Knife sharpeners

[Buckhead]

I use whetstones only and always have along with a honing steel (prepped to my liking) to realign the edge during cutting.

Whetstones come in several different grits from coarse to superfine and they are not just for polishing the blade.

They take a bit of practice to use but once you get the hang of it you can "feel" the edge of the blade. For the uninitiated using a blade angle guide is probably the best way to learn.

Sharpening a blade to razor sharp with whetstones takes just minutes and should not take hours unless one is doing something seriously wrong or one has used the blade edge as a cold chisel or something to hammer through steel.

I'm with Chuck. I'm not letting anything with a belt or a wheel go near any of my blade edges.

[crazy_davey]

Originally Posted by Buckhead

I'm with Chuck. I'm not letting anything with a belt or a wheel go near any of my blade edges.

Yup, same here.

[patrol1957]

I like my Work Sharp Precision Adjust Knife Sharpener bought this year.

[sns2]

Teaching cooking for a livin, not a bad gig for those who can get it, I have to sharpen a lot of knives, like way too many knives… The Worksharp Units work quickly, and get a really good edge on a knife. Some may not like them, and that’s a choice too, but for a quick workable edge they sure work good for me. I don’t own any custom knives, so not worried about wrecking anything.

[Pathfinder76]

Originally Posted by Hooter

Chuck, you could be the most consistently crusty, opinionated, disagreeable, and confrontational person on this forum…. Period…..

Why can’t you state your opinion with a bit of tact and couth? I get the impression you’re a very lonely and bitter man.

Unbelievable

We are talking about an object. You on the other hand have no issue making it personal? Saying some pretty awful things doing it.

[Buckhead]

I am not saying the Worksharp isn't a good tool - it just isn't the tool for properly sharpening knives.

Maybe it would be ok for trimming horse hooves or leveling the soles on work boots. That sort of thing.

[Ken3134]

Taking the time to learn and practice the skill to use sharpening stones is well worth the effort, gives a better result, costs less, and works anywhere when you take them along. It honestly isn’t that hard to learn….. maybe extremely boring for some. I have always been interested in knives so wasn’t so much for me. Understanding when a knife needs sharpening, when you should hone it, and most often you can keep a razor edge maintaining it by stropping. If you got that down, you’ll loose all interest in the latest and best new jig being made.

Ken

[Battle Rat]

Originally Posted by crazy_davey

Yup, same here.

I also agree with Chuck.
I used the workshop on the cheaper knives used for butchering.
They work OK but not a game changer and no I wouldn't use it on my Pumas.

[Coiloil37]

Personally I recommend you learn how to freehand sharpen properly. It’s something most guys are no good at but really isn’t that hard to learn. Good equipment helps immensely, a little YouTube and some practice and you should be able to pick it up.

If your using carbon steels or sharpening your straight razor a water/Arkansas/whet stone has its place. If you’ve got soft ductile steels a hone will work between touch ups.
For the steels I use those options are next to useless. Diamond will sharpen everything and sharpen it quickly. I use a course/fine 8” DMT and a strop loaded with diamond paste. My knives are all modern CPM steels and 61-65 Rockwell and I can put a hair whittling edge on any of them (usually) with less then ten strokes per side and start to finish is usually under a minute.




I’m with a few others. No chance I would put my knives anywhere near an electric or carbide sharpener. Fine if your using cheapies and don’t care but not for my customs. The quality of edge I put on my knives is second to no one and as fast as any other option.

[MK2750]

Originally Posted by Buckhead

I am not saying the Worksharp isn't a good tool - it just isn't the tool for properly sharpening knives.

Maybe it would be ok for trimming horse hooves or leveling the soles on work boots. That sort of thing.

I only tried it on a couple of times on knives and that was it for me. I would use it if I were restoring an old knife just to start the angle.

Not to sell it short, this is one of the handiest little tools I have for wood working and other small polishing jobs. It is especially handy for grind to fit recoil pads. It is like a miniature belt sander.

The precision stone system by Worksharp looks okay.

[russ]

I use a hard felt wheel and green chrome polish I bought from Lee Valley and mounted on a 6" grinder that I reversed. Surgical sharp knives.

[Phil McCracken]

Originally Posted by russ

I use a hard felt wheel and green chrome polish I bought from Lee Valley and mounted on a 6" grinder that I reversed. Surgical sharp knives.

Yep...do the same as you when I am done with the sharpening...

[Hooter]

Originally Posted by chuck

Unbelievable

We are talking about an object. You on the other hand have no issue making it personal? Saying some pretty awful things doing it.

