HAP40 is a powdered high-speed semi-stainless steel from Hitachi Metals - and it has earned a devoted following among serious cooks for one reason above all others: edge retention that is simply in a different category from anything else. Kitchen knives made from HAP40 hold their edge three to five times longer than traditional carbon or stainless steels. At 65-66 HRC it is harder than Aogami Super, harder than SG2, and fine-grained enough to take a screaming sharp edge and give it back easily on quality water stones. CKTG has been calling it Voodoo Steel for years - and anyone who has used it understands why.
The nakiri is Japan dedicated vegetable knife - flat edge, tall blade, squared tip, built entirely for push-cutting produce. HAP40 in a nakiri is a remarkable combination - the edge retention that makes the steel famous deployed in the knife format that benefits most from not having to sharpen mid-service. The thin grind lets the blade pass through food with minimal resistance, and the 60/40 asymmetric edge, biased right, works equally well for right- and left-handed cooks. Stainless san-mai cladding over the HAP40 core keeps daily maintenance straightforward. Octagonal dark grey pakka wood handle, well balanced for board work. CKTG is the only source for the Kohetsu HAP40 line.
Care Instructions: HAP40 is a semi-stainless steel - the stainless cladding fully protects the flanks and the HAP40 core has meaningful corrosion resistance, but hand washing and drying after each use is still best practice. Avoid the dishwasher. HAP40 at 65-66 HRC is harder than most kitchen steels - use wood or rubber cutting boards only and avoid bones, frozen foods, and hard materials that could chip the edge. Sharpen on quality water stones; HAP40 sharpens more easily than most powdered steels but rewards patience and consistent angle. Strop regularly between sharpenings to maintain peak performance.
What Customers Are Saying: Reviewers consistently describe this nakiri as extremely sharp right out of the box, with several passing the newspaper test on delivery. More than one reviewer mentioned that while the factory edge is impressive, taking it to a proper set of water stones unlocks noticeably more performance, bringing the blade to a mirror finish beyond what it ships with.
The nakiri is Japan dedicated vegetable knife - flat edge, tall blade, squared tip, built entirely for push-cutting produce. HAP40 in a nakiri is a remarkable combination - the edge retention that makes the steel famous deployed in the knife format that benefits most from not having to sharpen mid-service. The thin grind lets the blade pass through food with minimal resistance, and the 60/40 asymmetric edge, biased right, works equally well for right- and left-handed cooks. Stainless san-mai cladding over the HAP40 core keeps daily maintenance straightforward. Octagonal dark grey pakka wood handle, well balanced for board work. CKTG is the only source for the Kohetsu HAP40 line.
Care Instructions: HAP40 is a semi-stainless steel - the stainless cladding fully protects the flanks and the HAP40 core has meaningful corrosion resistance, but hand washing and drying after each use is still best practice. Avoid the dishwasher. HAP40 at 65-66 HRC is harder than most kitchen steels - use wood or rubber cutting boards only and avoid bones, frozen foods, and hard materials that could chip the edge. Sharpen on quality water stones; HAP40 sharpens more easily than most powdered steels but rewards patience and consistent angle. Strop regularly between sharpenings to maintain peak performance.
What Customers Are Saying: Reviewers consistently describe this nakiri as extremely sharp right out of the box, with several passing the newspaper test on delivery. More than one reviewer mentioned that while the factory edge is impressive, taking it to a proper set of water stones unlocks noticeably more performance, bringing the blade to a mirror finish beyond what it ships with.
- Brand: Kohetsu
- Exclusive: CKTG Exclusive - Available Only at CKTG
- Blacksmith: Tsukahara Family
- Location: Seki City, Japan
- Construction: Laser Cut, San Mai
- Edge Steel: HAP40 Semi Stainless (Powdered High Speed Steel)
- Cladding: Stainless Steel
- HRC: 65-66
- Edge Grind: 60/40 Asymmetric Double Bevel
- Etching: Acid Etched Kanji
- Handle: Octagonal Dark Grey Pakka Wood
- Blade Length: 165mm
p. Passes the newspaper test with flying colors. The sharpest I've ever had a knife come from the factory. But if you have a set of proper stones, there's much more there. I have a shapton ceramic 10k stone that brings the blade to a mirror finish. This knife gets crazy sharp. Above and beyond my Shuns. I nearly shaved the finger print off my thumb by being stupid and handling it like a normal knife. You could do surgery with this when properly sharpened and polished. Great handle, good hand feel, glides through veggies like nothing.
Was this rating helpful to you? !
