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What bonsai tools are indispensable, and not easily faked/substituted?

Hi. I'm a newbie. Not entirely new to the world of bonsai, but new to doing it for myself, and now no longer near a city with a bonsai shop to consult. What, IYO, are the cannot-do-without tools for bonsai growing and shaping, and in what order do I need them? What can I substitute with a cheaper a western tool that gives almost as good a result? What has no acceptable substitute?

Also, I have half a dozen 2 yo Oregon White Oak (Q. Garryana) seedlings that I grew with the idea of eventually bonsaiing them. They're in pots. Is there anything I should be doing now (the beginning of their third spring - they're still dormant) or is this a matter of just letting them grow?

Tools you need depends on the materials you have and the tchniques you want to do.

As the seedlings are mentioned, they don't need any tools for now.

Oregon oak on the other hand.. doesn't it have too big leaves?

I once wrote down my thoughts on this:

I have once showed my small tool case here:
www.bonsaiempire.com/forum/tools/10748-show-me-your-tools

Thank you everyone for your responses. It sounds like the most-used tool is a pair of straight shears, followed by concave nippers. Is this true? The shears can be faked by other tools, but the nippers seem unique. Is that true? These must have a particular name in Japanese, but I don't know it.

Does anyone have an extra pair of nippers they want to sell? I'm in Canada (BC), for postage considerations.

As for the Oregon Oaks (known hereabouts as Garry Oaks) the leaves are actually smaller than most oak species. I dunno if the strategy of plucking the first growth of leaves will work, but that's my hope, if they ever get to 'display' size.

Pruning shears.
Chopsticks.
Root shears.
Concave cutter.
Side branch cutter.
Wire cutter.

S1m0n wrote: Does anyone have an extra pair of nippers they want to sell? I'm in Canada (BC), for postage considerations.

These tools can become quite expensive if bought without the proper knowledge. So far Leatherback and Clicio have provided useful information. Do run a search on local providers and even on the Internet. Make sure to buy those indispensable tools previously highlighted but don?t overbuy, or you?ll end up stuck with a bunch of tools you won?t be using in quite a long time, if ever at all. Here, being in Canada, this link might prove useful to you:

www.bonsaiempire.com/locations/bonsai-trees-for-sale#Canada

Hope it helps.

Alain

Sorry to bring this thread up once more, but after some years growing bonsai now I am pretty sure.
The tool almost every expert say is mandatory, the concave cutter, is very low on my usage list.
The ones I use all the time are:
Pruning shears.
Side branch cutter.
Chopsticks.
Root shears.
Wire pliers.
Wire cutter.

Tbh the only things you need are cutters( i use regular rose pruning ones ), wire cutters, a knife can be useful, and of course wire:cheer: none of these have to be expensive. As you become more experienced and try out more advanced tequniques, you will certainly need more tools, but i believe those are the core ones. Good luck!