My objective wasn’t to make it personal, and I apologize for that. I wanted to read this thread so that I could learn something about sharpening knives which I know very little about, and all you had to offer was that you’d never let a Worksharp touch any of your knives with no reasoning or rationale. I guess my point here is that you can have an opinion like anyone else, but not providing some kind of reasoning doesn’t help the conversation and does little to help those like me who are trying to learn something. Your reply just sounded like a grumpy old codger who is ****ed off at the world and just wanted to be confrontational. If that’s not the case then, again, I apologize, but I hope you can see it from my point as well.

[Pathfinder76]

Originally Posted by Hooter

My objective wasn’t to make it personal, and I apologize for that. I wanted to read this thread so that I could learn something about sharpening knives which I know very little about, and all you had to offer was that you’d never let a Worksharp touch any of your knives with no reasoning or rationale. I guess my point here is that you can have an opinion like anyone else, but not providing some kind of reasoning doesn’t help the conversation and does little to help those like me who are trying to learn something. Your reply just sounded like a grumpy old codger who is ****ed off at the world and just wanted to be confrontational. If that’s not the case then, again, I apologize, but I hope you can see it from my point as well.

My opinion is that I will not let a gimmicky belt sander near any quality blade of mine. Three reasons. One is heat. Two is damage can happen far too rapidly to control. Three is sharpness. It just does not sharpen a knife that well.

[Hooter]

Originally Posted by chuck

My opinion is that I will not let a gimmicky belt sander near any quality blade of mine. Three reasons. One is heat. Two is damage can happen far too rapidly to control. Three is sharpness. It just does not sharpen a knife that well.

This is exactly the information I was looking for. Makes much more sense now. Thank you.

[rockyb88]

Has anyone here used the Tormek? T4 or T8?

I've looked into the systems available and overwhelmed myself many times trying to decide which one to go with and now I have a pile of dull knives, except my 1 hunting knife. Pretty sad.

I've seen the project farm videos (yes, he has 2 of them) and was going to make a decision based on that, but every time I'm ready to pull the trigger I read a few bad reviews and go back to square 1.

I was considering the worksharp belt, but like mentioned in a previous post I'm worried about heat and damage to the tips and blades. The worksharp precision adjust looks promising though but my mind keeps going back to the Tormek.

I'm one of those buy once, cry once guys for the RIGHT tool. Money is and isn't an object if you know what I mean (benefits cover most of the cost).

[amosfella]

Originally Posted by rockyb88

Has anyone here used the Tormek? T4 or T8?

I've looked into the systems available and overwhelmed myself many times trying to decide which one to go with and now I have a pile of dull knives, except my 1 hunting knife. Pretty sad.

I've seen the project farm videos (yes, he has 2 of them) and was going to make a decision based on that, but every time I'm ready to pull the trigger I read a few bad reviews and go back to square 1.

I was considering the worksharp belt, but like mentioned in a previous post I'm worried about heat and damage to the tips and blades. The worksharp precision adjust looks promising though but my mind keeps going back to the Tormek.

I'm one of those buy once, cry once guys for the RIGHT tool. Money is and isn't an object if you know what I mean (benefits cover most of the cost).

Princess auto has a much less expensive version of a wet sharpener available. For most people it would likely last a long time. And PA will replace it as its their branded article.

[Ursus_Major]

I have been collecting knives for some time now, and sharpening them is one of my favourite hobby.

Manual systems are somewhat okay but they don't like very much curvy blades. I'd recommend the KME system, does the same thing as systems that can cost literally 10 times more.

Avoid pull through systems at all cost. They will damage the edge.

Belt sanding...you need to train a lot with cheaper knives before! Or have that done by a true professional - not by the trainee at House of knives but by your local knifemaker.

Tormec are great if you are a butcher... for a hobbyist or an occasional user they are overkill (and don't like much curvy things either)


To me, the best way to sharpen is freehand with stones and a good sharpening rod for touch up in between sharpening. And a good strop with rouge if you like them razor sharp and shiny.

A set of 200, 400 and 800 grit stones should be more than enough to cover all your needs. Lee Valley used to have a nice offer of good stones at a decent price.

[Cow Town Bill]

I just got a Wicked Edge Precision Knife Sharpener from a friend that is downsizing. It's hand operated and the angle can be controlled. Comes with a number of stone sizes. Have only sharpened one knife so far. There are a number of "how to" videos on you tube that I need to study.
I think they are sold on Amazon.
Bill

[averagejoe]

Originally Posted by rockyb88

Has anyone here used the Tormek? T4 or T8?

