Knife Sharpeners

Choice magazine, which is Australia's equivalent to ConsumerReports.org, puts 16 knife sharpeners through the paces, testing for sharpening abilities, left- and right-handed use, required maintenance and… safety. Top picks have a list of pros and cons but without any detailed discussion. A sortable results table provides product specifications and test scores, and the review also has a buying guide. Of the three electric and 13 manual models, seven make the grade -- including the Furi Ozitech Diamond Fingers Knife Sharpening System and MinoSharp Ceramic Water Sharpener 220/GB.

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Reporters Joe Yonan and Bonnie S. Benwick enlist the help of professional knife-sharpening expert Frank Monaldi Sr. to test five sharpeners, with both electric and manual models in the mix. Using different… types of knives, Mondaldi runs multiple tests on each sharpener -- tests that Yonan and Benwick repeat at home with their personal cutlery. Test results are measured by sharpness factor, with the knives put to the slash-and-slice test using a piece of paper knife and very ripe tomatoes. The pricier, electric Chef's Choice Diamond Hone EdgeSelect 120 garners top pick even though its screeching sounds make it "a little scary to use at first."

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Pete Thibodeau at the Los Angeles Times tests a number of sharpening systems designed for home use. The author considered dozens of different types of sharpeners and put each type through its paces in… several hands-on tests. Manual grindstones in one form or another worked best. The Spyderco Tri-Angle Sharpmaker 204 gets the highest marks for its flexibility, ease of use, effectiveness and relatively low cost. A similar system, the 1-2-3 Sharp by Morty the Knife Man, also earns high ratings for stability and for the excellent edge it delivers.

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Denise Landis makes it clear upfront that she is looking for "something in between" her electric sharpener and sharpening steel; "a simply designed sharpener I could keep handy to bring a slightly dull… knife back to life." This review is far from comprehensive and reflects the author's needs; the sharpeners that received the highest ratings suit the author's collection of knives and the set-up of her kitchen. She focuses on smaller products -- specifically mounted, countertop, handheld knife sharpeners -- to suit the needs of her cramped kitchen. The Smith's 10-Second Knife and Scissors Sharpener was easy to spot in the reviewer's "crowded utensil drawer," and the Chef's Choice 460 "seemed indispensable" to her collection of "wavy-edge and serrated knives."

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Irish newspaper reporter Conor Pope runs tests on five knife sharpeners, some of which are available in the United States. The sharpeners are evaluated for size, ease of use, angle correctness, sharpening… abilities and required care. In addition to a list of highs and lows, the review assigns ratings on a scale of one to five stars along with a final verdict. Pope doesn't mince words when it comes to drawbacks, and not even the top-rated 4-star Furi Ozitech Diamond Fingers Knife Sharpeners is spared. "When compared with some of the more expensive, sturdier options," he notes," we couldn't help thinking it looked a little cheap."

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This article provides some basic information about sharpening methods, but it doesn't discuss individual sharpeners. There is also some misinformation here about butcher's steels: Cook's Illustrated… magazine explains that steeling can prolong the period between sharpenings but does not replace sharpening, while this article refers to butcher's steels as "perfectly good" at sharpening. Cook's Illustrated explains that sharpening steels are effective at sharpening soft carbon steel knives but says that most knives are now made of harder stainless and high-carbon stainless steel. No product ratings are included in this overview.

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