Lansky Deluxe Knife Sharpening System

I’ve been using the Lansky Deluxe Knife Sharpening System for a few months now, and it’s hands down one of the best sharpening kits I’ve ever owned. Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned outdoorsman, this system gives you razor sharp edges with minimal effort. The guided sharpening angle system is a game changer, it takes all the guesswork out of sharpening and ensures consistent, repeatable results every time. The set includes a wide range of diamond-coated rods and ceramic hones, covering everything from coarse sharpening to fine polishing. I appreciate the sturdy clamp that securely holds knives of various sizes, and the compact case makes it easy to store and carry. Plus, it works great on all types of blades, from hunting knives to kitchen cutlery. If you want a reliable, high-quality sharpening system that truly sharpens like a pro, Lansky Deluxe is worth every penny.

On opening the box you could be forgiven for wondering what fiendishly complex sharpening kit you've just bought for yourself. Don't worry - the Lansky kit is actually extremely simple to use. With a tradntional whetstone, the stone remains stationary while you move the knife (usually freehand) across the stone's surface to achieve an edge. The quality of the edge depends very much on the angle you sharpen the blade at, the amount of pressure applied and the coarseness of the stone. With all these variables it takes a LOT of practice to do a "proper job". The Lansky kit makes it simple to achieve wonderfully sharp, consistent edges by turning the principle on it's head. Rather than keep the whetstone still, you clamp the knife in place and, using a guide rod and a series of spaced holes in the clamp move the whetstone along the blade. By placing the guide holes in the clamp and fixing the blade, you are ensured of getting a near perfectly consistent sharpening angle across the length of the blade. The Deluxe kit comes with 5 whetstones of varying coarseness, ranging from 70 to 1000. The grade 70 stone should be used sparingly to take out any major nicks in a blade while the 1000 grade stone will hone the finest of edges. Complete with a 30ml bottle of "Nathan's Natural Honing Oil" to lubricate the stones, this kit should last a good while. I've found that one drop of oil is plenty for the fine stone, while a couple of drops works better for the coarse stone. In use, the clamp itself can be a bit fiddly to hold, so I'd recommend purchasing it with the "Super C" clamp which will allow you to mount the whole setup firmly to a table and leave both hands free for sharpening duties. It also means that you can keep your fingers out of the way which is a good thing as a freshly Lansky sharpened knife has an amazingly sharp edge on it. I've foud that sharpening a knife will range from between 2 and 5 minutes depending on how dull/damaged the blade is to start with - if you keep maintaining the edge with your lansky kit then I expect the time will lessen as maintenance is easier than repair. Sharp knives are always safer than dull ones and this has to be the best knife sharpening system that I've ever used. Kinder to the knives than your typical "supermarket gadget" sharpener; achieves a finer edge than a sharpening steel; easier and more consistent than a regular whetstone. Highly recommended.

So I have only had this item for a day as I have a kitchen knife that was completely ruined by someone who "attempted" to sharpen it. Watching a few youtube videos, I begun to understand how the system works, and what you should be doing to get that perfect edge. Key points to note. The rods go into the underside of the sharpening stone, and not on top (like I initially did). This caused about half an hour of delay and realising I wasn't actually going very far as the angle was too acute. Swapped it around to the correct way, and levelled the bar with the flat edge of the sharpening stone (put the bar in the stone slot, and place the stone face down on a flat surface. Then tighten the thumbscrew and check alignment. Depending on the quality of the blade, choose your grit. The lower the number, the more coarse the stone is (you can feel the difference by rubbing your finger over each stone). Kitchen knives will generally want to be sharpened to 20 degrees, however check with the knife manufacturer on what degree your knife was initially made to. Work the blade until you can feel a bur on the underside of the entirety blade. Flip it over, and do the same again. Once the bur is on the underside of the blade, go down coarseness. I personally used black for about half an hour (trust me, my knife was completely and utterly ruined), then move on to red / grey / blue / and finally finish off with yellow. Between each stone, make sure you get a bur on the underside of the knife, flip it, bur the opposite side, swap out for finer stone. It's a pretty simple process, and once you are done, you'll have a perfectly sharp blade once again. Pros: Packaging is nice, and should last for years. Does what it's meant to, and sharpen your blades to a nice finish. Cons: Ok, so I'm being slightly over-critical here. This set isn't complete. You pretty much HAVE to have a Lansky pedestal to go along with this. I tried to sharpen without the pedestal just to see the difference and it was extremely difficult to say the least. Nevermind the increased risk of cutting yourself. Also, for a perfect finish, you need the leather stropping hone (also an additional purchase). Lack of instructions included with the system was a bit of a downer. EDIT: Also, the rubber pads that come on the clamp have slightly dislodged with only about 1 hour of use. I'm pretty gutted about this, but I will buy some epoxy and stick those suckers back in place once they no longer hold their place. I would have expected a very high grade glue used, but alas it wasn't that great. I managed to realign them just by pushing on the side and they moved back in place. Hey Lansky, if you're listening, improve the glue on the rubber grips! Conclusion: Works really well, and brought my notched blunt kitchen knife back into working service. I still have quite a bit of work left to work out my notches, but eventually it'll be brilliant. I rated this 4/5 because the leather strop was an additional purchase. In my opinion, and feel free to disagree with me here, is that a "Deluxe" sharpening system should have a leather strop included to do a professional finish. But that's just my 2c! If you're new to this system, buy this kit with a pedestal, and if you really want to do a great finish, get the leather strop too.