I've looked into the systems available and overwhelmed myself many times trying to decide which one to go with and now I have a pile of dull knives, except my 1 hunting knife. Pretty sad.

I've seen the project farm videos (yes, he has 2 of them) and was going to make a decision based on that, but every time I'm ready to pull the trigger I read a few bad reviews and go back to square 1.

I was considering the worksharp belt, but like mentioned in a previous post I'm worried about heat and damage to the tips and blades. The worksharp precision adjust looks promising though but my mind keeps going back to the Tormek.

I'm one of those buy once, cry once guys for the RIGHT tool. Money is and isn't an object if you know what I mean (benefits cover most of the cost).

This post is probably going to be a bit long and rambly to hopefully provide some other considerations to help you make a decision, you have been warned. Every system is going to have pros and cons and how big those are depend on each person and their situation. Every system is going to get bad reviews for various reasons so you need to take them with a grain of salt unless the majority of reviews are negative. Could have been due to operator error, or a defective item, or just a bad day.

So, how important are size and portability? When you are not using it where will it be kept and how long will it take to set up when you do need to use it? Will you want something that you can take with you to keep your knives sharp? What kind of edge will you be wanting and what will you be sharpening?

For guided systems have you checked out other offerings such as Tsprof, Wicked Edge, KME, Edge Pro, or Hapstone? The Worksharp precision adjust is a decent start but has a lot of limitations which I will talk about later on.

A huge pro on the Tormek side is it does the work for you. The stone spins while you move the knife along which requires very little work. The guided systems all have you doing the work on the stone so it requires a lot of back and forth movement. Arthritis, tendonitis, or other health issues could be a big decision point. If you have a hard steel and need to re profile it and want to go through the grits and stops you could spend 30 minutes, 45 minutes, up to an hour on a knife on a guided system if you go slowly and carefully. Of course if you only go to 1000 grit and a single strop so it is comparable to the Tormek it will take considerably less time, and even less if the knife does not require any edge repair for chips or re profiling.

Ask yourself what you mainly want to sharpen. Average pocket knives and kitchen knives? No specially ground Japanese knives, no super high end steels, 10" and under length etc. Any system will do. Do you have a lot of woodworking tools? Big plus for the Tormek. Do you have knives with high end super steels? Might want to pick up some diamond stones to help with those. Much cheaper on a guided system.

Do you want a general working edge or would you like to be able to put something up to a crazy edge and possibly mirror polishes on your knives? A lot easier and cheaper on a guided system rather than the Tormek. Going up to 2k, 6k+ grit is a simple few seconds of time stone change for a guided system, with the Tormek switching it around when needed takes a while.

What kind of edge profile are you looking for? Tormeks put a hollow grind on things, the wider the bevel the more pronounced it is but not really noticeable on narrow bevels on most knives. If you want a wider flat bevel, or a convex edge then a Tormek might not be the right option. The other guided systems can all do a really nice flat bevel and some have attachments to do convex edges.

Will you be able to store it indoors, especially during the winter and how much room will you be able to dedicate to it? The Tormek stone wheels absorb water so if you will need to use it during the winter it needs to be indoors or you will crack your stone when it freezes. Will you be able to dedicate bench/table/counter space for it, or will you need to store it away when not in use? It also takes setup time since you have to fill the water tray, let the stone soak it up and wait until the stone is ready which can take a while. If you will have to store it in and enclosed space like a cupboard then you may want to let it sit out for a day or 3 for the water absorbed into the stone to evaporate or it could cause rust/mold/mildew problems.

The T8 weighs about 33 lbs I think so lugging it out from a cupboard and setting it up to do a few touch ups might be a big con. The various other systems are much smaller in size and weigh ~2 lbs to 15-20 depending on which options they have such as an additional heavy base plate. The Tsprof Blitz and Kadet models, Edge Pro, Worksharp precision adjust, KME, all weigh under 5 lbs, fold down and can be stored in a drawer. With the exception of the Worksharp, and KME the others just above all use a 6"x1" stone, KME is a 4"x1" stone and both are 1/4" to 1/3" thick so you can also store a lot of stones in a small space.

One of the bigger cons with the Tormek is the wheels. They are big and really expensive if you want to do more than the 1000 grit finish. You also have to abrade your stone to change between rough and fine which is a waste of material especially if you are constantly switching grit or truing your stone. If you want to go to a higher grit edge, or get diamonds you need to shell out a few hundred bucks for each additional wheel and storage for them all takes a lot of room. When researching the system myself I also found a few different posts about the hole in the wheels becoming oblonged over time but it is not a common issue. On the flip side, if all you need is that one stone it lasts a really long time due to its size.

