One of the most important utensils you can have in your kitchen is a sharp knife. Believe it or not, sharp knives are safer than dull knives, because the dull ones can easily slip while you’re cutting. One way to keep your knives pointy is by using a sharpener.
Although manual sharpeners are inexpensive, they need more of your time and effort in order to sharpen a knife compared to an electric version. Electric sharpeners can make your blade edges like a razor in just a few minutes, with ease.
Let’s find out about some of the most popular electric knife sharpeners on the market today:
Chef’sChoice Professional Electric Knife Sharpener 0120000
This knife sharpener uses diamond technology to make precise 20 degree angle edges in your straight and serrated knives, and hones those edges perfectly afterwards. The whole process is done at lightning speed in three easy stages, and it results in hair-splitting sharpness every time.
Stages 1 and 2 create a highly durable, arch-shaped edge. Fine diamond-coated conical disks establish the angled bevel by creating microgrooves along each side. Then, in stage 3, this sharpener’s revolutionary disk polishes your blade to an ultra-sharp polished edge. And the blades stay sharper for longer, regardless of what you put them through.
This knife sharpener is great for all sorts of blades, including pocket knives, serrated knives, butcher knives, gourmet chef knives, cleavers, and sporting knives.
You can make some knives so sharp that they can easily and effortlessly slide through delicate foods like prosciutto or smoked salmon, or use alternate settings to create blade edges that can handle more demanding jobs like cutting through fibrous foods and meats. This sharpener can create the perfect edge for fileting fish or even for using your blades for other jobs like working with carpet or paper.
For serrated knives, this sharpener can reshape and realign distorted teeth. It sharpens and polishes each serrated tooth.
It is compact and has strong, resilient feet that keep your device safely secured to your counter or table.
Features
- Works on both straight and serrated knives
- Uses diamond-coated disks to make precise 20 degree edges
- Sharpening process is done at lightning speed in three easy stages
- Creates an ultra-sharp, polished edge
- Great for all varieties of knives
- For serrated knives, this device can also reshape and realign distorted teeth
Drill Doctor WSKTS Knife and Tool Sharpener WSKTS
This is a professional-level, heavy duty knife sharpener that can keep all your blades and tools pointy. It is fast and easy to use, and provides repeatable, consistent results. It gets all your edges scary sharp in seconds.
This sharpener uses an innovative system of flexible abrasive grit belts which give it the versatility to sharpen many different types of blades and tools. Aside from knives and scissors, it can even sharpen axes, mower blades, shears, pruners, shovels, and more.
It is unusually well-made. The belt mechanism works faultlessly and the motor is very powerful.
It has specific settings for sharpening certain kinds of knives like filet and similar blades (40 degree angle), as well as hunting knives (50 degrees). It creates one of the sharpest edges you will ever have on a blade.
It includes a variety of replaceable and interchangable abrasive belts – coarse, medium, and fine – to meet all your requirements for sharpening.
As an added bonus, you can also use this sharpener as a hand held detail grinder for light grinding tasks.
Although the belts work like a charm, they do wear out after time and thus this sharpener is not meant for continuous usage. Some users find the base included with this sharpener is not stable enough for their liking.
Features
- Professional-level, heavy duty sharpener for knives and tools
- Fast and easy to use
- Gives repeatable, consistent results
- Includes a variety of replaceable, interchangeable sharpening belts
- Belt mechanism works faultlessly, and motor is very powerful
- Specific angle settings for certain kinds of knives
Presto 0 EverSharp Electric Knife Sharpener 8800
This affordable electric knife sharpener has an adjustable blade selector to accommodate different types of blades. The thick blade option is good for sharpening hunting knives; the medium option is for most kitchen knives, and the thin option is handy for filet-type blades.
Once your knife is sharpened with this device, it will be able to make a clean cut on paper, or slice onions or tomatoes almost paper thin.
This sharpener works in a three-step process. In step 1, you pull your knife through its sapphirite coarse grinding wheel to make a precisely angled edge. Sapphirite is an ultra-hard material used in professional sharpening businesses. In step 2, you pull the knife through the sapphirite medium grinding wheel for fine tuning. And in step 3, you pull it through the extra fine grit ceramic grinding wheel to smooth and hone that edge.
You don’t have to guess at how to position the knife in your sharpener. This device holds your knife at the ideal angle and guides it automatically, for perfect and professional sharpening.
This sharpener is ideal for non-serrated knives made of alloy, carbon, or stainless steel. Do not be surprised if sparks fly while you sharpening a carbon knife with this sharpener. It can also sharpen non-electric serrated knives that are only serrated on one side.
This is a great sharpener to use if you have limited mobility such as with arthritis. It can make the act of sharpening your knives a lot less effortful. It is easily operated with one hand.
The body of this device is plastic but it very sturdy.
The device has three suction cups on the bottom which hold your sharpener in place on your counter or table while you are using it. The sharpener also includes two receptacles located underneath the device to catch metal filings that you can later throw away.
