Smith's 2-stone precision shapening system

[RichardR]

I picked one of these up yesterday on a whim just to check it out, I have used the small Smith carbide/ceramic sharpeners for years as quick & easy tackle box fillet knife sharpeners, but all of my serious "razor edge" sharpening I have always done on large oil stones.

Anyway I choose to do my Scrapyard scrapper 5 with it first, since the blade steel is SR101 which is not only a lot thicker but also a lot harder than the typical 440 and 420 stainless knives most of these sorts of sharpeners are designed for.

The end result was not bad at all and it was certainly much quicker than free-handing it across my oil stones, I have never really been interested in these sorts of sharpening systems before, mostly because I never imagened that I could get an edge on a blade as sharp as I could with an oil stone but I have to admit this does actually come pretty close!

I will have to try a couple more knives when I get the time but it sure is a time-saver that is for sure.

[Jonnin]

You can mix and match too. Once done with these types of systems, you can then put it on a surgical oil stone to finish it up, for example. They get the blade sharp enough for everyday use without anything more, but you can take it all the way faster with a combination of the two. I like the old stones method, the time spent is relaxing for me, but I totally understand wanting to get it done too.

[RichardR]

Yea that is why I liked those little Smith's carbide/ceramic sharpeners, quick, easy to use, put a very "usable" edge on almost anything with just a few strokes, even fillet knives which I like to keep very sharp, makes filleting so much easier.

But some of my thicker bladed knives wouldn't fit into the "V" so I decided to check out ths Smith's clamp type system to try to cut down on the amount of time I spend sharpening my larger knives, since I use a lot of various knives on a daily basis, couple that with having to make my own cigarettes now which cuts into my precious time there just isn't enough hours in the day anymore LOL!

But so far I am pleased, it is quick and easy to use, puts a really very "usable" edge on my larger knives and was reasonable in price, I can't recall how much I paid for it but I think it was under $20 at Walmart.

Edited September 12, 2012 by RichardR