The KYL system features two sharpening rods that look similar to a butcher's steel. They are made of zirconium ceramics with the addition of aluminum oxide grains. The blue one has an #800 grain, and the white one has #3000. The rods are made in Germany, while the guides are produced in Poland. Let's take a look at the box contents and go over how this unique system works.
The neat little wooden storage box contains:
*Two ceramic sharpening rods (fine and coarse)
*Three angle guides for sharpening: 30°, 35°, and 40° angle guides. (All indicated angle sizes are ‘included angles’. That means that if you sharpen a knife at a 15° angle from one side, the ‘included angle’ is marked as 30°.)
*Two silicone caps
*Two synthetic caoutchouc pieces
On the underside of the box lid, you'll find four small oak pieces glued to it, as well as a leather strop.
When my package arrived, it included two natural rubber erasers and two sets of angle guides: 30°, 35°, and 40°. The rubber is for cleaning the steel that's rubbed onto the rods during the sharpening process.
First off, the presentation is very nice; I appreciate everything being contained in a box when stored. On top of that, it's wooden, which is a nice touch. There is too much plastic being used in the world, and it's nice to see natural materials being used. Opening the box is done by pushing the lock to the side. Take the contents of the box out, and flip the lid upside down, locking it in place. On the flip side are de-burring blocks and two leather strops.
The two sharpening rods come in at 26cm (without handle), and 13.80mm thick. The included silicone caps are a nice touch; pay no attention to this beautiful picture without them on the ends. You need them on there; their intention is to keep the angle guides on the rod and help prevent damage if the rods are dropped. You must remove them to put the angle guides on; silly me forgot to put them back on for my amateur photography. Make sure when you slide the guides on that the info on them is right side up; this lets you know they are installed correctly.
The company recommended using the 35° guide on the coarse rod and 40° for the fine rod. That would be 17.5° and 20° inclusive. Using the guides felt awkward at first but got easier with repeated usage. I felt the sharpener was smoother pushing away from me and had friction drawing towards me. This was caused by me not being loose enough with the blade in the guide, causing the guide to push into the rod rather than gliding effortlessly. You hold the rod with the guide in your non-dominant hand, with the flare of the guide facing up; I do it that way anyway. When you've gone in one direction, rotate your wrist slightly to access the other side of the guide and go in the opposite direction. The guide hold the knife blade at the angle listed on the guide. You'll pull from heel to tip as the guide slides along the rod. Even though I've done this many times now, I still have issues with the guide rotating on me between switching sides. This comes down to technique, and I'll get the hang of it eventually.
The rods do a good job at maintaining edges that need a touch-up. With the coarse grit being about 800, it would take a while to remove any major damage to your knives. The high polish from the 3000 grit rods gives razor-sharp results. Going from 800 to 3000 is a bit of a jump in grit, but we have to remember that this is for edges that aren't completely trashed. Any serious edge maintenance should be done with diamonds or a system with a lower grit like 320.
After using the coarse rod there's a burr that's developed on the apex of the blade. A burr is a wire of metal that forms along the edge when sharpening. By removing this you clean the edge on preparation for the next step, which is refining and polishing the edge. After that fine rod, you'll strop your edge on the pieces of leather glued to the lid. Stropping is done after using your fine rod, it helps remove any leftover burr from the previous steps.
The KYL system is pretty foolproof and makes maintaining edges super easy. If you're not into the sharpening game, this system is perfect for you. It's something I would love to see in retail stores because it appeals to people of all ages and experience levels. If I could change one thing, I'd make a spiral groove on either side of the rod that the guide slides in. This would prevent any spin as a result of being a novice or other factors. If you have a KnifeYouLike, the KYL Sharpening System is a great choice.
