick that's handy.

Carving tools, branch splitters? Check out horse smithing goods. Same tools, half the price.

Never thought of ferrier tools before. I'll have to check into that.

 

[ShimpakuBonsai]

Cheap tools are everywhere, have a look at a thrift store because sometimes you can find old pruning tools and scissors.

 

[sorce]

Sorce

 

[Mikecheck123]

You don't need "Bonsai Tools" to practice bonsai, but if you need "Bonsai Tools" on the cheap I would hit up Ebay.

Exactly. A pair of scissors, a chopstick, and a cake spatula will get you pretty far.

 

[FinnLakk]

a cake spatula

What do you use that for??

 

[amcoffeegirl]

What do you use that for??

I’m going to age myself right now- but this made me think of the movie stripes. Lol
I love Bill Murray.

 

[RJG2]

What do you use that for??

I'm guessing to slide around the edge of the pot to loosen a tree for repotting.

 

[Mikecheck123]

I'm guessing to slide around the edge of the pot to loosen a tree for repotting.

Yes. It's longer and thinner than the standard issue root rake and costs half as much. Plus, you can hammer one end of it for really tough ones.

 

[TinyArt]

I’m going to age myself right now- but this made me think of the movie stripes. Lol
I love Bill Murray.

Now that takes me back, what, 40 years?
Really should call my friend Alan...