Smith's PP1 Pocket Pal Knife Sharpener Preset Carbide & Ceramic Stone Sharpeners Fold-Out Diamond Coated Rod Outdoor Hunting Knife & Hook Sharpener, Handheld, Compact, Lightweight, Multiuse

This Smith's PP1 Pocket Pal Multifunction Sharpener is probably not the absolute best or most precision method to sharpen a high quality knife blade, but it is certainly among the handiest, especially when one has a specialized task to perform.Knife purists will tell you that you need an "oil stone" or a "water stone" to put the best edge on high-quality kitchen knives, and I can personally agree with my J.A. Henckels or Victorinox kitchen knives. For those I use a Woodstock SteeleX D1130 1000 Grit and 6000 Grit Japanese Waterstone that I luckily found brand new at a garage sale. But we're talking about speed and convenience here, and that's where the Smith's PP1 sharpener works well.Likes:* Very small footprint; easy to carry in a pocket, briefcase or camera bag* Carbide blades and ceramic finishing stones are reversible and replaceable* Tapered diamond rod; very convenient for sharpening serrated blade edges* Package has easy to follow sharpening directions on the back* Nicely constructed; ergonomic, lightweight and durableDislikes:- Preset sharpening angles on V-shaped sharpening slots may or may not be good for certain blades.Quick Note on Sharpening Angles:There are plenty of discussions on the `Net regarding which sharpening angle is best for a given knife. Some say that you should choose an angle of 10° to 30° on each side. Shallower angles make a sharper edge that doesn't last as long, while steeper angles are more durable; I compromise between 17° and 22.5° with my better knives, but the choice is yours. Don't know what angle the Smith's PP1 Pocket Pal Sharpener uses, as I haven't see it posted in their description. In any case, if you have an exceptionally good knife, check with the manufacturer's suggestions and specs.In Use:In my particular case, I needed to sharpen the serrated blade of my Victorinox Swiss Army One Hand Trekker, an excellent knife that I purchased here in 2008 and finally reviewed in early 2010. This particular knife made me put my other Swiss Army knives away as far as day-to-day functionality goes, yet the serrated blade was losing its effectiveness, probably from too much use over time. It was also gummed up a bit from cutting through packaging tape (and Amazon boxes, etc.) over time.First cleaned the serrated blade with WD-40, wiped it with a paper towel, then washed, rinsed and dried it. Following the directions on the package, I extended the tapered diamond rod and drew it through each serration, rotating it as the instructions noted. Within minutes the serrated blade was restored. Did the same with the serrated blade on my Gerber Suspension Butterfly Opening Multi-Plier, and the sharpness on that blade was easily refurbished as well.As noted earlier, it's always better to use a water stone on high-quality kitchen knives, but when you need speed and expedience, and the Smith's PP1 sharpener does its job. For a quick touch up with good cutlery, just remember to use the V-shaped slot with the ceramic finishing stones, and do it gently.I have also used the Smith's Edgeware V-Slot 10-Second Knife and Scissors Sharpener for years as a household handy item for sharpening scissors. Have also used it reshaping a few worn out kitchen knives, and it did the job quite well.Summary:For quick and dirty sharpening, the Smith's PP1 Pocket Pal Multifunction Sharpener does the job and does it well. For this user, it has worked very well, especially when sharpening a serrated blade by hand, and with that it's a 5-star product. For sharpening straight blades, you may wish learn to use a stone, but as admitted above, I do use this PP1 Pocket Pal when taking the time to use a wet stone is not convenient. If your need is for convenience and speed, then this one is highly recommended.9/22/2012

Great little tool for when you just need a quick topping off of a sharpen.It's easy to hold onto , making it safe to use , weighs hardly anything and has the same angle as most of my knives .What puts it over the top for me is the serration sharpener . It does a super job while remaining tiny in hand .

It was what I expected and worked great.

I have a number of knives for various purposes that get used a lot, from work around the yard, in my engineering work, and as pocket knives. While I take care of them often, they do get less sharp than I'd like on occasion. In the past, I've used various sharpening stones (including diamond) to bring the edges back to razor sharpness, a sometimes tedious (but relaxing) process. This sharpener, for all of $8, seemed like something I could check out. The PP1 has three sharpening tools: a carbide sharpener, a ceramic sharpener, and a conical rod (for serrated blades).The carbide portion is designed for blade edges that are truly dull or have nicks in them; I used this on an old hunting knife (1930's design) I have been trying to rehabilitate. With only a half-dozen strokes, it let me remove all but the most minor imperfections on the edge, including some rust pits. A final touch-up with the ceramic sharpener provided a nice clean and sharp edge.The ceramic sharpener is really designed for final touch-ups and re-sharpening. Because anything other than a really sharp knife is anathema to me, I was really curious as to how well the PP1 would work. Well, it works pretty darned well. My main pocket carry is an original Kershaw Chive that gets daily use. Using the ceramic sharpener brought the edge back from pretty sharp to razor sharp with only 5 strokes. I had similar results with my Benchmade Griptillian, an old Swiss Army knife (1970's style), and a much cheaper plastic-handle Kershaw.The conical sharpener, which folds into the sharpener body, is designed for serrated blade segments and also seems to work well, but takes a little more care in use. The several knives I have with serrated blades seem to have slightly different angles and depths to the serrations, meaning you need to pay attention when sharpening. The sharpener also is relatively thin, and is thinner than the serration openings on my knives. Again, it means paying some attention when using it. It does work well, however, especially for small touch-ups. It also does a good job at removing any small burrs created during conventional sharpening.The sharpener body itself is fairly small, made mostly of plastic, and could easily be a daily pocket carry. It has a lanyard hole at one end and a thumb depression on each side to make it easy to hold right or left handed. The two sharpeners can be replaced (I haven't tried that yet) by removing two screws. The knife blade can be stroked from either side of the two main sharpeners with the same results, and each sharpener is clearly labeled on both sides. The sharpeners work especially well on knives with curved blades such as my Chive, which has a back-curve portion of the blade near the handle; it's a tough area to sharpen with a whetstone, but easy with the PP1.While inexpensive, the PP1 is a good alternative to using a whetstone, and has several advantages over that method, especially for smaller knives. Glad I bought it.

Cheap and easy to use. Works well too.

Wonderfull sharpener. Small enough you can carry it with you. It is really capable of giving a razor sharp edge on virtually any blade.