Samurai Shark sharpener?

[Caslon]

I've read a lot of nitemare stories about being double billed ordering it.

It's available at Linen and Things, Wallgreens, and Bed Bath and Beyond for
$9.99.

I'm thinking of getting one just to use on my serrated knife that I've had for
20 years and never had sharpened.

Anyone here bought one and not think it's a piece of junk?

 

[Andy M.]

Can you provide a link?

 

[Caslon]

"Hi...Billy Mays Here!

SAMURAI SHARK - Taylor Gifts

 

[Rob Babcock]

I'd advise to you to steer clear. It's a variation of the tungsten carbide "V" sharpener, and it will remove a lot of metal. The prep/banquet guy at my last job had one. It worked okay on cheap knives made of relatively soft steel but it created piles of metal shavings.

If you want something that will do a good job on serrated knives without removing too much metal, try one of these.

 

[Michael in FtW]

I've read a lot of nitemare stories about being double billed ordering it.

LOL - you buy one and get a 2nd one for free ... "just pay seperate shipping and handeling!" There have been cases where the S&H on the 2nd free item cost more than the original item with S&H. I don't remember what the item was - but I remember there was a case of this "2nd one free" that costs $19.99 - and the S&H on the free item was $35!

It's available at Linen and Things, Wallgreens, and Bed Bath and Beyond for $9.99.

If you buy one - this is the way to go.

I'm thinking of getting one just to use on my serrated knife that I've had for 20 years and never had sharpened.

While I totally agree with Rob about it being a variation of the tungsten carbide "V" sharpener, and it will remove a lot of metal - if you have a knife that has not been sharpened in 20 years ... you're going to be removing some metal no matter how you sharpen it.

Of course - a lot depends on the knife. My aunt had a Gensu (sp?) chef's knife that was about that old and had never been sharpened. My step-dad spent 3-4 hours trying to sharpen it - it still had metal "fold-over" problems. The metal was too hard to sharpen with his stone. I brought my tungsten carbide sharpener over the next day (I seldom use it - gift from one of my sons - I use an oil-stone and do it by hand) and it stripped off the metal that allowed it to be sharp again.

I would not use one of these on a really good quality knife. For a $20 knife ... or one that is labeled "stainless steel - never needs sharpening" - I would.

 

[Caslon]

I just ordered the Edgemaker set that Rob Babcock mentioned.
To sharpen my serrated knife and my others. $29.99 Free Shipping.
Can't wait to try them out.

BTW, here is a link showing the set of Edgemakers in action:
Movie

I had been using the Furi Fingers for my other knives, works well.

 

[Bigjim68]

I have used the edgemaker pro for a couple of months based on recommendations on this forum. It seems to me to be a serviceable tool that does what it says with a quick learning curve. Thanks for the advice on the video.

 

[Rob Babcock]

I just ordered the Edgemaker set that Rob Babcock mentioned.
To sharpen my serrated knife and my others. $29.99 Free Shipping.
Can't wait to try them out.

I'm eager to see how you like them. As those of you who've heard me talk about sharpening over the years may know I'm a fan of water stones and do most of my sharpening (at least my higher-end knives) on water stones freehand or an EdgePro Apex. I do touchups with a Spyderco Sharpmaker and/or a ceramic or glass hone. But the Edgemaker Pro is very hard to beat under the right circumstances. First, it does a tremendous job with soft-to-medium steels. It's great for the type of inexpensive knives most commercial kitchens use. I've also had great luck sharpening Forschner Fibrox knives with it.

Honestly, if you use it properly it will put a pretty keen edge on any decent knife. And the learning curve, as Bigjim68 points out, is near zero. I've taken dull Chicago cutlery knives at work to an edge that will delaminate paper (ie fillet it into layers) in two or three minutes.

 

[Caslon]

I'm nowhere near the expertise of sharpening a blade with stones or that dealy "edge" sharpening device that looks like a medical device.

I will try the "shave" paper test with edgemaker.

However, I get a huge feeling that no matter what, it starts with a quality metal knife to begin with.

 

[Bigjim68]

I think that you are right about starting with quality. You cannot produce a quality steak from a bad piece of meat. So to with knives. My Edgemeker is used on a set of 50 year old Forschners They are now as sharp as they have ever been. I now have a few Japanese knives which I intend to sharpen on waterstones. These were sharper out of the box. This will be a real learning curve for me.

 

[Caslon]

My set of 3 Edgemaker sharpeners arrived today. I have to say it took quite a while to recieve the order, a good 2 weeks.

I set about trying them out, only...lol, my knife collection is both old and
cheap. While after going thru the steps, don't expect older cheaper knives
that have burrs along the knife edge to go away. After using the blue
handled restorer and the other 3 Edgemakers, my fingers still felt those
burrs. I suppose you just can't make up for "lost chunks" of metal along
a knife edge.

They still now can slice thru paper pretty well, but not shave your arm hairs.

Actually, after sharpening my serrated blade (which was the primary reason for buying this product), it actually did shave hairs.

Some of the knives I have are at least 25 years old. Others are the cheap kind you get in a set as a $19.00 Xmas gift from a brother.

I'm going to have to read thru this forum and look to getting a good set of knives, then review this product again.

My advice for this product is to use moderate force (sharpening a quality knife). Too much force and you WILL end up with burrs, I believe. Burrs that might not go away with the finishing edgemaker tool.

 

[Rob Babcock]

My set of 3 Edgemaker sharpeners arrived today. I have to say it took quite a while to recieve the order, a good 2 weeks.

I set about trying them out, only...lol, my knife collection is both old and
cheap. While after going thru the steps, don't expect older cheaper knives
that have burrs along the knife edge to go away. After using the blue
handled restorer and the other 3 Edgemakers, my fingers still felt those
burrs. I suppose you just can't make up for "lost chunks" of metal along
a knife edge.

They still now can slice thru paper pretty well, but not shave your arm hairs.

Actually, after sharpening my serrated blade (which was the primary reason for buying this product), it actually did shave hairs.

Some of the knives I have are at least 25 years old. Others are the cheap kind you get in a set as a $19.00 Xmas gift from a brother.

I'm going to have to read thru this forum and look to getting a good set of knives, then review this product again.

My advice for this product is to use moderate force (sharpening a quality knife). Too much force and you WILL end up with burrs, I believe. Burrs that might not go away with the finishing edgemaker tool.

A good write up, Caslon. No, they won't perform miracles- with blades that are chipped up they'll get sharp but you have to remove a lot of metal to actually removes the chips. Waterstones are the best tool for that.

The Blue one is rarely needed, just if a knife is horribly dull. I start with moderate to heavy pressure for six or eight strokes, then follow with half a dozen lighter strokes. When you get to the Yellow Honer, same thing- do some strokes with firm pressure, then back off and finish with very very light strokes. A decent knife will get shaving sharp, but of course very soft blades won't usually take all that great of an edge.

I'm interested to see how you like them as you use them more.

 

[charan]

hi , i say u could turn your head towards ebay shopping . i have shopped many usefull things here at e bay . free shippin for many products . u would face a wide variety of knifes there. so try there. jus create a free account there and start shoppin . happy shoppin..