Does a knife sharpener wear out? [duplicate]

A simple sharpener, will it grind as well as it ground years ago?

Best Answer

This is a honing steel, even if it has a roughened surface that will, as mentioned in a comment, have a bit of a filing effect.

However, the main use of a honing steel is to realign the cutting edge to true. This will make a knife having a bent/misaligned but still sharp edge act sharp again. It is not a good tool to sharpen an actually blunt (as opposed to misaligned/bent) edge - knives maintained with a honing steel still will need occasional sharpening with abrasives. Some honing steels exist that are polished smooth, and they will work even better than the roughened type on certain knives if used correctly.

If the honing steel actually has taken damage that didn't smoothen the surface but put visible pits, nicks, chips or similar irregularities in it, do not use it or avoid getting the damaged spots near the edge - otherwise, you could damage the edge or injure yourself if the edge unexpectedly snags into a nick.

Forcibly using the filing action to create a burr is not advised, as a burr will quickly collapse and leave the knife blunt. Instructions for sharpening on proper abrasives (bench stones, sandpaper, wet grinders) mention creating a burr, for a different purpose (verifying that all irregularly damaged metal is gone from the flanks of the edge bevel) - but also include removing that burr in a controlled manner before putting the knife back into service.

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How many times can you use a knife sharpener?

In addition to honing your knives after every 2-4 uses at home, experts recommend having kitchen knives professionally sharpened at least once or twice a year. This prevents blades from becoming too dull, which can be more dangerous than working with a razor-sharp knife!

Can knife sharpeners get dull?

Knife sharpeners do wear out, but because of the material they are made from, it takes a long time for them to wear out to the point that they need to be replaced. The quality of the sharpening device will also factor into the longevity of the abrasive. Always purchase the best quality knife sharpener that you can.

Does a sharpening steel ever wear out?

Smooth (ungroved) metal steels cannot ever wear out, since they're just a smooth piece of metal. Ceramic sharpening "steels" will never wear out, but the surface can get clogged with removed metal particles. This can be cleaned out with a scouring pad to render them as good as new.

How long does knife sharpening last?

Your knives should only need to be sharpened every few months depending on how often they are used \u2013 I would also recommend having your knives professionally sharpened every 1-2 years.

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Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

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