Okeya is a small father and son blacksmith shop that produces well-designed kitchen knives at genuinely attractive prices, using high-quality materials throughout. This honesuki is built around Hitachi White Paper #2 steel hardened to 60 HRC, with the hagane (inner core) protected by a layer of softer steel and the jigane (outer layer) finished with an attractive hairline texture.
This particular honesuki uses a double-sided edge rather than the traditional single bevel - a choice that makes it accessible to both left- and right-handed cooks and considerably easier to sharpen than a single-bevel alternative. The triangular profile and stiff, tough blade are purpose-built for processing poultry: the extremely pointed tip navigates joints cleanly, though a cleaver remains the right tool for breaking bones. The oval ho wood handle with black plastic ferrule keeps the package simple and budget-friendly, making this a worthwhile entry point for cooks new to specialized poultry work.
What Customers Are Saying: Alan Mundy purchased this as an introduction to honesuki knives, expecting fit, finish, and handle materials to be sacrificed for the low price - and found the knife met his expectations across the board. The core steel takes an edge easily, which mattered since the out-of-the-box edge was somewhat rough. He notes the relatively low hardening for carbon steel is a deliberate tradeoff: a higher heat treat would risk frequent chipping against the bone and cartilage contact this knife regularly encounters. After breaking down several birds and occasionally slicing through cartilage and small bones, he saw zero issues. He notes the core is reactive enough to develop patina and dark spots, but even without religious cleaning habits, no rust appeared. He would not recommend it to a high-volume professional, but for a home cook this specialty knife performs exactly as intended.
Care Instructions: White #2 is a reactive carbon steel and will patina with use. Wipe and dry the blade immediately after use. Hand wash only. Apply camellia oil for long-term storage.
This particular honesuki uses a double-sided edge rather than the traditional single bevel - a choice that makes it accessible to both left- and right-handed cooks and considerably easier to sharpen than a single-bevel alternative. The triangular profile and stiff, tough blade are purpose-built for processing poultry: the extremely pointed tip navigates joints cleanly, though a cleaver remains the right tool for breaking bones. The oval ho wood handle with black plastic ferrule keeps the package simple and budget-friendly, making this a worthwhile entry point for cooks new to specialized poultry work.
What Customers Are Saying: Alan Mundy purchased this as an introduction to honesuki knives, expecting fit, finish, and handle materials to be sacrificed for the low price - and found the knife met his expectations across the board. The core steel takes an edge easily, which mattered since the out-of-the-box edge was somewhat rough. He notes the relatively low hardening for carbon steel is a deliberate tradeoff: a higher heat treat would risk frequent chipping against the bone and cartilage contact this knife regularly encounters. After breaking down several birds and occasionally slicing through cartilage and small bones, he saw zero issues. He notes the core is reactive enough to develop patina and dark spots, but even without religious cleaning habits, no rust appeared. He would not recommend it to a high-volume professional, but for a home cook this specialty knife performs exactly as intended.
Care Instructions: White #2 is a reactive carbon steel and will patina with use. Wipe and dry the blade immediately after use. Hand wash only. Apply camellia oil for long-term storage.
