Work Sharp MK2 Professional Electric Knife and Tool Sharpener, Adjustable Tool and Knife Sharpening System

Product Information

Longer-lasting tools: Sharpening your tools regularly extends their lifespan, preventing breakage and damage. By investing in a garden tool sharpener, you’ll save money in the long run. Chef’s Choice also thoughtfully includes a third stage designed for stropping, which removes any microscopic bumps or pits on the edge of the blade—this is pretty rare to see on an electric knife sharpener. How easy or difficult the sharpeners were to operate: We tested both manual and electric sharpeners, noting their learning curve and ease of control. We also appreciated the models that came with easy-to-follow directions and video instructions. Effectiveness: The Edge-on-Up tool helped give us an idea of each sharpener's efficiency, but we also tested our knives immediately before and after sharpening to gauge any noticeable differences. Finding a sharpening tool is pretty straightforward because of the sheer amount of products on the market. Whether you’re looking for a traditional method or something more modern, there’s a garden tool sharpener that’s perfect for you at a decent price. Let’s delve into the different types available.

Keeping it at that angle, pull the knife down the honing steel while pulling the handle towards you. If you’re just learning how to sharpen by stone (or it’s been awhile since you last used one), the removable angle guides are helpful and beginner-friendly. Work Sharp also makes a set of 15- and 17-degree angle guides that are appropriate for Japanese-style kitchen knives. It really depends on how much you use them and how much abuse they take, but knives generally need sharpening once or twice a year. If a knife feels dull or has trouble cutting, sharpen it. Just note that every time you sharpen a knife, it removes a little bit of metal. After many repetitions, there won't be enough left to sharpen, and it'll be time to replace your knife.

Latest Blog Posts

The flexible belt helps accommodate knives of all different sizes, though we found that it also leaves a lot of wiggle room for the blade, making it somewhat difficult to keep knives at the exact correct angle through the entire sharpening process. The Easy Edge theoretically can sharpen a serrated knife, but it only sharpens the flat edge and not the serrations themselves, so we recommend against it. This knife sharpener is simple to use and sharpens very well, but with its high price, it's probably best for someone who spends a lot of time in the kitchen or is a professional chef. Painless gardening: Dull tools make a mountain out of a molehill. By making them sharp, you’ll save time and effort, giving you a bit more confidence going into every job. A honing steel, sometimes also called a honing rod or a sharpening steel, doesn't exactly sharpen your knife. Instead, it realigns the cutting edge to smooth out microscopic bumps and jagged edges.

Repeat this action three to six times. You can go for three if your blade is just a bit dull, and more if it's blunter. Gardening is a labour of love, but it’s much less enjoyable when your tools are ineffective. That’s where a garden tool sharpener works wonders by offering: How well the sharpened knives performed: We examined their ability to slice through paper, tomatoes, and carrots both before and after sharpening. For models that claim to accommodate serrated knives, we tested their slicing performance using a baguette. Each knife sharpener will have its own specific directions, and you should always follow those, but in general, you insert the blade into the slot and pull it through with even pressure several times. It's important to make sure the full blade passes over the abrasive, all the way from heel to tip. Then, you repeat the process on the other side of the blade (though some sharpeners work on both sides at once), first using the coarsest slot and then each of the finer ones. If your sharpener has more than one setting, select 'coarse' for very blunt knives. The fine or honing setting is for everyday knife maintenance.Start by cleaning your tools thoroughly. Dirt, rust and grime can damage the sharpening tool, so make sure your tools are clean and dry before you start. A honing steel is a long rod, often included in knife sets, along which you run both sides of the blade before you start slicing and dicing. It helps maintain the integrity of the blade, straightening out some of the microscopically uneven spots on the edge without actually removing any metal. Used regularly—as in every few times you use the knife—it can help stave off dullness, but you'll still need to sharpen your knife on occasion.

Clamping down the lever behind the sharpening slots activated the suction cup base, and once that was engaged, the 191H didn’t budge on countertops. This design allows for one-handed operation. As for sharpening ability, it took north of 70 passes between the two stages to restore a good cutting edge to our dull test knife. Place the heel of the blade (where it connects to the handle) against the steel, with the knifepoint angled slightly upwards. Handheld manual knife sharpeners are designed to keep your blade fresh, and you should use them to top up the blade after every few hours of use. An electric knife sharpener or whetstone would be your best bet for a fully dulled knife.The knife needed more force to break the tomato’s skin, but once it did, it sliced through the fruit cleanly. By comparison, the knife required ten times as many strokes on one of the sharpening stones we tested before it was usable. Credit the Trizor’s diamond abrasives, which shave the metal easily, and its acute sharpening angle.