Proper steeling technique?

M

MikeMade™

Joined
Nov 17, 2005
Messages
80
What is the proper steeling technique? I mainly use a strop to maintain the edges on my knives but I figured I would give steeling a shot. I've seen lots of info on steeling on other websites but I would rather trust the info I get from this forum. Should you steel the same way you strop? With the spine leading, or is it more effective to steel edge first? Whats the best way to hold the steel and maintain a consistant angle?
 
A guy who supplies much of western Canada with chef's cutlery told me the correct way to steel is to hold the steel horizontally in front of yourself (sort of as if you were going to poke something) and then draw your blade horizontally (at right angles) across it. This way is easy to control the angle of edge to steel. It only takes a couple of light strokes each way.
 
If you have a hard, smooth steel and you use light pressure and match your steeling angle to the edge angle it won't matter a lot whether you steel edge-leading or edge-trailing. You really don't need to steel, but if you do it, try and do as little damage as possible. Do only one or two feather-light strokes per side. Be careful to use as low an angle as possible and still touch the edge. Always use a smooth, ribless steel. You are just straightening up edge material that is thinner than aluminum foil. Using edge-trailing strokes, like stropping, is probably easier to do safely. You want to be sure that your edge doesn't gouge into the steel. With some of today's wonder alloys you can gouge a steel.
 
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