Plus one on the Angle Cube. I actually use and old HTC EVO Android phone with an app. Probably not as precise as the Angle Cube, but even that can be off if you don't use it right. I like the old EVO because it has all the buttons on one side so I don't keep turning the screen off when I'm trying to find and angle.
I just zero the app on the base of the KME then set the edge of the phone along the back of the stone holder. I'm trying to get into a narrow range of bevel angle for the task I'm sharpening for and not worrying over tenths of degrees.
With any guided system you have two things to keep in mind. First, the marks for the angle settings are a guide, not an absolute. How the knife is placed in the clamp, or in the case of the Edge Pro, on the table of the EP. The same knife placed in deep then placed further out will have a difference of angle with the same setting on the machine.
Second, bevel angles will change slightly along the edge from heel to toe. Where in freehand sharpening even the steadiest hand will have some play and variation since we aren't machines, in the guided systems the angles change slightly because the distance changes. By that I mean that if you set an angle with everything centered, blade centered lengthwise in the clamp (on the table for the EP) then as you move to the rear and the front, especially along the belly near the tip, the geometry changes just slightly and the angle is a little thinner. In other words you won't get 21.250 degrees per side at every point along the blade. But you won't be changing in full degrees either. Ben Dale of Edge Pro has pointed out that since we tend to do more slicing with that forward part a tiny bit of thinning isn't a bad thing either in terms of performance. I agree. It may give those who lay awake at night agonizing over a not being within .001 +/- degree of perfection, but for anyone actually cutting stuff and using a knife, it's no worry at all.
Great to see other KME users and fans. The system itself is great, but the guy who is KME, Ron Swartz, just makes it even better. The man puts in a LOT of hours each day taking care of not just the order materials, make, sell part of the business, but the people side as well. Even up to his elbows in alligators he still takes time to talk to customers. So if you try to call and go to voicemail he's probably talking to someone else, but will call you back. That personal involvement and touch just makes me appreciate the KME even more.
That's not so rare though in this game. Ben Dale has the same reputation. He will talk to you, help you, and offer you tips and ideas. Ken Schwartz, the alchemical wizard and purveyor of all things abrasive, from emulsions with very tight tolerances to natural Japanese waterstones, is also reachable by phone and can make your head spin with how much he knows about edges, materials, and things sharpening and polishing. I'll pass the same note along that was given to me. If you call Ken, have some time to talk.
Like the folks here who are quick to help and will take the time to think about an issue you raise (they're always seeking to learn and problem solve) a lot of the folks that provide the gear we use are the same way. That's the joy of working with homegrown folks who are not just in business, but in business because they are passionate about what they do. KME, Edge Pro, and Wicked Edge started out as sharpeners trying to enhance their own sharpening or solve/improve a particular issue. They were sharpeners first.
