Ceramic Steel

[GB]

The Edge Pro Apex system I just got came with a ceramic "steel". The instructions mentioned not using a steel "steel". Does that just mean for removing the burr or do they mean ever? Does this mean I should be using the ceramic one every time I use my knife and that I might as well get rid of my steel one?

 

[Dave Hutchins]

I would say keep both. For general dicing slicing, A Iron steel is my pick. However
when I want paper thin cut I use my ceramic

 

[Rob Babcock]

The Edge Pro Apex system I just got came with a ceramic "steel". The instructions mentioned not using a steel "steel". Does that just mean for removing the burr or do they mean ever? Does this mean I should be using the ceramic one every time I use my knife and that I might as well get rid of my steel one?

The ceramic "steel", more properly called a hone, is a great tool. I use mine a lot. I normally use it after the medium stone (although not on my Japanese knives) and it works well between sharpenings. The key is to use very light pressure.

 

[Dr.Awkward]

I use the ceramic hones when finishing pocket knives, hunting knives and western kitchen knives. I use a honing steel on my western kitchen knives between sharpenings. I don't use a hone on my Japanese knives.

The theory behind this is that the softer steels tend to roll or warp as they wear, and the hone helps straighten these micro-deformations. A harder Japanese steel, however, often seems more prone to micro-chip rather than roll, and a steel can exacerbate this problem rather than alleviating it. (Of course, being just an over-educated monkey such as I am, I had to try the hone on the harder knives. Well, the ceramic hone, not the steel.)

As Rob said, very light pressure is the thing.

-Dawk

 

[GB]

Oh I am very aware of what honing does and why and how you do it. What I am wondering though is should I now only be using the ceramic hone and not using the steel hone as the instructions that came with the Edge Pro Apex led me to believe.

 

[Rob Babcock]

The EP video is a bit out of date- Ben Dale himself has said that since shooting it he's mostly moved away from the steel steel to the ceramic. I think he just hasn't updated the clip yet. If you do use a steel you should use a smooth one, not the ribbed ones you commonly see. I believe Hand America makes a good smooth steel. FWIW, I have a borosilicate (glass) honing rod that I bought from Dave Martell at JapaneseKnifeSharpening. It works even better than the ceramic for many knives, while removing less metal.

For use with Japanese knives of harder steel the glass hone is definitely the way to go.

 

[GB]

Thanks Rob. I will stick the the ceramic for now and once I get serious will look into the glass.

Rob I have two more questions for you (or anyone else who can answer).

1. It is my understanding that Japanese knives are only sharpened on one side. Is this correct? Does this mean you would just sharpen on side and never flip the knife over? Sharpen, get the burr, remove the burr, all from one side?

2. When people talk about Japanese knives being left or right handed I am assuming that means that is it only sharpened on one side (as mentioned above). For a right handed knife, which side is sharpened? If you are holding the knife in your right hand would it be the edge furthest away from you or the edge closest to you? I am thinking it is the edge further away, but I am not sure.

 

[SShepherd]

Thanks Rob. I will stick the the ceramic for now and once I get serious will look into the glass.

Rob I have two more questions for you (or anyone else who can answer).

1. It is my understanding that Japanese knives are only sharpened on one side. Is this correct? Does this mean you would just sharpen on side and never flip the knife over? Sharpen, get the burr, remove the burr, all from one side?

2. When people talk about Japanese knives being left or right handed I am assuming that means that is it only sharpened on one side (as mentioned above). For a right handed knife, which side is sharpened? If you are holding the knife in your right hand would it be the edge furthest away from you or the edge closest to you? I am thinking it is the edge further away, but I am not sure.

look up the korin website..since I can't post a link to it

korin.com

They have quite a bit of info on that site about japanese style knives.

 

[Rob Babcock]

Thanks Rob. I will stick the the ceramic for now and once I get serious will look into the glass.

Rob I have two more questions for you (or anyone else who can answer).

1. It is my understanding that Japanese knives are only sharpened on one side. Is this correct? Does this mean you would just sharpen on side and never flip the knife over? Sharpen, get the burr, remove the burr, all from one side?

"Traditional" Japanese knives are mostly single bevel, meaning essentially sharpened on one side. Typically they're stones on one side, then flipped over and finished with a brief lapping on the "flat side" to remove the burr. However, most of the Japanese knives popular in the West are really Eastern interpretations of Western styles; these include the Gyuto and Santoku, both Japanese versions of the French & Chef knives. The bulk of the catalogs of companies like Shun, Hattori & Global are of this type and are generally double beveled (sharpened on both sides). Some are differentially beveled, meaning sharpened on both sides but not equally. A differential bevel may be, say, 70% on one side with 30% of the edge on the other.

2. When people talk about Japanese knives being left or right handed I am assuming that means that is it only sharpened on one side (as mentioned above). For a right handed knife, which side is sharpened? If you are holding the knife in your right hand would it be the edge furthest away from you or the edge closest to you? I am thinking it is the edge further away, but I am not sure.

A right or left handed knife can be so for two reasons- the edge may be ground only on or primarily on one side, or it can have a right or left handed handle. The Shun Classic line, for example, use a modified "D" shaped handle mean to be grasped with a certain hand but the blades ground 50/50.

 

[GB]

What if we are talking about actual Japanese knives though, not Eastern interpretations. What side is the edge on? Would it be on the far side of the hand holding the knife or the close side?

 

[Andy M.]

Trying to apply logic, I think the bevel on a right-handed knife would be on the right side. That is, if you are holding the knife in your right hand and pointing it away from you, the bevel is on the right.

My logic is that, as you slice an item placed horizontally on a cutting board starting at the right and slicing to the left, the bevel on the right would cause the slices to fall away from the face of the knife rather than stick to it.

But that's just a guess.

 

[GB]

That is my guess as well Andy. I think I have seen sushi chefs slicing fish towards them though in which case the bevel would be on the left. I am betting you are right, but I would love to find out for sure.

 

[SShepherd]

correct...bevel on right side-right handed. The knife your refering to is a "yanagi"
Also helping, is the "left side" of the knife, or the side facing left (if holding the knife by the handle) is concave.

 

[GB]

Thanks SShepherd!