Former Army Ranger Wayne Hoyt
Knife sharpening is an essential skill that is necessary to be considered a true outdoorsman.
The Work Sharp Knife and Tool Sharpener is a surprisingly user-friendly platform. Changing the guards to match the style of your blade is done by just pulling the guard off from the top of the machine, and replacing belts is done by simply depressing the belt tensioner with your finger.
While operating the sharpener, the noise is roughly as loud as a cordless drill, this is nice compared to using a large shop belt sander.
I found the guards to fit a wide variety of blades, from a keychain pen knife to survival blades. After striking a stone with a knife I had, put a good chip in the blade. This was quickly restored to a polished edge in 6 minutes of sharpening using the Work Sharp system.
I have also always found sharpening serrated knives intimidating, it even sways me from purchasing them. Ultimately with this tool sharpener, I can quickly turn any dull edge into a slicing machine.
The size of the unit may prevent it from having a permanent home on your workbench. It will take up the real estate of a 9mm ammo can. More likely I would bring this out of a cabinet once every couple of months to do regular maintenance.
With an MSRP of $89.95, this was a solid purchase compared to the price of my supply of Benchmade and Spyderco knives.