Excellent product

The only job for reliable knife sharpening. Will get you shaving sharp for the minimum of effort. Wish I bought it sooner. Would highly recommend the additional ultra fine stone and leather strop attachment for ridiculous sharpness, which can be bought separately.

I bought this System needing to sharpen specialist Saddlery blades including a Saddlers round knife and the 6 inch flat blade for my leather splitting machine. I found it worked great for my kitchen knives. Holding the other blades firmly in the System was a bit of a challenge, but I got there. The System is not geared for removing large amounts of material and therefore it took a long time for me to get the angle I wanted, but with my diamond sharpening block at No.200 I was able to get it eventually and then the Lansky came into its own. Perfect for a uniform edge at the correct angle. I had to use a bit of ingenuity to keep the blades at right angles to the device, but then the System took over with the angle options. Once I knew what I was doing, I was confident for the first time about sharpening my Saddlery tools. It can be a bit messy because of the use of oil to lubricate and clean, but a pair of latex gloves and a towel on the bench overcame that. Found I could use WD40 once the oil provided ran low. Unfortunately due to illness, I can rarely work on my Saddlery now, and needed an easy method for sharpening tools. but I was pleased with the Lansky Deluxe Knife Sharpening System and would recommend it.

Great sharpening system and build quality. The ability to use multiple knives and stones allows you to get a great edge on your knives. Highly recommend buying the desk stand for this as well as it does make it much easier to handle and get a better finish with both hands free. Instructions are clear and the storage box is durable.

I first bought the basic version of this system about 15 years ago. It was the one with 3 stones (no extra coarse or extra fine) and has done such great service that a replacement was in order. After looking at the cost of buying stones separately, I decided to go for a whole new set, and treat myself to some 'deluxe' sharpening action! First of all, let me say I'm a big fan of this type of system. Although I can sharpen freehand, this lets me potter along at it in front of the TV safe in the knowledge that my angles don't need my concentration. The Lansky system is very good value and easy to use. Overall, I recommend it highly. However, there are a couple of disappointments with the set I've just received. 1. The clamp used to be made of precision machined sheet steel. The new one is some sort of moulded light alloy. That's ok, but there are a number of moulding artifacts that haven't been cleaned up - one of the guide holes was almost completely blocked by a thin piece of 'run-off', and the notch for small knives is so uneven that I doubt it would securely hold a knife, certainly not without marking it quite badly. These problems are easily corrected with a bit of filing, but I don't feel I should have to! 2. When I got my first Lansky set, the blue stone (fine 600 grit) was noticeably uneven, with a distinct convex profile. The man in the sporting goods shop was quite surprised at this, but happily exchanged it for one that was much better, although not perfect. I was amazed to open the new set this morning and find that, yet again, the 600 grit stone has an uneven, convex profile! What are the chances?! All the other stones are perfectly flat. Luckily I have also ordered a coarse diamond stone, with which I will be able to re-profile the offender. Again, it's a simple solution, but I was getting the diamond stone anyway. If that wasn't the case I'd be asking for a replacement. As I said, I'm a big fan of the system as being good value for money. However, it seems that to maintain their margins Lansky aren't looking too closely at their end product! If you want to avoid these issues, I'd say go for one of the many similar systems on the market, by DMT for example. Just bear in mind that they are generally quite a bit more expensive. All in all, I'm quite happy to stick with Lansky. Given that knife care is a labour of love anyway, I quite like having to care for the tools as well! EDIT - I've just noticed that the ultra-fine 1000 grit stone has one edge slightly raised where it has been cut to size but not finished. This could ruin all the previous work done on the blade! Again, easy to rectify with the right tools, but.... Make up your own mind!