Newham Knives Honyaki Thor Damascus Single Bevel Review

Introduction

Every now and then a knife comes along that breaks a self-imposed buying ban, and this is one of them. The Honyaki Thor from Newham Knives is a single bevel knife made from Damascus steel, crafted by Will at Newham Knives in Australia. Will is best known for beautifully crafted Hamon-style knives and sculpted, carefully finished handles, and this piece continues that reputation.

It carries some pedigree, too: this exact knife won Best Japanese at the Damascus Steel Chef Invitational. That alone made it worth a closer look, so here is what it offers, how it performs, and who it makes sense for.

Specifications at a Glance

The numbers tell you a lot about this knife before it ever touches a cutting board:

• Tested hardness: 61 HRC
• Total length: 298 mm
• Cutting edge: 160 mm
• Blade height at heel: 36 mm
• Handle length: 128 mm
• Spine thickness above the heel: 3.2 mm
• Spine thickness midway: 2.8 mm
• Spine thickness 10 mm before the tip: 1 mm
• Weight: 136 g

The taper is worth pausing on. Going from 3.2 mm at the heel down to 1 mm near the tip is a serious distal taper, and it shows in how the blade moves through food. The Thor pattern Damascus finish combined with Mokume Gane zirconium and a Tasmanian blackwood handle, plus a leather sheath, makes this very much a presentation-grade piece rather than a utilitarian workhorse.

How It Handles: Testing the Single Bevel

Single bevel knives behave differently from double bevel blades: the flat side and the angled grind create a natural pull to one side, usually to the left for a right-handed knife. To test just how strong that pull is here, the blade was put to work supreming an orange. That is admittedly not the intended use for a Honyaki, but it is a genuinely useful precision test, because cutting small, even triangles of citrus flesh exposes any drift immediately.

The verdict: the draw to the left is quite extreme. Some of the little triangular segments missed their mark on the first attempt, which is exactly what a strong single bevel grind does when you are not actively compensating for it.

It is also worth noting that this blade shape reads a bit like a single bevel utility knife rather than a traditional Honyaki. It does not carry the exaggerated K-tip, and it could be slightly taller at the heel. That makes it a somewhat unusual profile within the category, which may appeal to buyers who want single bevel behaviour without a fully classical silhouette.

The Deepest Ura in the Collection

One of the most interesting findings came from comparing this knife against other single bevel knives already in the collection: a Takeda Honyaki, the first-ever single bevel Isamitsu Honyaki, a piece from Johan Fagerlund, two knives from Patrick Blockford in the Netherlands, a Kidutsuki Fujiyama, a Samitsu Honyaki, a Yanagiba from Shibata Takayuki, and a Honyaki from Shiraki.

Among all of those, this Newham Knives Honyaki has the deepest ura by far. The ura is the concave grind on the flat side of a single bevel blade, and a deeper ura reduces friction and helps the blade release food cleanly.

That deep ura is very possibly what is driving the pronounced leftward draw. It is a trade-off characteristic of the blade, not a defect: more concavity tends to mean more release and more pull. Anyone buying a single bevel knife should expect to spend time learning to steer it, and this one simply asks for a bit more of that than milder examples.

Who This Knife Is For

This knife suits a particular kind of buyer. It is a handcrafted, award-recognised piece with premium materials, from the Thor pattern Damascus down to the Mokume Gane zirconium and Tasmanian blackwood handle. It is best for cooks and collectors who already understand single bevel geometry, or who genuinely want to learn it, and who value handcrafted character over interchangeable, mass-produced consistency.

If you mostly want a straightforward daily prep knife, a single bevel Honyaki with this strong a draw is probably not the right first step. If you want a distinctive, collectible blade with genuine craft credentials, it is a very different story.

Buying Advice

A few practical points before committing to any single bevel knife, and this one in particular:

• Expect the pull. A deep ura like this one means the blade will drift to the left on straight cuts until you adjust your technique.
• Consider the profile. The less exaggerated tip and heel height make this closer to a single bevel utility shape than a classical Honyaki silhouette, which some buyers will prefer and others will not.
• Care matters. Hard, thin single bevel steel rewards gentle boards and proper sharpening habits.

For collectors, the Invitational award, the specific Thor pattern, and the handcrafted finish all add to the appeal. Availability of one-off handmade knives like this tends to be limited, so it is worth checking directly with the maker if the pattern you want is not in stock.

Conclusion

The Newham Knives Honyaki Thor Damascus single bevel is a distinctive, award-winning handcrafted knife with premium materials, a serious distal taper, and the deepest ura in a collection of well-regarded single bevel blades. That depth brings both benefits and a strong leftward draw, so it rewards experience and patience. For anyone drawn to single bevel knives and handcrafted steel, it is a compelling and characterful choice.