The WÜSTHOF 9" Honing Steel is designed to help maintain the edge of your knife. Even high-quality knives, such as those made by WÜSTHOF, gradually dull due to use: to compensate, a honing steel should be used regularly. A few strokes of both sides of the knife over the honing steel will help you to maintain the sharpness of a good blade. We recommend using a Diamond Steel or a Ceramic Steel to restore the sharpness of particularly blunt knives.