Having never had an electric -just used honing rod-(not very successfully)can this be used to just touch up/keep an edge for daily use?
1044015
Yes. Once you have established a proper edge it is easy to "touch up" the sharpness. For extreme sharpness you will need to strop the blade as well but this is over kill for most people applications.
1044016
I don't need to use it daily because after you use it the first time (edge of blade upward 12 o'clock position swiped around 4 times) your knife should hold it's sharp edge for many uses. I hope this helps.
759428
I always use a fine grit stone with honing oil,slight preasure at first then lesson the preasure as the edge becomes sharp, dont know about the bent tip, I would send it to C.S. for their evaluation,, hope this helps, Jack
1811802
I use a very fine whetstone in general to sharpen knives. For every day,a couple of swipes on the sharpening rod seems to work.
744019
I personally use a simple hand sharpener for garden tools to keep a good edge that isn't so thin it curls up when used. But I recommend to keep in mind this is a survival tool and anything hard enough to wear away tool steel will work.
1067092
The tool itself is painted in what appears to be acrylic flat black and therefore, pretty resistant unless scratched. As the others have mentioned, it's not stainless so I would take care of the sharpened edge and any scratches with a light oil after exposure to water. As I write this, I'm thinking it might be a good idea to unscrew the handle and give the holes and screws a good going over as well. This is even more important if you're fishing in salt water.
1234069
I kind of don't know how to exactly answer your question. I use it as a sharpening steel to get a sharper edge, but not on a daily basis. Hope this helps.Answer here...
2092108
It's pretty basic and it comes with a small plastic angel guide that will help you achive the proper angle. If you have expensive knives that you are going to be sharping I would reccommend one of the sharpeners that you just run through the V slot but in my opinion this is a much better set up and after a few uses you should be proficent and achieve the edge you desire. Just remember to start with the coarse side and work your way to the smoothest side and wipe off any excess oil and grit between sides. Good luck and I hope this has helped. I'm sure there are some YouTube videos that would give you a visual on proper technigue and blade angle that will help get you off to a good start. Cheers It's pretty basic and it comes with a small plastic angel guide that will help you achive the proper angle. If you have expensive knives that you are going to be sharping I would reccommend one of the sharpeners that you just run through the V slot but in my opinion this is a much better set up and after a few uses you should be proficent and achieve the edge you desire. Just remember to start with the coarse side and work your way to the smoothest side and wipe off any excess oil and grit between sides. Good luck and I hope this has helped. I'm sure there are some YouTube videos that would... » Read More It's pretty basic and it comes with a small plastic angel guide that will help you achive the proper angle. If you have expensive knives that you are going to be sharping I would reccommend one of the sharpeners that you just run through the V slot but in my opinion this is a much better set up and after a few uses you should be proficent and achieve the edge you desire. Just remember to start with the coarse side and work your way to the smoothest side and wipe off any excess oil and grit between sides. Good luck and I hope this has helped. I'm sure there are some YouTube videos that would give you a visual on proper technigue and blade angle that will help get you off to a good start. Cheers « Show Less
121220
Sure, it's very simple. For a very dull or beat up straight blade (not serrated, if u don't know the difference, straight is straight no teeth, serrated is the little jagged teeth on a knife running either the length of the blade or typically 1/2 the length) so for a dull or beat up straight blade use the metal carbide V, drag the blade straight across 4 to 8 times length wise, then use the ceramic white V and drag the blade thru 4-8 times. If your blade is just needing a sharpening just use the ceramic white V. The white ceramic strip and the diamond taper is meant for the same for serrated, if your serration is very dull or damaged use the metal rod first by facing the knife teeth toward u and drag the rod at an angle from the thick part near the base to the tip on each serrated tooth, some teeth may be bigger than others hence the diff thickness of the rod, then use the white ceramic strip and drag the white strip on its apex across the teeth just like u did the rod. If your serrations are just needing a touch up or routine sharpening just use the white ceramic strip. U can test the progress of your sharpening by holding up a piece of paper and drag your blade across the side if a straight blade and it should slice thru easily if not drag the blade thru the white ceramic V until it does. For serration verification of sharpness do not drag the blade just chop down an pull straight down it should cut cleanly not tear, use the white ceramic strip until it does. Hope this long winded explanation was helpful.
