I am considering buying a basic KME knife sharpening system with the base. My current favorite knife sharpening tool is a Spyderco Sharpmaker with optional rods. I also have two DMT and one Norton bench stones, a strop, a ceramic hone, and a steel hone. My knives are sharp and I understand the sharpening process. With the equipment I have I can put a great edge on some things and a good edge on most anything. It looks like the KME will set me back about $200. Is it a worthy $200 upgrade over what I currently own and use? I'll add that my manual dexterity is limited and free-handing a knife on benchstones is not an option for me to advance my edge making ability.

I own one for 10 years. I mainly use the KME on my Kitchen Knives when they need more than just a free hand touch up on my Arkansas Stones. When a friend asks me to sharpen a knife or two for him and it need a total re-profiling, I do use the KME and work through all the grits starting with a 100 grit Diamond and then work progressively finer. The KME does a good job of keeping the angle consistent and gives good results. I am not familiar with the Spyderco system so I can't comment on that.

For the most part, I am meticulous about keeping my knives in great sharp shape and I have trained myself (muscle memory - took a while) to do free hand sharpening on my 2" x 10" Arkansas Stones. Again, the good part about the KME system is that it keeps the angle consistent and will make sharpening for someone who is not adept with free hand sharpening a descent knife sharpener.

PS: It keeps the knife blade free of scratches if you use masking tape on the upper parts of the blade that are not being sharpened. I'd also suggest using a non toxic Mineral Oil rated for kitchen use if sharpening kitchen knives.

PS-2: If you intend to use the KME for small pocket knives, you will need to purchase the small sized holder.

All in all KME is a descent system. I usually never let my knives get really dull and so most of my touch up sharpening is done free hand with Dan's Whetstone Arkansas Stones (Med, Fine Extra Fine). However, the KME takes out the guess work of angles and keeps them consistent.

I know enough now after learning the hard way that stones and I are a no go for sure. Sounds like you can make use of this new system

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Spin The Wheel

You can get by a LOT cheaper with a Lansky sharpener. One with 5 stones will set you back around $50. AN extra $10 will buy you a clamp on base for it ( or you can do it without the base). I use mine for years without the base mainly because I didn't know they made one. You can buy stones for serrated knoves that also have a groove in it to sharpen fish hooks. Deluxe Lansky Sharpening System

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Forum consigliere

I mostly use the Spyderco Sharpmaker for touch up, but have a Lansky I used for years. I have a Chinese knockoff of the Wicked Edge system I bought for less than $20 that works well too.

Guys,
The KME System is much more precise and consistent about holding the angle! The "Rod" systems will put an edge on a knife however the accuracy is only as good as you are - similar to using a plain Arkansas Stone. I have tried many knife sharpening systems and while the KME may not be the absolute best, for the money it is IMHO. Better and more accurate systems are upward of $500 bucks!

It took me a loooong time to master sharpening freehand on an Arkansas Stone in a wooden box and since I usually don't let my knives get very dull, a few passes on my Arkansas Stones works for me. That said, when ever I want or need to re-profile a knife I will use the KME system for accuracy and efficiency. It does work well, but for re-profiling a knife quickly, you may want to add a Diamond 100 XX Grit "stone" and for very small pocket knives and folders you might want to add the small blade clamp as the standard one won't really hold knives under 3-4 inches.

As I have posted a few times here on the Forum, two skills I demanded of myself are sharpening knives AND Drill Bits free hand. All these gizmos, gadgets and attachments make sharpening a chore. Once one masters sharpening Drills and knives freehand, to do so takes only a few minutes and is a piece of cake! The key is to never let knives get so dull they need major re-profiling. Eventually they will but unless abused, that should take some time.

The Work Sharp Guided Field Sharpener has given me my best results to date. It is about the size of a large harmonica, and has diamond-coated metal plates, a ceramic rod and a leather stropping surface. I have a Smith’s sharpening system, similar to the Lansky, but never really bonded with it. Other stones have given me decent, but not great results. An EZE-LAP diamond hone has worked a bit better, and I ca carry a cut-down one in my wallet.

Not too long ago, I got a Ken Onion powered Work Sharp for reprofiling blades. I am still getting to know it, but I think it is going to work well on machetes, too. I don’t expect to be able to whittle hairs, but I can shave them with many blades, without a lot of trouble.

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Not in jail.

