In the market for a knife sharpener needing pro and cons of offerings.

The Maintenance, Tinkering and Embellishment subforum has lots of threads on sharpeners. You should check there.

I own a KME sharpener and would recommend it to anyone. Great value IMO.
 
fetzer85 said:
The Maintenance, Tinkering and Embellishment subforum has lots of threads on sharpeners. You should check there.
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I second this.

I've owned two sharpening systems: Lansky's crock stick rod system and the Spyderco Sharpmaker. If you're on a budget, the Lansky is fine, but I always recommend the Sharpmaker because it's given me the best results. I suck at sharpening.
 
If you have a phonebook sitting around, go down to the local hardware store and buy some SiC sandpaper in multiple grits up to 2000 at least... That will get you by well enough with wickedsharp edges on pretty much any Steel you throw at it... Watch videos, and Give you time to research (and save for) all the different stones or systems out there before deciding what direction you want to go...

Seriously though, I like water Stones, it's therapeutic for me, but I still use sandpaper and a phone book as well, especially when in a rush, and on my work knives, and some of my outdoor knives. The slightly convex edge it creates works well and holds well...

Invest in a strop too, keep your edges longer, "sharpen" less...
 
There are lots of options available to you.

Describe the knives you have, what sort of edges are you hoping to achieve, how much time you would like to spend, and what sort of budget you are looking at.
 
+1 on the Sharpmaker. I was never better than mediocre with freehand / stones. The sharpmaker gave me much better results. I actually learned a few things and will be going back to freehand again.
 
I ha email tried several and like the kme the best. You definitely want the base to go with it
 
Learn to sharpen by hand! Get a double sided Norton bench stone and a Smith 1000 grit stone; some grades of emory to use taped to a wooden paint stirrer and you can sharpen any knife made. Just a skill to be learned, not magic.
Rich
 
strategy 9, how do you attach the sandpaper to the phone book ? full sheet ? or cut strips ?
what is SiC ? silica carbon ?
any special 'tips' ?
thanks. my phone book is only 1/4" thick, but should still have the right 'give' i think.
kj
 
I usually recommend the Spyderco Sharpmaker based on quality, simplicity, cost and the ability to expand the basic system.

The only "con" is that it's not free and requires a little time and effort to become consistent in using.

If you decide to go freehand, the Sharpmaker rods can be very serviceable.
 
kootenay joe said:
strategy 9, how do you attach the sandpaper to the phone book ? full sheet ? or cut strips ?
what is SiC ? silica carbon ?
any special 'tips' ?
thanks. my phone book is only 1/4" thick, but should still have the right 'give' i think.
kj
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I go one better than this. Ok, I am going to give away one of my secrets at the risk of not finding any more used mouse pads. I get old mouse pads and I glue different grits of sand paper to them. I then cut them either into halfs, quarters and eighths. The smaller pieces I can place n a pocket and the larger pieces in a pack. I can sharpen any knife very quickly. The lightest grit I have is 1500 and the roughest is 280-320. I go to auto body places to buy the sand paper
 
How do you clamp the mousepad/sandpaper to your bench top ? I'm assuming the mousepad will skid around on the bench/table surface if not secured.
kj
 
kootenay joe said:
How do you clamp the mousepad/sandpaper to your bench top ? I'm assuming the mousepad will skid around on the bench/table surface if not secured.
kj
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no mousepads are purposely grippy on the underside and will not move unless you put it ion a slick surface. Easier to carry than a phone book.
 
Mousepads are the ticket... I just went with phonebook since most everyone still just has one sitting around, not being used in this age of smart phones and Google...
Not everyone has a spare mousepads sitting around...

Same concept though, go to YouTube and watch some videos... Wonderful high tech world we live in...
It is definitely a cheap and effective way to sharpen anything. And If you want a flat ground edge instead of convex'd, swap the phonebook/mousepad for a flat hard surface like an old (smooth) tile or piece of countertop; rubber cement works brcause you can peel it up by finger rolling it after, and reuse the flat surface.
Even helps practice for benchstones if you do choose to go that route down the road...

I definitely recommend getting a strop and some compound to maintain your edges then.
-or if you have a good sized piece of leather sitting around somewhere, or find a good leather belt in a 2nd hand store, you can make your own.
 
To make it easier if you use the mousepad and sandpaper route, get your hands on a smooth brick and some carpet-gripper pad.
Set the brick on the carpet gripper, on your workbench (table/countertop/etc.), then the mouse pad on the brick (cut it to the size of the brick).

This allows you to sharpen at almost any angle while maintaining an easy and comfortable grip.
Until I had a taller setup, I used to use chunks of 2x4 to raise my thinner stones up off the bench (translation: I stole the brick part of the idea from a YouTube video).
 
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