881204
Dear SG, I'm not very good either, at sharpening. So I bought one of the relatively inexpensive ceramic rod sharpeners. they have a plastic frame that holds the knife at about twenty degrees, all you have to remember is to pass the blade over the rod aproximately the same number of strokes for each side to keep them even. You can't really mess up to bad, just set the sharpener on a flat surface and run the blade it's full length on the ceramic rod, use aproximately the same presure on each side of blade. Not much pressure is required. You will notice as t he blade is sharpened it will get more and more shinny on the cutting edge. No oil or water is necessary on these types of sharpeners as would be on a traditiional stone.The edge you can get with six or seven passes on each side of blade should be plenty sharpe enough for the average job.Don't let the blade get too dull between sharpening as it lenthens the amount of time necessary to bring up a good cutting edge. Best of luck on it, start off with your cheapest blade even though the chances of doing any harm are small. Gary petersen
499167
I used a razor blade, it will not harm the rod since the exposure of the metal is how the rod does it's job.
1866476
The rod that comes with it is actually a "honing" rod. Sharpening is what must to be done to a dull knife to make it sharp again. This is best done by professionals. Honing is what is done to a relatively sharp knife to maintain a nice sharp edge. This you can and should do yourself. If you regularly use the honing steel provided, you will not have to sharpen these (or at least not as often). We love our set. We hone them each time we use them and they all still have a great edge.
2157548
I use a ceramic rod or long oval cross section stone (originally made to sharpen old time sickles and scythes). I hold the blade stationary and use the stone like you would a file, making sure to move it lengthwise down the edge at the same time so that I don't end up putting a groove in the edge.
420509
No. I assume your talking about the sheaving that comes with it. It's designed so you can just start using your knife and so you don't have to worry about damaging the edge.
1806752
I have a Chef's Choice, but since I have different styles (Japanese, Western, ceramic), it really made no sense to use it any more. Buy a "honing" or "sharpening" steel to keep it in good shape. The names are a misnomer--a rod will never hone or sharpen a blunt knife, only keep it in shape. Eventually, however, you'll have to get them sharpened by a pro, but only every two to four years if you take care of it. Always wash in cold or lukewarm water, not hot; immediately rinse off after cutting anything acidic, such as peeling an orange or skinning a tomato; and steel it. Perfetto. I have a Chef's Choice, but since I have different styles (Japanese, Western, ceramic), it really made no sense to use it any more. Buy a "honing" or "sharpening" steel to keep it in good shape. The names are a misnomer--a rod will never hone or sharpen a blunt knife, only keep it in shape. Eventually, however, you'll have to get them sharpened by a pro, but only every two to four years if you take care of it. Always wash in cold or lukewarm water, not hot; immediately rinse off after cutting anything acidic, such as peeling an orange or skinning a tomato; and steel it.... » Read More I have a Chef's Choice, but since I have different styles (Japanese, Western, ceramic), it really made no sense to use it any more. Buy a "honing" or "sharpening" steel to keep it in good shape. The names are a misnomer--a rod will never hone or sharpen a blunt knife, only keep it in shape. Eventually, however, you'll have to get them sharpened by a pro, but only every two to four years if you take care of it. Always wash in cold or lukewarm water, not hot; immediately rinse off after cutting anything acidic, such as peeling an orange or skinning a tomato; and steel it. Perfetto. « Show Less
2227851
Yes, the carbide sharpener and the diamond stone will put a sharp edge on a dull knife, then the ceramic rods will hone the edge and keep it sharp when used regularly. I leave it out on the counter top and touch up Kershaw folder almost daily. You can take it with you since it folds up nicely.
497794
I don't use anything, I just keep it in a kitchen drawer and it puts a decent edge on my German steel knives. If you want something like a razor you could start out with this and finish up with a diamond stone. I think I paid $6 for mine and it's worth that. It's probably not a stone for a purist but just a good, everyday stone.
991020
you can shave with it, almost. I fine honed it with some 1000 grit wet/dry glued to glass plate to get it the way I like my cutters. By the way.check out "scary sharp" on the web if you really want a great, cheap way to sharpen your hand cutting tools.