I think it's a pretty decent system. I use to own one with the Arksansa stones and it worked very well. The holes cut for the rods to guide through have quite a bit of a tolerance, so you do have to put a little effort into holding a consistent angle to get the most out of it, but as far as keeping the knife in the general ball park to make it easier for the user to keep track, there's nothing this system is really lacking.
The diamond stones are also a good choice. The Arkansas stones wore out too quickly on my kit, and as I have recentley switched to free-handing, I have bought a Coarse/Fine combination diamond stone from Smith's and I can definitely recommend them.
Did the system come with a fine white Arkansas stone? The Smith's diamond stones stop at 750 grit, which may be a little rough depending on what you want to use it for. However, it will pop hair and slice phone book paper up from my experience with them.
