Bill Tindall
Any knife that can be sharpened by a sharpening steel will need to be heat treated softer than what I would consider optimum for a knife to be sharpened with an abrasive. Maybe this is why I find typical knives too soft to suit me. I'll bet they are heat treated to be compatible with sharpening steels. My grandparents could use a sharpening steel but I never got the hang of it.