So I just got a really nice knife and it's about time for its first sharpening. With my past EDC knives I've just used a simple diamond knife sharpener that you pull the blade through, but I want to take good care of this knife.
1) Are there any dangers or negatives to this style of sharpening?
I bolded the portion in the quote above, to make an important distinction about 'pull-through' sharpeners. As mentioned in other comments, the
carbide style of pull-throughs can really tear up an edge, and really aren't a good solution. Those use carbide inserts that are shaped/ground like scissor edges, and they will grab, pinch and rip the steel from your knife edge. Not good at all for the life of your blade. However, if your pull-through uses rounded (rod-type) diamond inserts, it won't necessarily damage your edge, per se, because it doesn't grab, pinch & rip like the 'scissors' of the carbide types. The rounded rod-type inserts simply abrade the steel, which at least is a small step in a better direction, for sharpening's sake. It will be very limited in how sharp it'll make the edge, however. It basically just shapes the edge to a relatively symmetrical apex, at a fixed angle that might not be optimal. Once the apex is shaped, the very cutting edge will just be bottoming out in the 'V' formed by the inserts, and therefore can't get any sharper.
I think you would benefit in trying a more conventional sharpener (stones, guided systems, etc.), as one's ability and technique will be the only limitation, instead of the tool itself.
Expanding on your other questions:
2) I've thought about buying a good whetstone to sharpen it. Is there a point where you may have too high of a grit? Also what is the point of whetstone with a low and high grit side?
How high you go in grit, is purely a matter of preference. That takes practice and time, and using the edges you create, to figure out what you like in an edge, for your uses.
A low/high double-sided grit configuration is just the basics, and usually the most cost-effective way to create a good, or even excellent cutting edge. Most will use the low-grit side to shape the bevel, and the high-grit side to refine it.
3)Are there are any other good methods to get a really hard steel sharp that may take less skill?
The guided systems (Edge Pro, Wicked Edge, Lansky, Gatco, DMT Aligner) are good for making very clean, pure edge bevels, when one otherwise might not have the freehand skills to do so. Still takes time to learn all that, however, as you still have to learn the fundamentals of using pressure, forming and recognizing the burr, and then refining to remove the burr. Also will learn a lot about the properties of different abrasives (diamond, silicon carbide, aluminum oxide, ceramics, natural stones) and how each works (or doesn't) for a given type of blade steel.
