How is it possible that steel can sharpen steel?
For example this honing rod type sharpener [https://www.walmart.com/ip/J-A-Henckels-International-Fine-Edge-Pro-9-Sharpening-Steel/49056156](https://www.walmart.com/ip/J-A-Henckels-International-Fine-Edge-Pro-9-Sharpening-Steel/49056156) is made of steel whereas the this one is made of ceramic [https://www.walmart.com/ip/J-A-Henckels-International-Handheld-Knife-Sharpener/861314185](https://www.walmart.com/ip/J-A-Henckels-International-Handheld-Knife-Sharpener/861314185)
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You aren’t “sharpening” the blade, you’re “honing” the blade. The edge of a good knife is very, *very* thin, and as such it’s pretty brittle. As the knife gets used that edge tend to “roll” a bit to the side, dulling the blade in the process. Honing a knife pushes that roll back in the other direction, therefore alinging the edge with the rest of the blade (which is why you hone both sides an equal amount of times, and why you do *one* pass on one side and *one* pass on the other, repeat as necessary). Steel is the quickest way to hone a knife, but ceramic works pretty good, too. You can even use leather or canvas (like a razor strop) in a pinch, depending on the type of blade and the angle of the bevel.
The knife gets “sharper” as a result, so calling them sharpening rods isn’t really all that inaccurate, but its still a bit of a misnomer. Actually sharpening a blade requires some grinding, which actually removes part of the steel to refinish the edge.
Edit: It’s worth noting that the brittleness of the edge is why you should *never* use a glass cutting board if you’re using high-quality steel knives. Stick to wood. The wood won’t roll the edge anywhere near as quickly.
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