That's exactly the point: there is no need to use the Micro with other than soft stainless, as there are excellent, safer alternatives. When sharpening a Herder 1922 in C75W @ 60Rc that has been maintained for a year with a Micro, I have to remove some fatigued steel. Not a dramatic amount, but still. Not so with my own one maintained on Belgian Blue.
Reading Ben's citation
Massdrop III: Kamon I believe it's a theoretical point of view: the Micro plating being at 70 Rc, one could use it with a 65 Rc blade. I must humbly admit that I didn't dare checking it. The 70 Rc is not what Dick specifies: they mention 65 Rc IIRC. Apart from that, as I have excellent alternatives there is no need. The only time I had a minor chip in a Masahiro VC (61-62Rc) was shortly after a single use of the Micro. I don't know for sure if it's related, of course. Would like to see reports of people maintaining over a longer period of time an AS @65Rc with the Micro. For the time being, I don't use it even with a simple Shirogami#2 @61Rc, or an Arogami#2 @62Rc.
I think there is a general misconception about what a honing rod can achieve. I have a lot of customers who's only methods of maintaining an edge are waterstones. Fine ones of course. Doesn't take much to resharpen a thin edge, but yet the stones take off a lot of material compared to the fine honing rod we're talking about.
And you're right that once the knife, after honing it for a long time, needs to be put on the stones, it needs a "longer" session as the edge is more damaged than a constantly water stone maintained one.
However it is way thinner too once it finally needs to be refreshed, as the honing rod takes barely any material off. At least in my experience.
So if I was to use 2 knives for one year, one only maintained on waterstones, and quite regularly to have that crazy freak sharpness we all like so much, vs a knife that's maintained with the honing rod and then finally put to the stones to refresh it at the end of the year because the edge can't be honed anymore due to too much microscopic damage, the honed knife will have a thinner edge at the end of that time span when both are back at freshly crazy sharpness.
As I said - that's true for me. Resharpening on guided systems with fixed angles is an exception to that. Many of my friends use that. Takes very little to resharpen with that, as there is no angle variation. And those knives end up having the most perfect sharpness as far as I know.
Those systems are too bulky and expensive for my taste though so I'm using the method described.
But long story short... It's not just theory what I'm doing. I'm living it. And to me the most important thing is to keep the geometry of my knife pristine and in "as delivered" condition as long as possible. Because I'm very lazy. I don't want to thin my knifes edge all the time. And also I don't want to loose so much expensive steel all the time ;p.
I will say though, that the experience might vary depending on the methods.