And now coming into the discussion of smaller systems if storage or transport is an issue. They can be stored in a drawer or case and are portable so they can easily be taken hunting or fishing for instance and do not require power.

The Worksharp uses proprietary stones that are quite small and wear out quickly. They are quite small so working on an 8" chef knife will take a long time especially if you have a chip to remove. You can get replacement plates but I am not sure if they are available in Canada or not. There is an aftermarket stone holder made that will let you use the 4x1 (KME) and 6x1 ("Edge Pro") size stones which is a popular option and greatly improves the usability of the system. One of the problems that people seem to complain about is how the blade holder is too wiggly. It is held in with a magnet so it can move when sharpening. There are 3d printed options but some people just put a block of wood under it to stop the wiggling around.

If you want to splurge a bit but still keep the same small size and having the knife be clamped then the KME would be a better option but has some quirks as well. A step up from that would be the Tsprof Blitz models. Personally I really like the new Blitz Pro model they just released as it fixed a lot of the complaints about the clamping system that were present on the "gen 1" Blitz models and can sharpen knives up to ~11". There is also the Kadet model but the angle adjustment can be a bit fussy but it has the advantage of being able to use the clamps from the top end K03 model and can sharpen longer knives than the Blitz.

The Edge Pro is a bit larger but can still fit into a drawer. The main drawback is you have to told the knife in your hand while sharpening and move the stone at the same time.

Past that you get into the large footprint models. Haptsone makes a variety of models that take inspiration from Edge Pro and TsProf but have improvements or different options and compared to the Tsprof are cheaper.

Check out this youtube channel, the guy has most of the systems and has reviewed and sharpened knives on video on them. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6h...f3cR3GpFM_1IvA

On the higher end you get the Tsprof K03 model. On top end of the price scale you get into the Wicked Edge and its proprietary stones.

I think that is about about everything but I likely forgot something while writing it all out.

[South west trappin RG]

Originally Posted by rockyb88

Has anyone here used the Tormek? T4 or T8?

I've looked into the systems available and overwhelmed myself many times trying to decide which one to go with and now I have a pile of dull knives, except my 1 hunting knife. Pretty sad.

I've seen the project farm videos (yes, he has 2 of them) and was going to make a decision based on that, but every time I'm ready to pull the trigger I read a few bad reviews and go back to square 1.

I was considering the worksharp belt, but like mentioned in a previous post I'm worried about heat and damage to the tips and blades. The worksharp precision adjust looks promising though but my mind keeps going back to the Tormek.

I'm one of those buy once, cry once guys for the RIGHT tool. Money is and isn't an object if you know what I mean (benefits cover most of the cost).

I have had a Tormic T8 for six months now an I should have bought one years ago. I use a knifes everyday for work an have used the work sharp belt sander that rounds the tips off for a long time. The tormec is faster an gets a way sharper blade it’s expensive though.

[colt45]

Originally Posted by rockyb88

Has anyone here used the Tormek? T4 or T8?

I've looked into the systems available and overwhelmed myself many times trying to decide which one to go with and now I have a pile of dull knives, except my 1 hunting knife. Pretty sad.

I've seen the project farm videos (yes, he has 2 of them) and was going to make a decision based on that, but every time I'm ready to pull the trigger I read a few bad reviews and go back to square 1.

I was considering the worksharp belt, but like mentioned in a previous post I'm worried about heat and damage to the tips and blades. The worksharp precision adjust looks promising though but my mind keeps going back to the Tormek.

I'm one of those buy once, cry once guys for the RIGHT tool. Money is and isn't an object if you know what I mean (benefits cover most of the cost).

I have the tormek t8 with some attachments, to sharpen wood turning tools, it works great , I have been able to sharpen my gouges now with no problem,
I have been able to sharpen all sorts of knifes , small and big ones, axes, planer blades with the attachment,
The leather wheel is great for honing the blades , the wheel is running slowly and water bathed so your knifes never get hot and ruin the blade,
For me it works great, you can set the angle of the blade edge and repeat it with no problem
You can buy different sharpening wheels for it also, I have a diamond wheel for sharpening my wood turning gouges that works excellent . That I could not get right before with out over heating them on a regular grinder system
It is expensive but for me it works , I also have a lansky sharpen system that I used for quite a while , worked great but needed this type system to get wood Turning tools and jointer blades sharpened precisely and repeatable.