Best BUDGET Sharpening System? Suggestions please.

N

Nalapombu

Joined
Oct 26, 2001
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300
Hey all.

I’m not a knife nut kinda guy or anything. I like knives and have carried one every day for the last 25 years. I’m currently carrying a Miguron Velona. Great budget knife….terrible edge from the factory.


Anyway. I have a Lansky system that’s OLD. I just can’t get decent results from it anymore without spending a LOT of time. I need something new or better. I’m on a tight budget though. I’m not opposed at all to buying USED.

I’d like to get some suggestions on what would be a good option for me. The easier to get great results….the better.

I’ve looked at a few…the Worksharp basic, the Spyderco with triangle rods and plastic base, replacement LANSKY hones, a few different Chinese setups from AExp.. I’ve read positive things about each one.

Would you guys and gals care to share some of your expertise with me and direct me what I would be better off with?

I would really appreciate any help or advice that you all would care to give.

Thank you very much for your time.
 
If you want the sharpening process to be easy, it is hard to beat the Spyderco Sharpmaker. Extremely fast, foolproof, no tools required, the rods really last, you can sharpen longer or shorter knives, it can produce an excellent edge at 17 or 20 degrees (I think), and it will handle very hard steels as well.

I would be really careful of anything less expensive than the Sharpmaker, which only costs about $80 in the U.S.A. Abrasives capable of sharpening knife steel for any length of time are going to cost a few bucks! Cheap stones are a false economy because they don't work well and they don't last very long.
 
I use a work sharp field sharpener 90% of the time. It's only $30 & has a very easy learning curve. It uses diamond stones, a ceramic stone & a leather strop. I can use it to bring back an edge, even after dulling a "super-steel".
 
Do you prefer a guided system? Or is freehand an option, too?
What kind of stones do you use? The standard aluminium oxide stones? Diamonds? The fine / ultra fine ceramics, too?
Let's say you use the standard stones. Maybe it would help to add one or two diamond stones for setting the bevel and the ultra-fine ceramic hone?

Khromo said:
If you want the sharpening process to be easy, it is hard to beat the Spyderco Sharpmaker. Extremely fast, foolproof, no tools required, the rods really last, you can sharpen longer or shorter knives, it can produce an excellent edge at 17 or 20 degrees (I think), and it will handle very hard steels as well.

I would be really careful of anything less expensive than the Sharpmaker, which only costs about $80 in the U.S.A. Abrasives capable of sharpening knife steel for any length of time are going to cost a few bucks! Cheap stones are a false economy because they don't work well and they don't last very long.
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Agreed, the Sharpmaker is a very useful tool. It has slots for 30° and 40° (i.e. 15° and 20° per side). But the Sharpmaker works best if the angle of your blade fits to the one of the Sharpmaker. Otherwise you won't get decent results, too. The Sharpmaker is great for keeping a blade sharp. And you are able to sharpen other tools, recurve, serrations and more, too.
If you decide to got with the Sharpmaker (and I am sure you can get one secondhand which will help you save some money) you would need a coarse hone / stone for reprofiling your knife, too. A cheap hardware store stone (sth. like a coarse / medium stone from ACE, for example) will work. The diamond or CBN rods from Spyderco are expensive. They cost about the same as the Sharpmaker. Because they are narrow they are not the best choice for reprofiling. Although it can be done (elbow grease is needed).
 
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Seeing your title, I was going to suggest a lansky guided system.

I have the cheapest one they make, and use it only when I have something that needs a lot of work, mostly other peoples knives.

I am thinking of upgrading to the more premium Lasky.

If I am just touching up my knives, I use DMT diafolds.

Years ago I tried the cheap offshore diamond stones. That learned me.
 
mqqn said:
Seeing your title, I was going to suggest a lansky guided system.

I have the cheapest one they make, and use it only when I have something that needs a lot of work, mostly other peoples knives.

I am thinking of upgrading to the more premium Lasky.

If I am just touching up my knives, I use DMT diafolds.

Years ago I tried the cheap offshore diamond stones. That learned me.
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I would go for the worksharp guided system over the lansky. The lansky was always slightly between angles for me and I don't believe the worksharp has those limitations.
 
cudgee said:
Have a look at the Idahone V sharpener. Well priced, American made, great customer service and simple to use.
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I just went to their website and they look like they are a great alternative to the Sharpmaker. Great suggestion.
 
Idahone seems to have both round and triangular rods. I would choose the triangular ones because they are much more versatile. Btw.: The YouTube demonstration video linked with one of the V-type sharpeners is imho not the best source how to use these type of sharpener because the gentleman drags the tip of the knife with force off the rod. This can result in a rounded tip.
 
SwissHeritageCo said:
Lansky croc sticks should get more love around here in terms of budget systems.
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I have a Turnbox but I don't use it a lot because of the round sticks. I prefer to use my Sharpmaker.

jlauffer said:
The Work Sharp Precision Adjust (the basic one) has worked well for me.
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Yeah I always hear good things about it, and it's incredibly affordable, especially when compared to other guided systems.

I hate on guided systems all the time. I recommend that everybody just learns freehand. But the Precision Adjust is so cheap that it's hard to say someone shouldn't get it, especially if they have no intention of learning freehand (which, if that's true, then shame on them).
 
Guy McVer said:
I have a Turnbox but I don't use it a lot because of the round sticks. I prefer to use my Sharpmaker.



Yeah I always hear good things about it, and it's incredibly affordable, especially when compared to other guided systems.

I hate on guided systems all the time. I recommend that everybody just learns freehand. But the Precision Adjust is so cheap that it's hard to say someone shouldn't get it, especially if they have no intention of learning freehand (which, if that's true, then shame on them).
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I prefer free hand as well but recently I got my first knife with a thumb stud. The thumb stud doesn't allow me to put on my usual convex with a rocking motion, it's placement gets in the way, so I've started to use my croc sticks again.

On the flipside, I'm a budget folder user so I don't mind a few scratches above the bevels when putting on that convex. I can totally see how owners of more premium knives would want to keep the flats clean of scratches by using a guided system so everything stays pretty.
 
Guy McVer said:
It's not removable?
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Oh it is, I'm just not doing that every time it needs a little touch up. I'm so used to sharpening perpendicular to the stone to achieve that convex that I would rather just use the rods vs. sharpening at a slant to accommodate the stud position.
 
I don’t have the lansky, but are you able to clean or refresh the stones? It could be they are just clogged up. I would get some barkeepers friend and make a thick past and let it sit on the stones for a few minutes to let the mild acid other chemicals to do their thing, then scrub off. I was about to through away a good waschita stone until a member here told me how to clean them and then to level them with loose silicon grit. It was a game changer for me.
 
David Mary said:
Ordered.



Ordered.
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The white one is my favourite..... it's silky. I use it for sharpening, and after my rough diamond plate
The black one is for coarse work, removing chips, starting edges, and toothy edges

Both soak in just water
I've had/Used them a Lot in a couple years. Would buy again
 
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