Arkansas Sharpeners AC46 Ceramic 11.5" Sharpening Stick w/ 7" Rod & Wood Handle

Very effective, affordable sharpener to MAINTAIN and touch up a good edge on various types of knives.The rod style configuration of the sharpener handles curved blades very nicely, also Tanto style or reverse curved blades which are (at least for me) a bit challenging to sharpen on a flat stone.Note:1. This is not an appropriate tool to sharpen a very dull edge (in my opinion), and,2. You do need to understand the basics of how to use a sharpener to match the knife's edge angle, (that is why I gave it 4 stars for ease of use) but if you do then it's very sweet. Just a few passes of the blade over the rod, with light pressure, and the edge is very noticeably sharper.If you have very dull blades, then you will most likely need another tool to get them into at least passable condition first. Think of this sharpener as the "fine" stage of a two-stage sharpening system.If, on the other hand, you like to keep your knives pretty well sharpened all/most of the time then this is probably all you need to get the job done quickly and easily. Yes, I know that it's not the equivalent of a sharpening system that goes up to 8000 grit, etc., but for everyday sharp knives this rod is pretty darn good.A nice bonus is that due to the light color of the rod It's easy to see that a tiny bit of steel residue from the knife edge remains on the rod (a dark line, or streak), showing that each pass is indeed having an effect on the blade.Allowing excessive buildup of this steel residue could, over a long time, lead to clogging of the pores on the surface of the rod, reducing sharpening effectiveness.I was very pleased to see that the steel residue washes off very easily with soap and water, or even with just water and a gentle wipe, leaving the rod in great shape, looking brand new, ready to continue sharpening the next blade, and the next...Two possible concerns:1. I don't know how fragile this rod is, and whether it would survive dropping. Some of the reviews that mention a broken rod on arrival leave me concerned about that, but so far it has not been a problem, though I've handled it with care.2. I would also not feel comfortable taking this outside or hiking/camping. It's too big and I would be concerned about breakage.Summary:This is my new favorite sharpener for use in the kitchen, not only for various kitchen knives but also for outdoors type knives. Very effective, quick, easy and pleasant to use.

It's not very course so don't expect material remove, think of it as a hone and not as a abrasive. Even tho it is an abrasive and does remove steel, it's so fine grain that the steel removal is extremely low. This is a perfect ceramic rod for touch ups of carbon steels and simple stainless steels. I've looked at the scratch pattern under Magnification and it leaves around 1000-1200 grit scratch pattern in the steel. This will not replace sharpening stones but what it will be is greatly extend the time needed in between sharpenings for more simple steels like used in kitchen knives and lower end pocket knives. The rod is long enough that larger kitchen knives are easily touched up on it. It's a decent quality ceramic as the steel load up will clean right off of it with some water and dawn dish soap or bar keepers friend if you really want to get all the steel particles off it. I really wish they also made this rod in a course model as well, something around 400 grit. Then for 15 bucks or so you could have two rods that one would be abrasive enough to actually remove some steel to clean up minor chips and other minor edge damage. I personally use IDAhone ceramic rods mainly but most people don't want to spend 40 bucks on a ceramic rod... they are however far and away the best and come in multiple grits. All in all this is a fantastic 6 dollar ceramic rod that will do you a good job on softer low alloy stainless and carbon steels just to keep edges touched up, don't expect to be able to get even the littlest chips out of knife edges as it just doesn't remove enough material to be able to do that. It is a good and low cost way to be able to touch up edges and keep them sharp for as long as possible in between sharpenings. This rod and a strop with some diamond emulsion will keep the average decent quality kitchen knives sharp without the need for stones for a good year or two... eventually you will reach a point to where steel has to be removed to get to fresh unfatigued steel and will require you to take the knife to sharpening stones but this can help you to extend that as long as possible and for very little money.If this company is listening, make another version of this in a dark ceramic (dark ceramic rods are normally of larger aluminum oxide abrasive size) that is around 300-400 grit. Charge like 15-18 bucks for both the course rod and this rod as a set of two and include a simple 17 degree angle guide that slides on over the shaft. For the 2 rods and the angle guide and under 20 bucks this would be a must buy for every home cook. The courser rod is key, just this rod alone severely limits what can be done with those ceramic rod hones, with a courser 300-400 grit rod as well people could then actually use it to maintain small chips and rolls in the knife edges and then use the fine rod for quick touch ups. I guarantee if you made a set like that it would sell like crazy.It would be hugely beneficial to your customer base.

This is a simple ceramic sharpening rod. To use it, hold it and the knife the way you would a honing steel. However, unlike a steel, this is abrasive, and will take small nicks out of the blade, and re-establish an edge, unlike a steel which is more for burr removal and touch ups. This is a fine abrasive, so don't expect it to fix a damaged edge, or establish the edge angle. Rather it is for touch ups when you need just a little more than a steel. Easy to use, handle is comfortable, worksmanship is average. The working surface of the rod is smooth and even, but the end where they form it, is kind of rough and raw looking. Doesn't affect performance, only looks.