Re: No skill sharpening sysytem suggestions
I have the Wicked Edge on order. It is not cheap but I have read good things about it plus I want to put a mirror polish on some of my edges. It looks to be fairly idiot proof.
I have the Wicked Edge and have sharpened many knives with it, including my Strider PT and small Sebenza 21. It's a good system, but is not idiot proof. Overall I think it's better than the Edge Pro, but I've never used that. Customer support is fantastic. Clay often responds within minutes, and gives detailed, thoughtful answers.
The advantages of Wicked Edge are it's dry (no water or oil required), diamond stones don't require periodic flattening like Edge Pro stones do, and it's fast -- both sides are sharpened at the same time. There are many available accessories such as ceramic stones, leather strops and diamond paste.
Disadvantages: Some knives difficult to clamp, e.g, full flat grind and small knives (e.g, Swiss Army type). The system is good but requires *some* mechanical knowledge and "feel" to ensure knife is properly mounted and your stroke is consistent between left and right. Safety is a theoretical issue -- blade is clamped edge up. I've never cut myself but if you were careless you could. You must purchase or provide a slab or surface to mount it. I got one of their granite slabs, which works fine. The normal stones can't do a concave blade shape ie hawk bill. He has optional stones which will handle that. It also can't do serrated edge knives.
Knowing where to clamp the blade is also important. Too close to the handle and the arc formed by the stone will change angles as it nears the tip. This will cause a shallower edge angle toward the tip. Some of this is explained in the instructions and some is not. Clay has several good videos.
I recommend the Wicked Edge system, but it does take some mechanical common sense and "feel" to use properly.
