Sharpening Rod

A ceramic sharpening rod is the perfect knife sharpener for sharpening and keeping your kitchen knives sharp. Ceramic sharpening rod is harder than any sharpening steel and more durable than diamond Coatings. The sharpness comes from both the burr raising and the material removal from the blade.
An IOXIO® sharpening rod is made of sintered ceramic. It combines the hardness of the whetstone with the shape of the conventional sharpening steel. The difference compared to a sharpening steel (made of steel) is that with a ceramic sharpening rod you rub off material from the blade ("material abrasion"), which is why the knife edge is reshaped and re-sharpened. IOXIO® ceramic sharpening rods are not coated. They are made of an all-ceramic sharpening rod and will wear down with virtually no abrasion during sharpening.

Buying a good cheap sharpening rod? It is best to buy directly from your  local dealer. Your dealer can give you the best personal advice. You can test different sharpening rods or at least hold them in your hand. We develop and produce sharpening sticks. IOXIO® is our registered trademark as manufacturer.


Extra tip: The larger the knife, the longer the sharpening steel. Use sharpening rods with a working length of at least 26.00 cm for large chef's knives.



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FAQ - Ceramic sharpening rod

How to clean a ceramic sharpening rod?
A ceramic sharpening rod is best cleaned with a damp eraser sponge and soap. Alternatively, a damp sponge can also be used. The metal abrasion marks on the ceramic sharpening rod are not bad. They show the function of the rod. The softer the knife, the more abrasion occurs.

What is the correct sharpening angle for kitchen knives?

It depends on your knife. The sharpening angle for chef's and kitchen knives is between 10 and 20 degrees. For modern kitchen knives we recommend a sharpening angle of 15 degrees.

Why are sharpening rods colored?

The color indicates the grain size of the sharpening rod and is used for visual differentiation. It is a visual distinguishing feature to quickly find the right rod and serves the better undercutting

  • Blue Ceramic has F360/J800) is for sharpening dull knives
  • White Ceramic (F1000/J3000) is for resharpening and keeping sharp
  • The Duo sharpening rod is a combination of blue and white ceramic (patent holder is Udo Rieser)
  • Light blue ceramic with grainsize F1300/4200 are for sharpening extremely hard knives
  • Cream white is even finer than F1300/4200 and perfect for daily use in professional kitchens. Cooks choose this sharpening rod.

How long do ceramic sharpening rods last?
With normal use, a ceramic sharpening rod will last a lifetime - if it doesn't fall off.
IOXIO ceramic sharpening rods are not coated, but consist of solid material. The grain is added to the raw mass and then compacted at high temperature, which is why wear of the rod is almost impossible.
Our sharpening rods are durable and qualitative products.

Sharpening rod or sharpening steel?

Sharpening rods are originally made of steel. A sharpening rod can be made of any material. The important thing is that a sharpening rod as well as the grain is harder than the knife to be sharpened.

Remember:
A sharpening steel is for keeping sharp. A ceramic sharpening rod is for sharpening.

How to sharpen knives correct?

To achieve a sharp result, it is important that you use your ceramic sharpening rod correctly.

  • Knife sharpening with ceramic shrapening rodHow to use a ceramic sharpening rodTo do this, place the end of the blade at the tip of the IOXIO ceramic sharpening rod. Make sure that the angle between the knife blade and the IOXIO ceramic sharpening rod should always be approx. 10 to 20 degrees. This value depends on the initial sharpening of your knife.
  • Pull the knife in a slight arc on the IOXIO ceramic sharpening rod down.
  • Starting from the end of the blade to the beginning of the knife blade.
    The speed of your movement does not matter here, the angle of 10 to 20 degrees is important. Please take your time when sharpening and consciously pull the blade over the sharpening rod.
  • Repeat this movement behind the ceramic to sharpen the other side of the knife blade.
  • Repeat Steps 2 and 3 a few times, alternating sharpening the front and back sides of the knife blade.
  • Afterwards, clean the blade with a soft damp cloth to remove steel residue caused by honing on the rod.

Which sharpening steel do cooks use?
Professional chefs prefer fine sharpening rods with grits from F1000/J3000 to polishing sharpening rods. Chefs depend on sharp knife blades. They usually sharpen their chef's knives several times a day to maintain sharpness. Sharpening rods without added grit are ideal to maintain the degree of the blade in daily use.

