Honing alternatives?

[masteraleph]

I'm a relatively clumsy fellow, and while I can cut with some (though not a lot) of facility, I"m concerned about honing knives. I'm going to be getting my first set of decent knives soon (Wusthoff Classics), and I'm wondering if there is any alternative to the standard steels. Is there anything out there where I wouldn't have to judge the angle?

[chuckl]

you'll want to hone at around 22 degrees, so hold the blade perpendicular to the rod, that's 90 degrees, half of that is 45, and half of that is where you want to consistently drag the length of your blade

[mpalmer6c]

I use the ceramic rods on this device. Works fine:

http://www.amazon.com/Wusthof-2-Stage...

[masteraleph]

Just to make sure I understand- the ceramic rods are one of those slots on there? And therefore are preset at the right wusthoff angle?

[scubadoo97]

Not exactly. Ceramic rods can be just a cylindrical ceramic rod that is smooth to the touch. Many ceramics have a grit equivalent to 1000 to 1200 grit. There are sharpening systems that use ceramic or diamond rods placed at preset angles. a copper tube can also be used as a smooth steel to realign the edge.

[masteraleph]

I'm aware of the concept of ceramic honing "steels" (so to speak). My question was about the 2-stage tool that mpalmer6c posted above, which sounds (from the product description) like it may have ceramic rods at the correct angle for Wusthoff knives. The description sounds like that for the carbide sharpening side, but isn't as clear about the ceramic side.