I purchased this DMT item due to my satisfaction with previously purchased DMT diamond sharpening stones. Initially I tested this steel on a fairly dull knife and was surprised to see that the DMT steel had achieved very little after six passes on each side. I checked the surface of the DMT steel with a white kleenex and found very little metal removal. I then tried twelve passes on the same knife and the edge was now mostly restored. After playing around with several knives I discovered that this DMT steel removes very little metal with each pass and is excellent at restoring an acute edge to well maintained sharp knives. For dull blades or for knives in need of initial sharpening, this DMT steel is too slow and probably an inefficient tool for the job.
I've been a chef and cooked all my life and I am extremely OCD about knife sharpness. Ive used every type of sharpener imaginable. The easy automatic ones where you just pull the blade through (bad for blade), ceramic rod, diamond rod, carbon stone. All of it.
I've realized the best way to stay sharp is old school. I use a carbon block (my grandfathers from the 1950s), and this extra fine honing rod.
This is the sharpest you can possibly get. I'm saying razor sharp. I use the block to edge the blade (probably once every six months), and I use the honing rod each time I cook.
I dont recommend the extra fine rod if you dont have a carbon block or something to make an edge. The extra fine maintains an edge but it doesnt make an edge.
Using the fine by itself would maintain a sharp, but not as sharp edge, the ceramic would basically constantly be making a new edge that is reasonably sharp.
Use this pup if you wanna be old school and maintain as sharp a blade as possible.
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This is a well made pro quality tool. It will hone a chef knife back to a sharp edge in just 2 or 3 passes. It is not made to sharpen a knife. It is made to keep and edge on an already sharpened knife. It dose this well. If you know how to use a honing rod, I suggest this one.Read Best Reviews of DMT DS2E 12-Inch Diamond Steel Sharpening Rod, Extra Fine Grit Here
I bought this with the Fine grit steel for my kitchen knives, as much because I didn't know for sure what the actual grit was. As it turns out, they go really well together; the Fine is good for a knife that has started to feel a little dull or catch, and the extra fine is perfect for when you're getting ready to start cooking and the knife is sharp, but needs that extra polish before you get busy. In use, say, I'd pick the fine for when I'd been chopping a lot of vegetables and gotten a couple of places where the edge was getting flat; the extra fine would be for when I had cut a lot of meat and the edge was just off a bit.The tools themselves are hefty and large enough that you can easily maintain a consistent edge angle if you hold it freehand. On the other hand, they come with safety caps on the ends, but under the cap is a point for those who ground the steel vertically on the block and stroke down. I don't know yet about how well they'll wear, but since they're diamond steel I hope they won't have the wear that people have reported with ceramics. At this point I'd buy again.
The only caveat I'd place is the obvious one-these don't replace stones. If you have lower quality or heavily worn knives, you still need stones to put an edge on. You probably could do it with these if you had lots of time on your hands, but this isn't the right tool for that. It also may be worth noting I'm using these with Henckels knives-they might give different results with different alloys from another maker.
[One month later] With some time passed, I am satisfied still with these steels. My habit is to give ten or twenty strokes to each side with the extra fine when I'm getting ready to use a knife. This steel brings the edge up perfectly, including the tip that drags on the block when slicing, and the knives stay sharp enough that I can slice a six inch thick roast in one or two strokes or cut a sandwich by just pressing down the blade without crushing the food. Very pleased with my knives as they are maintained by this tool.
[Still using them] These have turned out a good purchase. I give a knife I'm going to use a good stroking each side with the ultra fine each time I use it, and my knives stay perfectly sharp. I haven't had to use the other one since the original conditioning of the blades as a result.
If anyone's interested, SharpeningSupplies.com has a good, easy to understand explanation of how to use a steel. They make the comment that steels don't actually sharpen the knife, though; while that's true of a traditional steel, it's not true of the diamond coated ones we're looking at here.
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This sharpening instrument should be used alongside its brothers, the fine grit and the ceramic. Together they represent the best possible tools if the objective is to provide the sharpest possible edge on knives such as kitchen knives or large pocket knives. If properly taken care of, they should last a lifetime to boot. Use is not as easy as drag through carbide sharpeners, but it's not excessively difficult either. Very good instructional videos are provided by the manufacturer.Save 13% Off
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