Sorry but a honing rod does not sharpen a blade. It just bends it, and ifbyou know what youre doing, you can bend it correctly and the blade will be sharper compared to before.
While it won’t sharpen, it does remove material, even the steel honing rods.
There’s been a ton of microphotography done over the last decade or so showing what happens at that level.
What a rod does varies based on the material. Metal rods basically friction off steel from the blade, whereas ceramics work exactly the same as a whetstone.
The problem with rods is the inconsistent angle, and the small area of contact. It makes them prone to irregular results.
So, you have to use a light touch.
But, since you’ll likely be working a microbevel rather than trying to totally grind out the same angle as your edge bevel, it works out fine even if you get over vigorous with the pressure. Hell, most folks are going to finish their more thorough sharpening with a microbevel anyway. It’s the easiest way to deburr the edge, and it gives a slightly more resilient edge with no loss of cutting ability.
There’s a site called knife steel nerd, operated by a guy that’s a metallurgist (who was part of coming up with magnacut, which is fairly widely considered one of the best steels for knives ever, if not always agreed as the best). There’s video footage on YouTube as well as other sites that cover the effects of various knife maintenance methods and materials.
Sorry but a honing rod does not sharpen a blade. It just bends it, and ifbyou know what youre doing, you can bend it correctly and the blade will be sharper compared to before.
A grinding stone will sharpen it properly
Not true, at least in part.
While it won’t sharpen, it does remove material, even the steel honing rods.
There’s been a ton of microphotography done over the last decade or so showing what happens at that level.
What a rod does varies based on the material. Metal rods basically friction off steel from the blade, whereas ceramics work exactly the same as a whetstone.
The problem with rods is the inconsistent angle, and the small area of contact. It makes them prone to irregular results.
So, you have to use a light touch.
But, since you’ll likely be working a microbevel rather than trying to totally grind out the same angle as your edge bevel, it works out fine even if you get over vigorous with the pressure. Hell, most folks are going to finish their more thorough sharpening with a microbevel anyway. It’s the easiest way to deburr the edge, and it gives a slightly more resilient edge with no loss of cutting ability.
There’s a site called knife steel nerd, operated by a guy that’s a metallurgist (who was part of coming up with magnacut, which is fairly widely considered one of the best steels for knives ever, if not always agreed as the best). There’s video footage on YouTube as well as other sites that cover the effects of various knife maintenance methods and materials.
I’ve definitely used a honing rod to get rid of small chips in a blade.
It takes forever, but it’s doable.