- Blacksmith: Okeya
- Location: Miki, Japan
- Construction: Hammer Forged, San Mai
- Edge Steel: White #2 Carbon Steel
- Cladding: Soft Iron
- HRC: 60
- Finish: Hairline / Sand Blast
- Edge Grind: Even Double Bevel
- Handle: Oval Ho Wood
- Ferrule: Black Plastic
- Weight: 2.9 oz (82 g)
- Blade Length: 152mm
- Total Length: 296mm
- Spine Thickness at Base: 2mm
- Blade Height: 36mm
Reviews
1 review(s) WRITE A REVIEW (Reviews are subject to approval) Good Starter HonesukiPosted By: Alan Mundy - verified customer
29 people found this review helpful
I purchased this knife as an introduction to Honesukis with good steel at a low price, understanding that things like fit and finish, handle materials and blade grind would be sacrificed to achieve the low price point.The knife met my expectations across the board. The core steel takes a nice edge very easily, which is good because the out of the box edge was mediocre and pretty rough. The hardening of the steel is relatively low for carbon steel but that's a given with this type of knife that is going to run up against cartilage and bone on a regular basis. A super high heat treat would likely result in frequent chipping when those inevitable bone/cartilage collisions. I have broken down a few birds and have missed a few joints and ending up slicing through cartilage and even small bones with zero issues. The core steel is pretty reactive, but only to the extent of developing patina/dark spots. I haven't always been religious about cleaning the knife immediately after cutting and it hasn't shown any signs of rusting.With a lower heat treat comes lower edge retention. For a home cook this is probably fine because this is a specialty knife and you're not putting much wear on it, and again, it sharpens up nicely. I would not recommend this knife to a pro who is going to be breaking down multiple birds a day as the edge retention would probably become a hassle.Blade geometry is good. The edge has a nice continuous profile with no flat spots or curves. It is thick behind the edge, but that's what you expect with a honesuki. For that reason it's a mediocre performer at slicing, so I wouldn't recommend this as an all around knife or petty replacement. The tip is nicely profiled and would serve for detail work, though the overall size of the blade would make any fine detail work a little awkward.Fit and finish are mediocre. The plastic ferrule feels cheap and there's a noticeable ridge where it meets the handle. The handle itself is not sanded very smooth. I will hit it with sandpaper in the future to resolve both of these issues. The kanji on the blade are done with an engraver rather than chiseled. The blade road feels acid etched rather than a differential grind, but I can't be sure. The hairline finish overlaps the blade road in a number of spots. Again, these are all things you have to expect with this grade of steel at this price point, costs have to be saved somewhere.For the price point, I think the steel, blade geometry and grind are all excellent value. Fit and finish and the finer details of craftsmanship are where the low price point shows. I would recommend this knife for a home chef who isn't going to use the knife frequently but wants a nice performer when they pull it out. It's also a good trial honesuki to determine if it's a type of knife you want to invest more in later. A professional who is going to make regular/heavy use of the knife will likely want something with better edge retention and better fit and finish properties.
29 people found this review helpful
I purchased this knife as an introduction to Honesukis with good steel at a low price, understanding that things like fit and finish, handle materials and blade grind would be sacrificed to achieve the low price point.The knife met my expectations across the board. The core steel takes a nice edge very easily, which is good because the out of the box edge was mediocre and pretty rough. The hardening of the steel is relatively low for carbon steel but that's a given with this type of knife that is going to run up against cartilage and bone on a regular basis. A super high heat treat would likely result in frequent chipping when those inevitable bone/cartilage collisions. I have broken down a few birds and have missed a few joints and ending up slicing through cartilage and even small bones with zero issues. The core steel is pretty reactive, but only to the extent of developing patina/dark spots. I haven't always been religious about cleaning the knife immediately after cutting and it hasn't shown any signs of rusting.With a lower heat treat comes lower edge retention. For a home cook this is probably fine because this is a specialty knife and you're not putting much wear on it, and again, it sharpens up nicely. I would not recommend this knife to a pro who is going to be breaking down multiple birds a day as the edge retention would probably become a hassle.Blade geometry is good. The edge has a nice continuous profile with no flat spots or curves. It is thick behind the edge, but that's what you expect with a honesuki. For that reason it's a mediocre performer at slicing, so I wouldn't recommend this as an all around knife or petty replacement. The tip is nicely profiled and would serve for detail work, though the overall size of the blade would make any fine detail work a little awkward.Fit and finish are mediocre. The plastic ferrule feels cheap and there's a noticeable ridge where it meets the handle. The handle itself is not sanded very smooth. I will hit it with sandpaper in the future to resolve both of these issues. The kanji on the blade are done with an engraver rather than chiseled. The blade road feels acid etched rather than a differential grind, but I can't be sure. The hairline finish overlaps the blade road in a number of spots. Again, these are all things you have to expect with this grade of steel at this price point, costs have to be saved somewhere.For the price point, I think the steel, blade geometry and grind are all excellent value. Fit and finish and the finer details of craftsmanship are where the low price point shows. I would recommend this knife for a home chef who isn't going to use the knife frequently but wants a nice performer when they pull it out. It's also a good trial honesuki to determine if it's a type of knife you want to invest more in later. A professional who is going to make regular/heavy use of the knife will likely want something with better edge retention and better fit and finish properties.