Mine, too. The Sharpmaker works if you do your job, which is keeping the knife straight (not angled). Don't forget to clean the rods periodically with a giant (ok, big) pencil eraser.

As for the other types of sharpeners, why bother with them? Use what works...



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Yes. Years of semi-sharp knives forced me to give up on stones.



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I use a KME sharpener and think it does a great job. Got tired of ruining my edges doing it by hand.

For the most part what I'd sharpen on the KME would be steels like D-2, S-30V, S-35VN, CTS-XHP, ZDP-189, and whatever other super steels I get talked into trying. A diamond Lansky kit and base is about $100. The KME will set me back $200. I can do a good shaving sharp working edge with what I have now. Re-profiling is difficult for me, as is getting a hair whittling edge. Before I drop $200 on more sharpening gear I'm going to study that system and contemplate my needs. Two hundred bucks could buy a couple of nice knives. Thanks for the feedback.

Keep us posted on your results if you decide to try one.

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Hue 68 noli me tangere

Get a few inexpensive or "donor" knives and lock yourself at your workbench (lol) until you master holding a consistent angle on your Arkansas Stones. It took me a long time, but once you "get it" muscle memory keeps it there! In the long run it pays off - because you can touch-up or resharpen a knife in minutes.

NOTE:
While I have medium, fine and extra fine Arkansas Stones, all one truly needs for keeping a knife sharp all the time (for most real life purposes) is the fine. That is my most used one and rarely use the extra fine unless I am sharpening a straight razor or scalpel. The medium stone gets used when I let a knife go too long between sharpening (rare that I do that though).

For kitchen knives - a good Steel is essential for constantly straightening out the fine honed edge and in turn will keep your kitchen knives razor sharp between official sharpening.

MOST FRUSTRATING (about Drill Bits)

The one thing that would drive me nuts is that when I was working in my Workshop I'd have to sometimes stop doing what I was in order to sharpen a specific drill bit. Drill Doctor machines were fair to poor and the gadgets that attach to a bench grinder stink. After suffering for many years I got a handful of drill bits, trued up my bench grinder wheels, watched some youtube videos and would not quit until I had mastered the skill. NOW I can resharpen a drill bit in about 2-3 minutes and long periods playing with marginal gadgets are over! PS: I sold my Drill Doctor.

My problem is that I have a hereditary tremor. I use every trick I can to overcome/compensate for it, but it is a fact of my life. With the Sharpmaker I clamp the sharpener down and use both hands on the knife, but even with concentration and careful positioning I cannot perfectly repeat the stroke over and over again. What I see with the KME is the knife is secured in the fixture and the rods keep the stones secured at a very repeatable angle. I really think my big issue with a KME would be setting the knife properly in the clamp. I'll still use my other sharpening gear for simple steels and touch ups, but for things like extra hard powder metallurgy or D-2 tool steels and for major re-profiling I do not believe I can get the most out of an edge with the tools I am using. My knives are sharp, the are just not as sharp as they could be. Thanks for the feedback.

First, get over the ideal of holding the perfect degree angle to get the sharpest blade.
Next, get a 1 inch belt sander with leather belt and compound. All in for about $90
I went from spending hours to spending minutes sharpening a blade , and from trying to shave hair to shaving my whole arm in one swoop.
Trust me, I have every high dollar sharpener currently on the market and retired all but the sharp maker ( only because it's so small and easy to grab for quicky)

My only complaint about the KME is the method to set the angle. It's not very precise and takes some getting used to. There are lines on the clamp to help you line up the blade, and with a little practice it is not difficult to align consistently. If you use it to sharpen a wide variety of knifes, the hard part for me is setting the angle consistently. Overall, I thinks it's great.

Have you tried using a smart phone and a level app? The one I have on my Android is called Bubble Level and was free.

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After trying many different high end sharpening systems. The one that gets my vote is the 2 paper wheels on the bay. bought a cheap polishing unit at harbor freight put the wheels on and haven't looked back. I can put a edge on anything in minutes.

Great idea, I'll give it a try. Curious to find out how far off it is. Thanks!

I am not as steady as I used to be and my eyesight isn’t that good either. So I use Lansky. The Lansky system could be better though. The handles are small and the mounting base I bought separately isn’t worth a hoot.

The Lansky forces me to slow down and be patient. My knives are D2 and S30V. The Lansky gets them razor sharp.

