Concrete floor + Ceramic Honing Rod = New Rod???

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Miles

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I had the fun experience of watching what happens when a ceramic honing rod falls off a counter onto a concrete floor last night. Net result, I'm in the market for a new honing rod. I've been using the Mac white ceramic rod for close to ten years. I like it. It works as advertised and as I recall, wasn't terribly expensive. Since I'm looking for a new honing rod, I figured I'd throw it out there and ask if anyone knows of anything new. If I could find a similar rod which is oval or flat as opposed to round, I might give that a try, but at the moment, I'm inclined to replace it and call it good. Thoughts???
 
I've broken 2 myself, it happens. Mine pretty much shattered, not much you can do when the largest piece is about 5cms. long Isn't the Mac black rod supposed to be more resistant to breakage? I've had mine for ages but thankfully haven't put that to the test yet
 
I found lite measured sweeps on a totaly smooth polishing steel works for me wt. carbon gyuto's.If you drop a steel rod,it will not break.
 
My favorite is the F Dick 12" Oval Polishing Steel.Used correctly it will not screw up your edges on 60hrt+ Japan Gyuto.Even most ceramics are too rough for my taste,only like smooth ceramics.
 
My favorite is the F Dick 12" Oval Polishing Steel.Used correctly it will not screw up your edges on 60hrt+ Japan Gyuto.Even most ceramics are too rough for my taste,only like smooth ceramics.
±1!
My thoughts exactly.
Plus, its got "Dick Polish" written on the handle (although I've never used it as such).

I actually fined it really useful at the end of the sharpening process for hard to deburr knives when I i use it to stand up the burr in between running the edge through cork or wood.
 
Instead of replacing it with another Mac, I ordered a DMT 12" Fine Ceramic. It was about the same cost as an Idahone, incl shipping, so I figured I'd give it a try. According to their specs, it's 2200 mesh/7 micron, so finer than the Mac I was using which was 1200 grit. I like the oval shape of the Smith honing rod, but at 800 grit, it's decidedly more coarse than I'd prefer. Should be here in a couple days. I'll use it at work for a couple days and report back.
 
Instead of replacing it with another Mac, I ordered a DMT 12" Fine Ceramic. It was about the same cost as an Idahone, incl shipping, so I figured I'd give it a try. According to their specs, it's 2200 mesh/7 micron, so finer than the Mac I was using which was 1200 grit. I like the oval shape of the Smith honing rod, but at 800 grit, it's decidedly more coarse than I'd prefer. Should be here in a couple days. I'll use it at work for a couple days and report back.

So did you get the new honing rod? Interested in hearing about your purchase as I have to buy a couple. I maintain knives for my brother and my parents and it would be nice if they could do some maintenance themselves. I have been using an Idahone but always looking for the better mousetrap. These hones are for knives like Hattoris, Macs, and an Artifex. Not sure about using the rod hones on higher end JKs???
 
http://www.jbprince.com/cutlery/black-ceramic-honing-rod.asp

This thing is a beast. The grooves are on the narrow edges while it is super smooth on the wider sides. I used it on a few knives during service and it is amazing. A co-worker first bought it, so I tried it out and got one myself. Before this, I couldn't really find a honing rod I liked (I had a mac ceramic and the borosilicate one) so I kept a 12k stone on my station by my cutting board to give it a quick hone when I needed it.
 
First impressions on the DMT ceramic: This thing is a beast. It's huge and the guards at the handle are equally monsterous. It really doesn't fit in my bag very well. I'll likely have to do a bit of modification to make it more travel friendly. It seems a lot rougher than the Mac, though. I know the Mac is supposed to be 1200 grit and the DMT is supposed to be 2000 grit, but it seems A LOT more aggressive. It may just need a bit of breaking in. I've considered taking a bit of wet dry to it in order to soften it a bit. I'm going to use it for a while and see how it settles in, but I caught a ten dollar off coupon at Cutlery and More last week and ordered a Mac. It was under fifteen dollars out of pocket, so it was a no brainer. If the DMT doesn't work out, I'll slot the Mac in it's place and all will be well with the world again.
 

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