I first started sharpening knives with whetstones, but now I’m thinking of getting an electric belt sharpener like the Work Sharp Ken Onion to fix serious chips on knives. Has anyone used the Ken Onion machines? What are your thoughts on them?

Hello All,

New to the forum, the reason for joining is my plan to buy a work sharp belt sharpening system.

Then main goal is sharpening kitchen knives, outdoor knives and hunting knife, Secondairy goal is to be able to sharpen my lawnmower blades, small axes and other garden tools. Would only happen once a few years I guess, or maybe even less.

First I was thinking of buying the Ken onion (with in the future maybe the blade extension) , to have all the flexibility. But then I saw Work sharp came out with the MK2 version of the original. And the improved knife guide system sounds interesting. Especially the support all the way to the end of the knife, as mentioned in this video. Sound like a nice feature for a knife sharpening dummy.

Most of the other features of the upgraded MK2 are already available the KO version.

My reason for the KO version, wider band, easier on bigger blades, such as landmower and axes. Possible extension for even easier sharpening og bigger blades.

So my question is to you guys:

How is the knive guiding system on the KO edition?

Could we expect a KO MK2 in the near future?

Am I missing something, any thoughts?

Thanks

I have some diamond stones and I can use them, but it takes a lot of time and I suck at it. I want to keep learning on the stones, but have something more reliable for when I just want a sharp blade. It seems quick and easy. But would it ruin a heat treat on my knives? do you have other reliable suggestions for making razor edges quickly?

LINK: https://www.bladehq.com/item--Darex-Work-Sharp-Knife-and-Tool--121470

Got the new KO MK.2 edition w/blade grinder attachment (BGA) in today and have a few observations:

1. New BGA is much beefier than original

2. BGA rollers are supported on both sides

3. Large BGA roller has 3 positions with ability to get much closer to smaller top roller allowing less belt deflection and flatter bevels if needed. Might be the thing I like most!

4. Angle change knob is slick

5. Tension lever spring is too ’tough’

6. Constant on is much easier on new motor

7. Electronic speed control is also slick allowing minimum 850 rpm…400 rpm lower than original

8. ‘My’ on-off switch doesn’t do anything. Have to call Monday. You would think it would be simple, eh?

Those are the immediate observations. The belts on the new BGA are more fiddly to install because the entire assembly is shrouded which is not removable. Going to have to clean with high pressure air as a result.
Motor seems to be the same with same noise level. Belts on the new original sharpener are not wider as I thought. New original sharpener is beefier with better adjustability.

Last observation is that the attachment mechanism on the motor is NOT backward compatible. Original sharpener and BGA will not fit.

First sharpening job is in the morning so will see how it feels.

I'm trying to decide wheather to buy Work Sharp MK2 or Onion Edition (without the attachment kit).

I woul'd go for Ken Onion version since it is overall superior but the only concern that I have is that I noticed on some videos that the adjustable guides that you are supposed to lean your knife on are not really fixed and you can't really lean your knife against it because if you apply pressure on it it will move and you will loose your angle.

I hope this image demonstrates what I'm talking about, the arrow shows where the plastic guide will move - https://imgur.com/a/n7QDwxG

On MK2 I hear that this plastic part is fixed and you can really hold your knife against it.

So is this part moving under pressure really a problem in the Onion or am I overthinking this? I do know about other popular issues with this guide being problematic.

What I expect from the sharpener is mostly to hold an angle, that's why I got lured by WorkSharp because they have this angle guides, and that's why I don't want to buy Onion + Blade Grinding Attachment becuase I feel like it's impossible to properly keep angle if you have to basically do it without any guide on the Attachment. Also there is a fact that the Onion + Attachment is twice as expensive as MK2 but I would gladly buy it if they created some sort of rig that would hold the knife next to the grinding belt thus removing huge part of skill factor from the use. In my opinion it is impossible to keep better accuracy than 2-5 degrees just by holding your knife in hand on the Attachment but maybe I'm wrong.

Also they posted video that some new product is coming up but do anyone know if this is related to their electrical devices or manual ones? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fyWNqOZaYs

What are the main differences with Work Sharp Ken Onion and Ken Onion Mk2 sharpeners? I can't find Mk2 version anywhere in Europe and I was thinking to get that first version instead of waiting until I can find Mk2.

Anyone have tested both? Opinions about both? Benefits of Mk2 over first version? And should I just wait until Mk2 will be available?

Going to get blade grinding attachement as I've read it gives you more options about sharpening.

I'm considering getting myself an electric sharpener. I know I will probably get the standard answer of just learn to use a stone, but it does seem very convenient. I'm a casual cook, but I have invested in some MAC knives. I was also gifted a Shun classic knife that I would like to be careful with.

I can see myself needing to sharpen my knives about three times a year in addition to honing.

Will sharpening with stones really make much of difference?

First knife & tool sharpener

Howdy! New to this group, but not to sharpening things. Been doing that for years.

I finally admitted to myself that I was never going to lay down the cash for a wicked edge pro pack 3, so I went to try the work sharp ken onion and it seems they have released a new version a few days ago.

I ordered it today to try it out. I got the one with the two different cassettes for sharpening whatever your heart desires.

Interestingly, I have seen nothing about this new sharpener mentioned anywhere but on the worksharp pages. Is this just not something people get excited about? I know powered sharpening can be controversial some, but even that usually causes some amount of conversation.

Either way, I hope to have some more to say once I get a hold of this thing in person.

Got a $100 bonus from work recently with the catch being I have to use it in the awardco store which is basically a crappy front end to Amazon where I don't get to enjoy the deals and coupons. I had been looking at the work sharp precision adjust for $60 but I could get the elite for $130 and just cover the $30 difference out of pocket. Alternatively I could go with the Ken Onion motorized sharpener but it's sitting at $160.

Really just looking for something to be able to quickly sharpen my kitchen and work knives with a decent edge. I love the idea of stones but find that I end up not using them because of the time investment to work through the process.

Curious what the recommendation from the reddit hive mind would be?

Edit: the hive mind has convinced me to just go with the PA Elite. Can't wait to it to arrive in a few days.

I'm considering buying the Work Sharp Mk2.

Is it strange to go straight from 220 grit to 6000?

Is it possible to buy an 800 belt? Or some other reasonable grit?

Thanks