knife sharpener

This is the one I have and I have been pretty happy with it.

http://www.amazon.com/Chefs-Choice-...d=1384480827&sr=1-2&keywords=chefs+choice+120

For cheap knives, Accusharp. Pick one up at Ace Hardware for about ten bucks.

You might not want to use one on expensive knives though as it uses carbide cutters that tend remove a bit a steel.

I use a Waring Commercial WKS800 3-Station Knife Sharpener with 2 Grinding and 1 Stropping Wheel
Available at restaurant depot as well as amazon. I have had it for 5 years now and I recommend it highly.

http://www.amazon.com/Waring-Commercial-WKS800-3-Station-Sharpener/dp/B002NQXQFK/ref=pd_sim_sbs_k_2

The sharpeners above will do a good job. However, for a truely fine edge they cannot achieve what this system will do, however this is a manual sharpener.

http://kmesharp.com/kmeknshsy.html

I also use a manual sharpener made by wicked edge .You can get a razor sharp polished edge that is unattainable with mechanical sharpeners .

I strongly feel that the only proper way to sharpen a knife is by the use of water stones, you can get some relatively affordable compared to high end electric sharpeners, they are gentle on your knife and you can customize the angles/bevels. Does however take some skill though.

Wicked Edge is a great system, pricey though. Same for Edge Pro Apex. Personally I like stones, here is one I use all the time.

http://www.japanesechefsknife.com/WhetStonesForSale.html

http://www.edgeproinc.com/Apex-Model-Edge-Pro-System-c3/

Tune up the knife set before going and I take the ceramic rod with me for interim honing at the comp.

Russ

nucornhusker said:

This is the one I have and I have been pretty happy with it.

http://www.amazon.com/Chefs-Choice-...d=1384480827&sr=1-2&keywords=chefs+choice+120

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Any advice on using it? I have one, and I just can't seem to get the hang of it!

I like my EdgePro, but one thing systems like the others mentioned (Wicked Edge, kmesharp) has that I like is the ability to use the same hand to guide the stones over both sides of the knife. With the EdgePro, there's a learning curve when using your non-dominant hand.

If you primarily have more inexpensive knives, with similar edge angles, the Chefs Choice will do a good job. But there is only one set angle on most of them (some will do 2, 17 and 22 I think)

Another fairly inexpensive system for inexpensive day-to-day knives is the Work Sharp from work sharp tools. It's basically a small belt sander.

I picked one of them up because I have a large Sanelli half heavy knife that has a convex blade edge. So to sharpen it I either need a belt sander, or would need to re-profile it for a standard bevel edge. It isn't bad for sharpening yard tools or scissors either

One of these days I'll just get some standard water stones, but my problem with them is getting an accurate angle

cynfulsmokersbbq said:

Any advice on using it? I have one, and I just can't seem to get the hang of it!

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here is a good place to start

http://www.edgecraft.com/video_vs.html

Japanese stone for me.

I leave it to the professionals.
http://korin.com/Services/Sharpening-Repair

We use Lanske kit for sharpening knives. It is a long process, but you can get them crazy sharp!

Eggspert

+1 for Edge Pro

cynfulsmokersbbq said:

Any advice on using it? I have one, and I just can't seem to get the hang of it!

Click to expand...

It's very important to feel for the burr before you move from one stage to the next. If the burr isn't there yet, keep it at that stage otherwise it will not sharpen correctly. I can get knives VERY sharp with mine, and I use Forschner knives for BBQ and a plain old Chicago Cutlery block for everyday stuff.

Thought I read it wrong but 7k for a knife on the Korin site!!
http://korin.com/Suisin-Ao-Ko-Honyaki-Mirror-Finished-Yanagi-12-9-33-cm?sc=27&category=280104

+1for Edge Pro

For inexpensive knives there are several options available from Wal-Mart, sporting good stores, and kitchen stores that will apply a decent edge.

For higher quality knives (i.e. the ones I wouldn't take to a BBQ competition) there are higher end systems such as the Lansky which I currently use. That system has some limitations which have led to a newer generation of systems including the Edge Pro and Wicked Edge. I found a good comparison of the two on YouTube a few months ago that I found very illuminating. My main take away was that the Wicked Edge system was "better" for the knives that it would sharpen, but that Edge Pro worked on more knives given their size and geometry. The Wicket Edge system is also more expensive. I have been planning to replace my Lansky with an Ede Pro for some time, but just haven't gotten around to pulling that trigger yet. The bigger question to me has been the correct brand and progression of stones to use with whichever system you choose, and the Edge Pro seems to offer more stones. This alone is what kept me from buying most recently. My biggest question was that if the dry diamond stones of the WE are so great, why isn’t there a comparable system available for the EP? If you do go with an Edge Pro system, I recommend you get and Angle Cube to compliment it.

There are also many people who insist that free hand sharpening is the way to go. This requires more manual precision, and still ends up asking the question of which progression of stones is the best. I have found that knife sharpening is a hobby and passion by itself, much like BBQ, and while the two overlap in some areas, if you spend too much time trying to get "the best," you'll miss out on having something.

dmp