Steeling - What exactly is it?

One of the common problems I encounter is the understanding of Steeling, or the misunderstanding of it I should say.

I'm going to put this right out there now....Steeling does NOT sharpen a knife.  Now I know what you are thinking, "this guy doesn't know what he is talking about, I'm outta here"

Before you leave, why not read what I have to say, what have you got to lose?
Remember, I am obsessed with knife sharpening, this has led me to be driven to understanding all there is to know about it and after 35 years, I'm starting to get below the surface.

OK before you can understand how to get a knife sharp, I think you need to realize what makes it dull. This will help you realize that the Steel is going to maintain a sharp edge for a period of time, once that time is over you need to put away the steel.

What makes a knife dull?

You have a brand new knife in your hands, or one that has just been professionally sharpened.
The cutting Edge (We will call it the Edge from now on) is perfectly straight. Two planes have intersected at one point (Edge) and that is what makes it sharp. You could take a metal ruler and grind down both sides until they meet and you would end up with a sharp edge.

Now the first moment you use that knife, you take it out of the block for example, or out of the case and  you cut something. Depending on the quality of the steel, that first cut could decrease the sharpness of the knife. Not enough to tell but if you are cutting something tough, and the knife impacts the cutting board, it will happen. (Now I know you are not using a glass cutting board..that is a knife killer)

So imagine cutting every day, the knife edge is put to the test and it hits that board, gently but it still hits it and that is going to do something to the edge.

The edge starts to roll over in places, over time, it rolls over in many places, you no longer have an edge that is perfectly in line. The metal is fatigued at the edge and it is just natural for it to bend a little.
That fatigued metal is what is making the knife dull.  Every knife will do this.

So what does a steel do?

The Steel or Ceramic rod (Ceramic is the best) will re-align the edge, basically, if used correctly, it will move that fatigued metal back to where it should be. The metal is still "tired" but it is back in place, so now the knife is sharp again. 

Let's assume that you have watched the video that I put a link to on my website and that you are steeling the knife correctly. Just like the picture at the top of this post. Also......let's assume that the steel yo have is a good one and keep in mind that the ones that come with a block of knives are usually not up to par. They are worthless in fact, unless you got a ceramic rod like the one Global sells. (Cucina Moderna has these ones, expensive but very good. Paderno sells some very nice steels as well.

Now how often should you steel your knife......every time you go to cut something, before you use it is the answer. Keep the steel handy so you don't need to go fishing for it every time. Keep it in a place that your wife doesn't like it to be, out on the counter or something :)

NOW.....here is the important part my friends.....that steel, even if used every day will not keep the knife sharp forever, a year at the most, and that is pushing it. 

YOU NEED TO REMOVE METAL TO SHARPEN A KNIFE.......that fatigued metal, after a while, going back and forth, it just can't stand up to the job anymore folks, it's tired out and needs to be replaced. The edge is not as strong obviously as the rest of the knife.  So that is where I come into play, I remove that metal from both sides of the knife and then re-fine the edge so it is as good as new and in most cases, better than new. 

Now I know some folks still don't believe me. Picture that steel rubbing up against edge, sometimes over years and years, do you really think it is making a difference?  Is it possible you will get to the point where you are not only not sharpening the knife but you are damaging the bevels?

I put this out there because as I said, it is very common misconception, folks tell me they've been steeling their knives for years and that is warning sign to me that the knife is in serious need of a sharpening. 

GOOD on you for steeling or Honing the knife, but do it properly and most importantly, remember that it is not a knife sharpener, I AM A KNIFE SHARPENER.  Over time, sometimes in 3 months and at the most, a year, that metal must be removed.

Removing the metal to sharpen a knife doesn't hurt it, the knife will still last an eternity if cared for.

Here is a really good video on the subject, now Alton in the video does 5 strokes per side, I do 1 stroke per side, i..e alternate sides between strokes but it doesn't matter. His method is just as good.

It's an excellent video.

CLICK ON THE LINK TO BE ENLIGHTENED

Honing a Knife

Enjoy