The Honesuki is a Japanese boning knife designed primarily for breaking down poultry but also excels at processing larger cuts of meat with bone. Unlike Western boning knives, which tend to be thin and flexible, the Honesuki features a thicker spine and rigid, triangular blade, giving it superior strength and precision. This rigidity allows for clean, controlled cuts while preventing the blade from bending when working around joints and bones.

Its sharp, fine tip makes it easy to maneuver around sockets and tight spaces, while the sturdy edge efficiently separates meat from bone with minimal effort. The Honesuki is not meant for heavy-duty cleaving but is perfect for trimming, deboning, and scraping meat cleanly from the bone. Its unique design may take some getting used to, but once mastered, it becomes an invaluable tool for butchers and chefs who work with poultry and meat regularly. If you’re looking for a precise, powerful, and highly efficient boning knife, the Honesuki is a game-changer.

The Takeda Hamono NAS Aogami Super range is forged from Aogami Super Blue Super carbon steel, one of the highest performing traditional Japanese knife steels, manufactured using advanced alloying with high levels of carbon, tungsten, molybdenum, chromium, and vanadium. The high carbon content allows the blades to achieve exceptional hardness, typically around 62–64 HRC, delivering outstanding edge retention and the ability to take an extremely fine, razor sharp edge. Tungsten and vanadium contribute to the formation of hard carbides, improving wear resistance and cutting longevity, while molybdenum enhances toughness and stability during heat treatment.

Each blade is traditionally hand-forged by Shosui Takeda using san mai construction, with a hard Aogami Super core protected by softer cladding layers to balance cutting performance, durability, and strength. The NAS range is renowned among professional chefs for its exceptional sharpness, unique forged finish, and the combination of advanced metallurgy with centuries old Japanese blacksmithing techniques.

Weight: 191g

Handle Material: Wa handle - Magnolia wood, Buffalo horn ferrule

Handle Length: 130mm (5.1")

Blade Length: 175mm (6.8")

Blade Depth: 50mm

Thickness at spine: 4.4mm

Thickness at tip: 0.8mm

Cutting Edge: Double 50/50

Blade Material: Aogami Super (Blue Super) (Carbon steel)

Hardness (Rockwell scale): 63 - 64