I'm torn--new knife or new sharpening system?

[Leftoverdj]

I've been sharpening whatever came to hand for 50 some years and have never used a "sharpening system". Am I really missing something?

 

[eventer289]

I've been sharpening whatever came to hand for 50 some years and have never used a "sharpening system". Am I really missing something?

Cars and motorcycles also ran fine for years with carburetors, but why not take advantage of newer fuel injection technology, you know what I'm saying? Precision, precision, precision is all we hear today, and I have to say I'm one of those people.

 

[The Government]

^^IMHO -It is just easier to sharpen on a regular bench stone. There is no set up. You just grab the knife and the stone and begin. You learn your preferred angles for different knives and then you can easily put a finer edge on a knife than the factory can.

Maintaining a perfect angle can be overrated. My freehand edge can cut anything just as precise as a preset angle edge.

Another reason to get a stone is that you get more sharpening space than a system. Most systems dont have a lot of sharpening space per stone. A big benchstone costs just as much, but you have 3-4-5 times the sharpening space. this makes it faster, easier, and more capable (it can handle larger knives too).

Either way -good decision to get a sharpener:thumbup:

 

[eventer289]

Well, it's official. I just went ahead and ordered an Apex 4 with an extra 120 stone since right off the bat I know of 3 knives (2 of which are a friend of mine's) that need to be reprofiled.

Thanks for swaying me in the right direction guys! Now I just gotta get through college finals and wait for Santa to place it under the tree!

 

[Kaizen1]

I would get the Sebenza and save up for some stones and learn to freehand sharpen. The stones and a basic strop will cost significantly less than a sharpening system that's mainly a crutch anyway. Just make sure to practice on a beater before trying on the Sebenza.