Edgepro vs. Sharpmaker

[adajmk]

Hi everyone,

I am new to the forum and would like some advice on what type of sharpener I should buy - the Edgepro or the Sharpmaker.

I am a home cook and will be primarily using this for sharpening my cooking knives. I have heard great things about the Edgepro (ease of use, results) but I am not sure that, for my needs, the extra cost is worth it (approx. $150 for the edgepro compared to approx. $50 for the sharpmaker).

Thanks for any advice you can give me.

Jon

[louisianacook]

Crap, I had a well thought out response to this question, then I accidentally deleted it... Basically, I touted the angle versatility of the Edge Pro v Sharpmaker and then suggested you would wish you would have bought the Edge Pro after you realized that the Sharpmaker wouldn't help you very much when it came time to thin out your blade due to repeated sharpeneings.

I don't use either anymore, instead favoring freehand techinques with high quality waterstones. But if I lost an apendage and had to resort to a guided system I would still choose the Edge Pro. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[Fred]

Think of the sharpmaker as two steels. They can help maintain a fairly coarsely sharpened edge but they can't form one. It is a poor choice for grinding bevels.

[franco]

You can buy diamond rods for the sharpmaker which can help grind a bevel on knifes pretty quickly. A cheap way is also to tape sandpaper to the ceramic rods to reprofile your edges before moving onto the grey and white ceramic rods.

The rods also fit into the base, so that the stones lie flat like a regular waterstone.

Best of all the sharpmaker is a real quick, no hassle way of maintaining your blades shaving sharp. And if you want a more polished edge, Spyderco make extra-fine rods for the sharpmaker, although many people will probably just strop their knives to hair-popping sharpness afterwards.


I think it's a great addition to any kitchen.

[chefjohn]

I have never used the sharp maker but I do have an edge pro and would suggest it to a home cook looking to keep all their knives sharp it does a good job not as well as a waterstone but still very good.