Posted By: usmcpaul@hotmail.com - verified customer
4 people found this review helpful
This knife is awesome. It was razor sharp out of the box and it feels great in my hand. It looks amazing on my knife display board. The delivery was very fast and it arrived safely. I have 2 other Japanese knives and I really enjoy using them all, but this one is exceptionally sharp and feels great in my hand.
4 people found this review helpful
This knife is awesome. It was razor sharp out of the box and it feels great in my hand. It looks amazing on my knife display board. The delivery was very fast and it arrived safely. I have 2 other Japanese knives and I really enjoy using them all, but this one is exceptionally sharp and feels great in my hand.
Awesome knife, needs to be properly sharpened to show true potentialPosted By: Matt Z - verified customer
5 people found this review helpful
From the factory, very sharp. Passes the newspaper test with flying colors. The sharpest I've ever had a knife come from the factory. But if you have a set of proper stones, there's much more there. I have a shapton ceramic 10k stone that brings the blade to a mirror finish. This knife gets crazy sharp. Above and beyond my Shuns. I nearly shaved the finger print off my thumb by being stupid and handling it like a normal knife. You could do surgery with this when properly sharpened and polished. Great handle, good hand feel, glides through veggies like nothing.
5 people found this review helpful
From the factory, very sharp. Passes the newspaper test with flying colors. The sharpest I've ever had a knife come from the factory. But if you have a set of proper stones, there's much more there. I have a shapton ceramic 10k stone that brings the blade to a mirror finish. This knife gets crazy sharp. Above and beyond my Shuns. I nearly shaved the finger print off my thumb by being stupid and handling it like a normal knife. You could do surgery with this when properly sharpened and polished. Great handle, good hand feel, glides through veggies like nothing.
Was this rating helpful to you? !
Posted By: usmcpaul@hotmail.com - verified customer
4 people found this review helpful
This knife is awesome. It was razor sharp out of the box and it feels great in my hand. It looks amazing on my knife display board. The delivery was very fast and it arrived safely. I have 2 other Japanese knives and I really enjoy using them all, but this one is exceptionally sharp and feels great in my hand.
4 people found this review helpful
This knife is awesome. It was razor sharp out of the box and it feels great in my hand. It looks amazing on my knife display board. The delivery was very fast and it arrived safely. I have 2 other Japanese knives and I really enjoy using them all, but this one is exceptionally sharp and feels great in my hand.
Awesome knife, needs to be properly sharpened to show true potentialPosted By: Matt Z - verified customer
5 people found this review helpful
From the factory, very sharp. Passes the newspaper test with flying colors. The sharpest I've ever had a knife come from the factory. But if you have a set of proper stones, there's much more there. I have a shapton ceramic 10k stone that brings the blade to a mirror finish. This knife gets crazy sharp. Above and beyond my Shuns. I nearly shaved the finger print off my thumb by being stupid and handling it like a normal knife. You could do surgery with this when properly sharpened and polished. Great handle, good hand feel, glides through veggies like nothing.
5 people found this review helpful
From the factory, very sharp. Passes the newspaper test with flying colors. The sharpest I've ever had a knife come from the factory. But if you have a set of proper stones, there's much more there. I have a shapton ceramic 10k stone that brings the blade to a mirror finish. This knife gets crazy sharp. Above and beyond my Shuns. I nearly shaved the finger print off my thumb by being stupid and handling it like a normal knife. You could do surgery with this when properly sharpened and polished. Great handle, good hand feel, glides through veggies like nothing.
Was this rating helpful to you? !
Posted By: usmcpaul@hotmail.com - verified customer
4 people found this review helpful
This knife is awesome. It was razor sharp out of the box and it feels great in my hand. It looks amazing on my knife display board. The delivery was very fast and it arrived safely. I have 2 other Japanese knives and I really enjoy using them all, but this one is exceptionally sharp and feels great in my hand.
4 people found this review helpful
This knife is awesome. It was razor sharp out of the box and it feels great in my hand. It looks amazing on my knife display board. The delivery was very fast and it arrived safely. I have 2 other Japanese knives and I really enjoy using them all, but this one is exceptionally sharp and feels great in my hand.
Awesome knife, needs to be properly sharpened to show true potentialPosted By: Matt Z - verified customer
5 people found this review helpful
From the factory, very sharp. Passes the newspaper test with flying colors. The sharpest I've ever had a knife come from the factory. But if you have a set of proper stones, there's much more there. I have a shapton ceramic 10k stone that brings the blade to a mirror finish. This knife gets crazy sharp. Above and beyond my Shuns. I nearly shaved the finger print off my thumb by being stupid and handling it like a normal knife. You could do surgery with this when properly sharpened and polished. Great handle, good hand feel, glides through veggies like nothing.