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Life Is A Gift. Defend it!

And....A leather strop is available for the Lansky. Found it on Amazon.

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Life Is A Gift. Defend it!

It will vary depending in how far away from the pivot the edge is and the thickness of the tool you have in the clamp. The markings on the sharpener are for reference only. I've been studying the system. I just happened to have the level app on my phone when I saw it mentioned in a video. There is a bunch of good info on You Tube.

Yep, I used to sit for hours, making sure I clamped the knife in the exact same spot, counting each stroke, moving from one grit to the next, marking the edge with a sharpie, examining with microscope, trying to get those super steels on my ZT's and Spyderco's to a mirror edge and ultimate sharpness.

And I actually believed that the trick to the best edge was holding that perfect angle and being as precise as possible, ......but then,....why do I always have to finish with a micro bevel?????? Then after touch ups with same angle as microbevel, now I have to reprofile again?????
Got to be a better way, I said to myself. So off on a Journey I did go, wondering the endless channels of YouTube, in search of a better way. Followed the teachings of such masters such as Worksharp, Apex, Wicked Edge, Sharpfinger, Lansky,......imported exotic stones from the Orient and far corners of Russia, and still, I knew there had to be more.
I kept hearing the word convex, and seeing these cheap boards with straps of leather glued to them. I laughed, ho ho, hmmph. How could this barbaric system even compare to my high $$$ systems, so precisely built??? Ha ha ha, little man with your little paddle and compound, how could that ever work on my super steels?
Then one night, about 4 hours into a El Max blade, .....Bubba appeared on my big screen . He was showing the modifications he made to a $45 belt sander he got from Harbor freight. At first , I thought of the worksharp and how it eat up the blade and proceeded to swap out my stones for the fifth time. Then I looked back up at the screen and I saw how bubba had that belt sander played down flat now, and how he was NOT using sandpaper. Hmmm, what's this fool doing now?.....he had installed a leather belt on that belt sander....and with a little compound, was working some blades to what appeared to be crazy sharpness.
And that was it. I had to try it. Went the next morning and picked one up. Set it up like Bubba did. Took that same El Max blade I worked on the night before and ran it four or five passes each side, and holly ****...I never seen an edge that freaking sharp in all my life. I shaved my whole left arm, baby smooth in like 5 seconds. I dont have the words to describe how insane sharp it was. Then I grab my EDC paramilitary 2, hasn't been sharpened in weeks and wont even cut paper decent. Four or five passes each side and bam, another insanely sharp blade.
And edge retention is so much better. Especially on cardboard. Sold me on convex edge forever. Totally the best way to sharpen a knife bar none.

Belt Sanders will sharpen a knife HOWEVER it is my personal opinion that they prematurely wear out a knife blade by taking off way too much metal. To me it seems a little crude to sharpen a good or expensive knife on a Belt Sander or Bench Grinder. If you sharpen knives on a BS once a year, it might not be a major concern, however of one sharpens a knofe more often on a regular basis, I would thing the blade would shortly become worn out.

They will. My dad used to sharpen his work knives on a die grinder. It was fast and effective, but wire down blades extremely quickly.

Found the same app you're using and it's great. Going around the house checking everything for level, my wife is about to kill me. Time to sharpen some kitchen knives...

NOT USING SANDPAPER!!!!!
Leather belt and compound!!!
Less wear than with stones and polishes to mirror edge.
Please read entire posts

What’s the “compound”?

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Oui Chef!

I´m inclined on buying the Work Sharp Guided Field Sharpener that´s avaiable here. My only concern is how long will the Diamond stones last.My first DMT Diamond stones are now useless . Can the same happen with the Work Sharp stones? I ask because it will not be easy to find spares around here.On the other side I suppose the regular, not diamond coated Lansky de luxe system with five stones, also avaible here, will last more. What would you say?
Regards, Ray

Thanks again for the comments. I went ahead and ordered the standard four diamond plate KME system and the optional base. From everything I've read and seen it appears to be a quality tool that has strengths and weaknesses, just as my other sharpeners have their strengths and weaknesses. The KME should be here by Saturday and it will join, not replace, the other sharpening tools I have accumulated over the years.



