What about the "other" steel?

P

Pistoleer

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Mar 24, 2017
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I'm new to this forum but not to knives, and I've seen a lot of references on the forum about stropping a blade to touch up the edge. Does anyone use a steel for the same purpose? I have several steels and use them regularly to touch up the edge on my blades. What are the pros/cons of each method?
 
I only use a steel for getting out a bent edge.

a strop is better for removing the burr after sharpening and also for touching up IMHO.
 
A steel is kind of crude for this crowd.
I to do not like them; tears up a fine edge by over stressing the steel, flexing it back and forth causing micro chipping.

A similar tool that I have been having VERY satisfying results with is the Spyderco Ultra Fine ceramic sharpening rod made for their Sharp Maker system but I just use it very lightly free hand for stropping/touch up of edges that are near shave sharp but have lost some due to use during the day. A few minutes with this triangular magic wand and my edges, even on exotic steel alloys, are frighteningly sharp.



I carry one of these in my EDC "emergency sharpening kit".



In this tool roll is a miniature steel; shown here next to the quarter. I use it but mostly on dinged up box knife blades. I use the white ceramic rod on my fine edges; NEVER THE STEEL. The steel is best on softer blades.



PS : it is worth using the advanced search feature here to look for other threads on the topic.
 
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I doubt you are going to find many knowledgeable knife enthusiasts who prefer a steel to a strop. The last time I used a steel I was 17, working as a cook/cut at Boston Market. BOY! I thought I was getting those knives sharp, going to town on those steels! LOL! A steel is useful for heavy use kitchen knives between sharpening. But a steel has absolutely a NO place on a freshly sharpened edge to eliminate the bure.
 
I use a honing steel to maintain my softer kitchen knives in between full sharpenings. It also works well with Victorinox pocket knives and other knives with similar soft steels.

I sometimes use the steel in conjunction with a strop, sometimes alone, and sometimes use a strop alone. Depends on what the edge needs.

It does a fine job when used on the right type of blades for the right purposes.

I am guessing my response leaves me out of the club of "knowledgeable knife enthusiasts." Fine by me. I use what works for my needs and available time.
 
I have an old Russel steel and a ceramic rod "steel" that I use on my kitchen and butchers knives. I use them for touch ups between sharpening, not as part of sharpening.


Sent via telegraph by the same fingers I use to sip whiskey
 
I like my steels but only for low RC kitchen knives - they work fantastic for that.

They work well on higher RC stuff but to me a hard strop, lapping film or polishing grade waterstone is a lot easier to use.
 
I think a honing steel and a strop do two different things. A steel as mentioned will straighten out an edge. A strop will polish the edge. It will remove any micro bevel gently and leave your edge a lot smoother especially if stropping will a compound. The problem with a honing steel is it can be agressive depending on the type and may do more harm than good.
 
I've liked using a smooth, polished steel on lower/mid-50s HRC stainless blades, to keep them crisply cutting without needing frequent touchups on a stone. Kitchen knives like Victorinox benefit from this, because they'll take such fine edges in the first place, and are ductile enough that smooth-steeling will keep them aligned for quite a long while, before needing more work.

I've fiddled around with a grooved steel on other kitchen blades, and it works out OK at times. But there's a very fine line between benefitting the edge and detrimentally changing it, with a grooved steel. Used improperly, or too much, I tend to believe they do more damage than good, as compared to using the smooth steel, which is much more forgiving.


David
 
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