Round or oval sharpening rod?
With oval sharpening rods, you can better control the pressure point by turning the sharpening rod. With the sharper side, you can apply more force to the knife blade. The oval shape of the oxide ceramic allows additional variation of the sharpening pressure by simply rotating the rod. The wide face of the oval grinding surface exerts less pressure on the blade than the narrow grinding surface.
Advantage of oval sharpening rods: With the wider grinding surface succeeds a more uniform grinding pattern on the blade. For regular honing, we recommend blue ceramic. The white rod is ideal for fine honing. The use is safe even for inexperienced cooks due to a metal protection toggle.
Oval ceramic sharpening rod
Round ceramic sharpening rod blue

Grinding angle and cutting angle
The cutting angle is twice the grinding angle. For most kitchen knives, the grinding angle is between 15 and 20 degrees, or a cutting angle of 30 and 40 degrees.

Which sharpening rod is the best?

Good question. The choice of sharpening rod depends on your knife, the grit, the condition of the blade and your sharpening behavior. Basically, a sharpening rod must be harder than the knife you want to sharpen. The grit must be chosen to remove enough abrasive material to sharpen the blade.

In general:

  • Low grit: Sharpen very dull knives.
  • High grit: Regular re-sharpening of the blade / fine grinding

In 2007, IOXIO® launched the world's first ceramic duo sharpening rod, which combines two different grits in one sharpening rod. Sharpening and fine grinding have been possible with a single ceramic sharpening rod since that time. All our ceramic sharpening rods are designed in Germany and produced in Europe.

Original Ceramic - Made in European Union
richtiger Wetzstab

Choosing the best sharpening rod

When choosing the right sharpening rod, it is important to consider the grit size. At IOXIO® we distinguish the grits by different colors.

  • Blue ceramic (F360/J800) is for sharpening dull knives
  • White ceramic (F1000/J3000) is for resharpening and keeping sharp
  • The Duo sharpening rod is a combination of blue and white ceramic (patent holder is Udo Rieser) Grits from F1300/4200 are for sharpening extremely hard knives
  • Polished rods works very well and preferred by chefs for daily use.

Sharpening dull knives

Regular resharpening, fine grinding, Damascus, carbon steel and Japanese knives.

Japanese knives, damascus steel knives, carbon steel knives, fine grinding

Japanese knives, damascus steel knives, carbon steel knives, fine grinding, knife lovers

IOXIO® Ceramic Sharpening Rod Origin

Al2O3 99.7% - No additional grain

Sharpening steel versus sharpening rod?

In relevant sources, sharpening steels have two basic differences: Sharpening steel and sharpening rod.

The classic sharpening steel or sharpening rod straightens the burr on the blade and is used by professional chefs to maintain sharpness. Especially knife blades made of chrome-molybdenum-vanadium steel or stainless steel wore out faster and become dull. The cause is the deformation of the burr on the knife sheath. The basic grind of your knife is intact. You can keep the sharpness of your knife longer by sharpening it briefly with a sharpening rod before or after each use. This is to straighten the burr again to keep your knife sharp. To keep sharp, we recommend a fine sharpening rod with white ceramic from a grit of F1000/J3000.

A sharpening rod is also a sharpening rod. Unlike the classic sharpening steel, a sharpening rod works by the abrasive action of the corundum sintered at high temperature on the sheath of the knife. A sharpening rod sharpens by material abrasion on the blade of the chef's knife. The grain size of the determines the abrasive effect. The larger the grain, the more abrasive the sharpening effect.

Honing rods made of white ceramic with a grit size from F1000/J3000 are particularly gentle and kind to the blades, so they are even suitable for sharpening Japanese blades. Alternatively, there are diamond coating sharpening rods. These wear off with use on faster than ceramic rods.

Quality and sustainability of ceramic sharpening rods?

IOXIO® ceramic sharpening rods are not coated, but consist of solid material. The grain is added to the raw mass and then compacted at high temperature, which is why it is almost impossible to wear out the rod. Our sharpening rods are durable and qualitative products.

Aid to sharpen your knife with a sharpening rod?

Then try our sharpening aid "Sharp Guide". It will help you sharpen your knives and protect the blade from accidental scratches caused by misuse.

Angle Guide "sharp guide" with 30° for hard knives with 15°

Sharp Guide for Sharpening Rods: Sharp Guide

The simple solution to learning or improving the perfect grind with a sharpening rod.

  • Constant angle between blade and sharpening rod while sharpening
  • Protects your knife blade from scratches caused by misuse
  • Perfect addition for inexperienced and unsure cooks
Fits round sharpening rods with a diameter of 13.5mm and 14mm and knife blades up to 3mm thick

What angle guides are existing?

  • Sharp Guide 30° for knives with cutting angle of 30° (grinding angle 15°)
  • Sharp Guide 35° for knives with cutting angle of 35° (grinding angle 17.5°)
  • Sharp Guide 40° for knives with cutting angle of 40° (grinding angle 20°)
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