Actually Carnarvonite all my kitchen knives are F.Dick that i got when i was 18. The steel i'm replacing is also a F.Dick. I'm not replacing the steel because it is bad i'm just upgrading to a ceramic one for my better quality knives. 

Because the steel quality is better, and i'm assuming harder, i have noticed over the years very small chips in the cutting edge. After sharpening on on a stone and getting the edge just right i then ran it lightly over the steel because that was what i suspected was causing the chips. It looked like that was the culprit. These chips i'm talking about are micro small but after steeling for a couple of weeks, with light use of the knife, i can notice them on the cutting edge. This dosent happen with my F.Dicks or Swibo fishing knife and i suspect it is because of the hight stainless content.

Ps: Read one of my other replies down the page. You may cry.

Rat tail files were the best if making your own.
Use an old sharpening stone to grind the riflings off the file till smooth then find a bottle or tall tube to suspend the file in over about an inch of strong vinegar, but don't immerse any of it in the liquid. Leave it for about a week till the fumes off the vinegar have pitted the file then add a handle and haft so you don't cut your fingers off and its ready to use.
When slaughtering, once the knife would only just shave your arm it was time to sharpen it again. Siding knives would last about 4-5 weeks and by then you would have already started another new knife. You would have anywhere up to 5-6 knives on the go at any one time.

 I've heard of something simmilar to the vinegar technique.

The steel i'm currently using has some grooves in it and if i can find the correct way to do it, i will sand it smooth.

The way i heard was use actual acid, perhaps vinegar if it is strong enough, to micro pit the steel. I will really have to have some correct instructions before i start as the honing steel is a good quality one and i would hate to f--- it up.

 I've heard the ceramics are good Dale. Do you use them on the boat?  Can they handle a bit of abuse without chiping? 

 I've tried the sharpening tools in the past. I found them great for a short blade like a pocket knife or skinning knife as you only had to clamp them once. When you have a longer blade like a filleting knife or kitchen knife you have to move the clamp to get the whole blade properly. The first sharpen seemed to work well but when you go to do it again it is almost impossible to get the clamp in the same place you had it months before. That changed the angle a bit and made it harder, and longer, to sharpen again.

For some reason i also found the edge not lasting as long after using the tool. That may have just been in my head but i went back to just using a stone anyway.

Diamond steels are great for giving you a sharp knife for a short time as they soon wear great shoulders on the knife requiring 3 times as long on the stone to grind them off.

 Have used the mechanical hacksaw blades many times in the past to make sack cutting blades. Like you said they hold an edge right up till somebody else leaves it in the pile of empty sacks and it is thrown out..

Then the companys introduced nanny rules, no self made tools, no blades other than safety blades etc and the art of making knives left my industry.. :(

When i was in Montana, USA, i went to a knife maker to get a silver dollar put in the hilt of a skinning knife with a deer bone handle. The steel he used was the leaf spring of a specific make, model, year etc of truck (ute). He said it was the best for quality of steel in a skinner. If it even looks damp the bloody thing rusts but is a quality knife.

Merv

 A lot of people look at a knife and think they can use it for everything.  Like cars, an AWD SUV is not a good road handling car, is not a good 4 WD, Is not a sports car, Is not a ute. You can however drive on the road, on dewy grass, speed and carry a sack of cement in it.

The "expensive" knife sets most people get are, as you say, very Pretty. Full steel handles or nice looking wood with a pretty pattern. They are not the softer steel needed for Boning, harder steel for Sushi, flexible steel for filleting etc.  For somebody who dosent care about their knives the "expensive" ones are just a waste of money and for others the "expensive set" is the cost of just 1 knife.

I would bet those same mates who got their knives sharpened will be chatting to you a year later and saying how their knives are getting dull again. No touch up's on a steel or stone for the whole year.

Now after this coming Thurs night i will be getting a Merc town car, 200 series 4x4, BMW M5 and why the hell would i be carrying cement...Lol

Same here, seen some that make you think about what trade you picked for yourself.
A few that I won't ever forget was one at Anchorage abattoirs, bloke cutting the sheep's throats slipped and cut himself from the inside of his right knee across the top of his thigh up to near where his hip bone is, straight through being about 3 inches at the deepest point. Another at Midland abattoirs, they used small choppers and a round rubber mallet to cut through the briskets of the sheep as they were hanging on the chain rail. With them going passed at about 8-9 a minute there would be two blokes going flat out to keep up, one bloke gets a bit behind so the other swings round to do a couple for him to allow him to catch up, he was a lefty and the slow one is a right hander, puts his arm holding the chopper out and bang, straight through the flesh and bone with just the skin on the back of his arm holding it together, tourniquet on and off to hospital. Worked there for another 9 months and never saw him again.

For my collection of scars, I've had about 30 stitches in both hands and one knee from working in abs and butcher shops Thoroughly agree with Hezzy, its hard work and dangerous to use a knife that isn't less than 90% IMO sharp and my 90% means that if you can't shave your arm with it before you put it on the steel it is blunt.