5 people found this review helpful
From the factory, very sharp. Passes the newspaper test with flying colors. The sharpest I've ever had a knife come from the factory. But if you have a set of proper stones, there's much more there. I have a shapton ceramic 10k stone that brings the blade to a mirror finish. This knife gets crazy sharp. Above and beyond my Shuns. I nearly shaved the finger print off my thumb by being stupid and handling it like a normal knife. You could do surgery with this when properly sharpened and polished. Great handle, good hand feel, glides through veggies like nothing.
Cuts sharp stays sharpPosted By: AP - verified customer
5 people found this review helpful
I am not a professional, just home cook. I made some research before buying my first Japanese kitchen knife and decided to try HAP40 steel an Nakiri since I am 99% of the time cutting vegetables. I decided to get the Japanese style handle to stay true to the original concept. After 5 months of usage I am very happy with my choice. Nakiri shape really works well with vegetable cutting. And the knife was very sharp out of the box and stayed sharp. During the 5 months usage, I once touched up on the blade with 1 micron diamond paste with strop, and recently with a 8000 grit water stone followed with 1 micron diamond paste strop. Since the edge was still sharp comparatively, these touch ups took very little time and effort. The knife is for right handed usage, it has a 15 degree angle on one side, and about 5 degree angle on the other. It is more like a chisel grind edge. Out of the box the knife was very sharp. The edge was mirror finish honed. It developed two very small chips during usage, but you can't tell they are there unless you cut a paper and feel a small amount of resistance at the chips. Since they are small chips I could remove them with a bit more sharpening, but I didn't feel the need. Because it is very sharp anyways. It is a fine instrument, needs care in usage, but it is worth the care. After each use, I run water over the blade and wipe it off dry with cloth immediately. Recently it developed a slight patina on the HAP40 edge. My only critic would be that the stainless steel cladding could be a bit more harder metal. It scratches easily by other stainless steel knifes. But that just results in cosmetic issue.
5 people found this review helpful
I am not a professional, just home cook. I made some research before buying my first Japanese kitchen knife and decided to try HAP40 steel an Nakiri since I am 99% of the time cutting vegetables. I decided to get the Japanese style handle to stay true to the original concept. After 5 months of usage I am very happy with my choice. Nakiri shape really works well with vegetable cutting. And the knife was very sharp out of the box and stayed sharp. During the 5 months usage, I once touched up on the blade with 1 micron diamond paste with strop, and recently with a 8000 grit water stone followed with 1 micron diamond paste strop. Since the edge was still sharp comparatively, these touch ups took very little time and effort. The knife is for right handed usage, it has a 15 degree angle on one side, and about 5 degree angle on the other. It is more like a chisel grind edge. Out of the box the knife was very sharp. The edge was mirror finish honed. It developed two very small chips during usage, but you can't tell they are there unless you cut a paper and feel a small amount of resistance at the chips. Since they are small chips I could remove them with a bit more sharpening, but I didn't feel the need. Because it is very sharp anyways. It is a fine instrument, needs care in usage, but it is worth the care. After each use, I run water over the blade and wipe it off dry with cloth immediately. Recently it developed a slight patina on the HAP40 edge. My only critic would be that the stainless steel cladding could be a bit more harder metal. It scratches easily by other stainless steel knifes. But that just results in cosmetic issue.
Kohetsu Nakiri Posted By: Fred Richards - verified customer
5 people found this review helpful
This is my first knife with HAP40 steel. I made the mistake of cutting bread with a hard crust with this knife. HAP 40 is a very hard steel but with this comes brittleness. The knife works great on vegetables but one must be careful about cutting harder foods like bread crusts. Cutting the bread caused micro chips on the edge of the knives. Resharpening took a while but I was able to restore the edge with Japanese waterstones. Now that I understand the limitations of the knife I have not sharpened it for several months and it is till sharp enough to cut hairs. I now strictly use the knife for cutting vegetables which is really the main purpose of a Nakiri. Overall, I am happy with the knife.
5 people found this review helpful
This is my first knife with HAP40 steel. I made the mistake of cutting bread with a hard crust with this knife. HAP 40 is a very hard steel but with this comes brittleness. The knife works great on vegetables but one must be careful about cutting harder foods like bread crusts. Cutting the bread caused micro chips on the edge of the knives. Resharpening took a while but I was able to restore the edge with Japanese waterstones. Now that I understand the limitations of the knife I have not sharpened it for several months and it is till sharp enough to cut hairs. I now strictly use the knife for cutting vegetables which is really the main purpose of a Nakiri. Overall, I am happy with the knife.