Bottom left to right: Strop, Norton synthenthic stone, DMT fine, DMT coarse, Spyderco Sharpmakeer with opt. rods, Chicago Cultlery hone, generic ceramic hone

The KME is not going to replace these things, I'm hoping it will allow me to do things I do not seem to be able to do currently.

My new KME shipped (free) USPS Priority from Salt Lake City on Wednesday and arrived here in Houston this afternoon. It appears to be well built. I should have time this weekend to start learning how to properly work with it. I need to decide which of my knives to use as a guinea pig to learn with. Maybe I'll go to Academy or Walmart and buy a cheapy to practice on.

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So what is the big difference between that and a Lansky or Spiderco?
Same exact concept so far as I can see. Just a different way of getting there.
What am I missing here?
Not trying to be negative, just wanting to know what the mechanical difference is.

KME is a good system. I use a Ken Onion Work Sharp with the 600, 2000, and 6000 grit belts. The trick is slow speed and slow feed, lifting the knife point when its half way across the belt to avoid rounding. Truth is, use what you like best!

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Even older, even crankier....

I received a "Zulay Kitchen" knife sharpener from Amazon yesterday, and I have already sharpened all of the scissors and a lot of the knives. I have tried different sharpeners over the years-this is the best result I have found. When I ordered it, I got an email before I received it that was very nice, and helpful. The owner also told me that if it didn't work out to just email and I could just keep the sharpener. It is easy to use, and very effective. My daily carry pocket knife is a Gerber easy out, and it is a trial to sharpen, but I have gotten a working edge now. Other knives were very sharp after just a few licks. I have Amazon Prime, so it was 11.00 + I still can't believe it, but I do.

The Spyderco has sharpening rods fixed at preset angles and you draw the knife across them holding the knife perfectly vertical.

The KME and the Lansky are both clamping/guided rod systems. The knife is clamped into a jig and the sharpening stones are clamped to rod. The rod goes into the knife clamping jig at is guided across the clamped knife at adjusted angles.

The principles of the KME and Lansky are the same. The differences are in tolerances, adjustability, build quality, and easy of use. Oh yes, there is a big price difference too.

I will stick with the Lansky I have owned for years. I have no problem getting a shave sharp edge with it and for the $ difference, I doubt the KME will put much better of an edge on it.
Since I have learned to hone the blade on my EDC knife regularly, actual sharpening is a 2 maybe 3 times a year event.

Hi, just ordered a Work Sharp Field sharpener made by Boker, the only one I could find around here. I hope it´s well made and that its diamond coated stones have good durability.
I understand that Boker is not the original maker, if so, how does it compares to the original?
Thanks, regards, Ray

Today I spent a bit of time getting to know my new KME sharpener. My test knife was a 30 year old Chicago Cutlery 6" Chef's knife that was badly in need of re-profiling. The knife is a propriety stainless, most likely 400 series of some sort. Getting the knife set in the clamp was quick and simple. I was looking for a 17 degree angle and the level app on my phone got it to 16.9 degrees with ease. The 140 grit X-coarse diamond stone tore into the blade steel with ease. The stones weigh 3.5 ounces, so I just let the weight of the stone do the work. After a few minutes I checked for a bur, and none had developed, so I flipped the knife and started working on the other side and a bur developed after a few more minutes. Flipped the knife again and worked the first sided until the bur moved back. From there the progression through the finer stones was fast and easy. When I finally took the knife off the fixture I still noted a bit of a bur remaining and used my strop to take it off. I had tried to re-profile that knife a year ago on my Sharpmaker and spent four times the time with nowhere near as good a result. That knife is now sharper than it was when I got it in the late 1980s.

After lunch I tried setting up a Case Slim Trapper and ran into a problem. That knife blade is so narrow once it is secured in the clamp the edge is so close to the clamp that the clap blocks the stone from coming in at a low enough angle. Once I got the arm adjusted to clear the clamp and hit the knife's edge I was at 26 degrees per side, way too steep. I pulled out a Buck 521 and was able to easily get 19 degrees and felt with a bit of work I could get it to 17 degrees. KME offers an optional small knife clamp, but small knives are easy on my other sharpeners.

If your sharpener does what you want it to do stick with it. The KME is not for everybody, but it is an excellent system that appears to be worth the money. If I were just starting out and only had a few knives, I'd opt for a Sharpmaker. Sharpmakers run close to $80 now days, and I think the optional diamond rods are an additional $55. Quality sharpening stones are not cheap.

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