Knife Sharpener Reviews

So Many Choices!

If you’re in the search for a sharpener, you may have already realized that there are tons of products to choose from. Each one claiming to be the best of it’s kind and boasting the ability to work on all sorts of knives and tools. It’s enough to make your head spin! And to make matters worse, you have a lot of misguided reviews that list only the positives, forgetting about the shortcomings altogether. Reviews are merely opinions which are bound to be subjective, but there is no single product that won’t have a drawback associated to it. And as a consumer you will want to know the cons just as much as you would the pros. Therefore my suggestion to you is this: read as many reviews from as many different sources as you can. This way you can gather a list of opinions instead of just one or two. Having said that, this post is my personal and honest opinion of what I think are the best electric knife sharpeners in 2018.

Wait, But What Makes One Better Than The Other?

Before I list out my best electric knife sharpeners and why I chose them, I’d like to quickly touch on what to me makes a good one.

It Must Not Remove Too Much Steel

Electric sharpeners have gained a really bad reputation for this. Majority of them will remove too much steel, and while this may not be too big a concern for a cheap $20 knife, it most certainly can be a disaster for an expensive $100-200 blade. It has the potential to not only scratch and nick an edge, but also re-profile it completely, thereby changing what was previously set at the factory. I can tell you from experience that you’d be hard pressed to find an electric sharpener that doesn’t remove too much steel.

It Should Be Easy To Maintain & Service

This is something most people hardly ever consider. While most electrics are pretty easy to maintain, they’re actually quite difficult (and sometimes impossible) to service. When I say service, I mean replacing abrasives and other parts for example. Not easy and requires to be sent back to the manufacturer.

It Should Be Easy To Operate!

Of course! Isn’t that the main reason you’re looking to buy one anyways!? Someone somewhere got tired (or lazy!) of using the traditional stones to sharpen, so they had a light bulb flash in their head. And ta da! The option of sharpening a blade using electronics removes the element of technique almost completely. You don’t need to have any special skills to use one. And to be honest, most electric sharpeners are very easy to use, so you’ll find that this criterion is satisfied for all.

It Should Be Reasonably Priced & Backed By A Good Warranty Program

What is reasonably priced? Again, very subjective! One thing you need to remember: expensive need not necessarily mean better for these devices. Based on experience I would say anything from $70-100 is what I would consider as a reasonable amount to spend on one of these devices. Here’s a piece of advice: don’t be a cheapskate and buy a $15-20 product to find out it’s rubbish. At the same time, no need to splash $170-200 on an overly priced, over hyped piece of crap. Hopefully, you’ll be able to see through some of the marketing gimmicks! A good warranty program is one which you’re not only covered for a substantial period, but you should also have good customer service. Can you phone and talk to someone? Are they reachable for a quick question or two on Facebook?

The best electric knife sharpeners will satisfy most, if not all the criteria listed above. Okay, now that you have a general understanding of what to look for, you’ll better understand why I chose the products below. Of course there are some points I have not mentioned, but the ones above are what I consider the most important.

#1 Work Sharp Ken Onion (WSKTS-KO)

This is the best electric sharpener on the market right now. And not just by a bit, it’s better by a mile! This device is different from your traditional electric sharpeners, in that it uses abrasive belts rather than sharpening wheels.

What Makes This So Much Better Than The Competition?

If Used Correctly You Can Achieve Professional Results

It does take some time learning how to use this device properly, but when you get it right it’s totally worth it. The WSKTS-KO features speed control, so you control the speed at which the belt runs. Higher speed means more steel stripped off your edge, and use lower speed to polish and refine. With all other devices, you’re pretty much stuck with a sharpening wheel that is set to rotate a fixed rpm. More control gives you larger flexibility to work your edge the way you want it.

Incredible Customization Options

The options to customize are huge. Anyone who is familiar with knife sharpening will know the importance of having abrasives with different grits (coarse, medium, fine, extra fine, extra extra fine etc.). To get the best edge possible, you need to use a number of different grits. Think of this as going from one level to the next. Your final grit will be super fine, as this gives you that final mirror edge. With this device you have the choice of completely changing your abrasives depending on application. It comes with 5 different belts (extra coarse all the way to extra fine), and you can buy even more to suit your needs. Replacing the belts is actually very easy….which leads into my next point!

Easy To Service

Replacing the abrasive belts takes less than a minute! It’s also just as easy to set up the sharpening guides.

Work Sharp Actually Give A Damn!

Yes, unlike other manufacturers these guys actually care about their customer’s concerns and they’re willing to listen. Contacting them is simple and easy, and they’re usually pretty quick to respond.

Final Thoughts

All things considered, this is the most complete electric sharpener in the market. It’s a little expensive, but it’s well worth the investment. The only drawback is that it takes some time to get used to, but it does come with lots of instructional and learning material included in the box. And you can always YouTube some videos to see how it works!

***CLICK HERE TO CHECK IT OUT ON AMAZON***

#2 Work Sharp (WSKTS)

You’re probably wondering why my 2 best electric knife sharpeners are by Work Sharp. It’s because these 2 devices really outclass everything else available today! The WSKTS is the smaller brother and the cheaper version of the WSKTS-KO (mentioned above). It uses the same belt driven system to sharpen blades and tools.

What Makes This So Much Better Than The Competition?

It Has All The Same Benefits Listed Above For The WSKTS-KO But…..

It’s quite similar to its big brother but with a few differences: first, is that you don’t have speed control, so you can’t change the speed at which the belts run, and second is that the sharpening guide offers less angles compared to the more expensive version. Other than these two exceptions, everything else is pretty much the same between both devices.

It Is Very Affordable!

This is quite a bit cheaper than it’s older brother, the Ken Onion edition (click here to check out latest pricing on amazon). If you don’t want to spend more $$$ for the expensive version, then this would be your next go to.

Final Thoughts

Work Sharp created this option for people who do not wish to spend over $100. Yes it does have some minor differences compared to the expensive version, but it’s still a very very good system nonetheless.

***CLICK HERE TO CHECK IT OUT ON AMAZON***

A Wrap Up On My 2 Best Electric Knife Sharpeners

So there you have it! My best electric knife sharpeners are both from Work Sharp. These 2 devices in my opinion put all the others to shame. There is no comparison! If there’s anything that came close to matching the results of using a traditional stone, it would be these 2. And if you didn’t wish to spend more than $100, get the cheaper option. What are your best electric knife sharpeners? I’d love to know your opinions. Leave me a comment below if you have any questions! Thanks for reading and I hope this post has provided some value to you. If it has please share!

***Also, if you’re in the market for a knife sharpener, why not check out our reviews?***
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