This sharpener is easy to clean after use. Simply wipe it down to get rid of any metal dust, and you’re good to go.
One drawback is, some users feel the grinding wheels are too coarse for high quality knives and do not give enough of a finely honed edge, and that it removes too much metal.
Features
- Affordable
- Has adjustable blade selector to accommodate different types of blades
- Works in three-step process with sapphirite as the sharpening material, which is ultra-hard
- Holds your knife at the ideal angle and guides it through automatically
- Great choice if you have limited use of your hands
- Has suction cups at bottom to hold device in place securely
Wusthof Easy Edge Electric Knife Sharpener
This premium belt-driven electric knife sharpener is designed for knives that have been sharpened using Precision Edge Technology. It has three sharpening speeds, and it features a special timing system that allows better sharpening. It can sharpen both serrated and straight edge blades. The sharpening belts are very durable and last a long time.
This sharpener is well-designed and engineered. It sharpens knives in three stages, and it is safe and easy to use. Its one-touch controls will guide you through the whole process without having to do any guesswork.
Some options on the control panel include ‘Shape’, which you can use if your knife is very dull or a bit damaged; ‘Sharpen’, which you can use monthly on your knives to expose a fresh sharp cutting edge; and ‘Refine’, which you can use weekly instead, to keep your blades continually sharp.
As an added bonus, it includes an internal vacuum system to get rid of any metal shavings that arise during the sharpening process.
It also has an upgrade kit you can purchase, which is designed for Asian-type knives such as the Santoku, with four different sharpening belts. If you can want additional belts such as fine, extra fine, or extra course, you can purchase them from the company.
This device is compact and does not take up much room on the counter.
Features
- Premium electric belt-driven knife sharpener
- Three sharpening speeds
- Features special timing system that allows better sharpening
- Can sharpen both straight and serrated blades
- One-touch preprogrammed controls guide you through the entire sharpening process
- Includes internal vacuum to collect metal shavings
What to look for in an electric knife sharpener
When it comes to electric knife sharpeners, there are many different brands and features to choose from. How do you know which sharpener to choose, that can restore the sharp edges of your knives? Here are a few things to consider when looking for your own electric knife sharpener.
Number of sharpening stages
Many electric knife sharpeners have multiple stages of sharpening. Less expensive brands might have two stages – one for coarse sharpening and the other to fine tune it. Other more expensive brands might have three or more stages. These additional stages are used to further fine tune and hone your blades.
The only drawback of sharpeners that provide three or more stages is they tend to be more bulky than the others, and thus will take up more counter space.
Sharpening angle
Before buying a knife sharpener, it is helpful if you know what kind of knives you have. They may differ in terms of bevel angle. For example, Japanese knives tend to have a 15 degree bevel while European knives usually have a bevel of 20 degrees. You need to choose a sharpener that can accommodate the angle of bevel edge of the knives you own. If you choose a sharpener that provides an edge that differs from the angle your knife naturally has, it could severely damage your knife.
Some knife sharpeners have adjustable sharpening angles, and this is ideal if you have knives with different blade angles.
Abrasive materials
Different knife sharpeners use different abrasive materials, which are the parts that actually do the sharpening. These materials are generally made of diamond, sapphire, or ceramic.
Diamond-coated abrasives are expensive and hard, and they are the most common type of abrasive used in knife sharpeners. They can grind off metal faster than the other abrasives. They are good for coarse and medium grinding. They can easily turn dull knives into sharp ones. Most high quality sharpeners use diamond in the first and second stages to sharpen the dull blades. They are good for sharpening both metal and ceramic knives.
Sapphire abrasives are almost as hard as diamond. They have good effectiveness at sharpening and removing steel.
Ceramic abrasives are generally used in the last stage with higher quality sharpeners. Ceramics polish and hone your steel blades after they have already been sharpened in the earlier stages with diamond or sapphire abrasives.
Sharpening wheel or belt
Some sharpeners use wheels while grinding away your metal and others use belts. With belt sharpeners, you may have to change the belts to shape or hone your knife. This may be less convenient than sharpeners that use a wheel, since you don’t need to change the wheel, but on the other hand, belt sharpeners give you more versatility and control. Also, if something breaks, a wheel is much more expensive to replace than a belt.
Portability
Most electric knife sharpeners are meant to stay on your counter top, so you may want to consider how small or bulky the different brands are. The more stages the sharpener uses, the more bulky it generally is.
Safety
Some electric knife sharpeners are more sturdy than others and have more safety features. Generally, the ones that look more rugged and well-made are safer. Some come with safety covers or guides that can protect your hands.
And there you have it! Pretty well everything you ever wanted to know about electric knife sharpeners. By comparing the most popular brands available on the market today, and considering the features like safety, abrasive materials, and number of sharpening stages, you are sure to find the sharpener that is right for you and your family.