Having aย dull knife can cause both cutting problems and safety issues. Those issuesย can be over if you start using a Lansky Knife Sharpening System. These systems give aย consistently sharp edge every time you use them. Is it the best knife sharpening system out there? That would be a loaded question. With an easy-to-use multiple-angleย guide and a series of varied grit honing stones, almost any knife can beย sharpened. This system ranks among the best knife sharpening methods that weย have used.
Editorโs Note: Check out our best knife sharpeners article to get our top picks.
Lansky Standard vs Lansky Deluxe Sharpening System
For this review, we received two different test kits.ย One of the kits includes 5 different man-made hones and the other set includedย 3 diamond hones. Each of the kits arrived packed in a handy custom-molded carryย case. It keeps everything nicely organized and in place. Alsoย included is a 1-ounce bottle of honing oil and easy-to-follow directions. Once disassembled, all of the parts in the kit fit neatly into the hard case. Bothย assembly and disassembly seemed easy when setting up for sharpening.
Each of the hones comes with a color-coded and marked handle. The handles have finger grooves molded into each side,ย making them easy to grasp. There are small details that make this kit durable. For example, Lansky provides a metalย sleeve insert for the threaded thumb screw and guide rod so that doesnโtย wear out the plastic. The included honing oil works great with the Lansky Sharpening Systems or any other sharpener. Lansky offers several different knife sharpening configurations and systems. We chose two of the more popular for review.
Lansky Knife Sharpeningย System (Deluxe)
- Hones Included (man-made stone): Extra Coarse, Coarse, Medium, Fineย & Ultra-Fine
- Model Number: LKCLX
- Price: $44.99
Lansky Knifeย Sharpening System (Standard Diamond)
- Hones Include (diamond): Course, Medium & Fine
- Model Number: LK3DM
- Price: $79.99
Lansky Knife Sharpening System Testing and Use
To test the Lanskyย Knife Sharpening System, we, of course, sharpened a few different knives.ย We took a 12โณ long Farberware kitchen knife, an 8โณ Colman hunting knife, and a 6-1/2โณย Kershaw pocket knife and put each to the test. To start off, we took the bladeย clamp (which also doubles as the angle guide) and attached it to the midpointย on the backside of the knife blade. We then took the appropriate hone grit thatย we needed and attached the guide rod to it. We chose the hone grit based on theย condition of the blade to be sharpened.
All of the knives we had to sharpen had a clean edge and retained a small amount of sharpness; therefore we chose theย fine diamond and the fine stone for our starting points. The next thing we didย is insert the guide rod into each of the possible angles in the guide. Using our eye, we checked which one best matched the existing angle of the knife blade.
Setting Your Blade Angle
The angleย the blade edge is sharpened to is critical to the final use of the blade.
As aย guideline, Lansky has the following recommendations โ and their guide followsย these same angles:
- 17ยฐ Angle โ A severe angle recommendedย for razor blades, X-Acto blades, scalpels, or similar tools. This angleย provides an extremely sharp, but delicate edge.
- 20ยฐ Angle โ A commonly-used angle forย higher quality blades and provides an excellent edge for kitchen cutleryย and fillet knives.
- 25ยฐ Angle โ The recommended angle forย most knives that need a durable, sharp edge. This angle is ideal forย hunting and outdoor knives.
- 30ยฐ Angle โ An outstanding angle forย knives that see the heavy use of cutting cardboard, wire, or carpets.ย Recommended mostly for heavy-duty use knives.
Sharpening Our Knife Blades
After we determined the angle, we added some honing oil toย the stone and started to sharpen our Kershaw Zing folding knife. Once we sharpened one side of theย blade, we flipped the knife over and did the same thing on the opposite side.ย Both systems let us comfortably sharpen each ofย the different size knives we tried. Both of the clamps fit on the blade without difficulty. The guide rods also proved long enough to let us reach the full edgeย from tang to tip.
As with any tool that requires some physicalย activity on the part of the user, there is some technique and skill needed toย sharpen knives. Of course, with the Lansky Knife Sharpening System, most of the guesswork isย taken out of the process. With a little practice, you can have all your knivesย restored to tip-top shape.
Conclusion & Value
While the Knife Sharpening System might not be a newย tool out on the market, we figured it was well worth the time to test andย review it. This system is among the best knife sharpening system we have used.ย It doesnโt take away tons of material like some belt-driven systems. It also helps with finding and maintaining the proper sharpening angleโanother common issue among less-experienced users.
Made with quality materials, really anyone can use either of theseย Lansky knife Sharpening Systems to hone any knife to a razor-sharp edge. Priced between $43 and $80, you should be able to locate a set that works for your particular needs and budget.
