Lansky sharpener or stone

[wabbit]

Hello everyone, I usually sharpen my kitchen knives with two Arkansas stones and oil, but ran out of knife oil so I was going to use olive oil. While I was looking for the olive oil, I found a Lansky knife sharpener I bought several years ago but didn't use. It's got a clamp with a guide to hold the stone at a fixed angle, but it doesn't use any oil. Does anyone have experience with the Lansky sharpener and know if it works as well or better than a set of two Arkansas stones in sharpening unserrated knives?
I've always sharpened knives with oil or some other lubricant, so I'm a bit leery of dry stones ability to sharpen as well as an oiled stone.
thanks in advance.

 

[Doco Overboard]

I never used a Lansky to sharpen kitchen knives very much, but any of my other knives it gets them wicked sharp.
I'm on my second one as a matter of fact.
Ive also used other types of stones and strops that were very effective but not to the degree of the Lansky for efficiency.
I think when you sharpen knives and tools, the type and temper of the blade determines what type of stone is most suitable.
What I like about the Lansky, is that blade content doesn't seem to matter, it always works.
But, like a lot of other products they dont make them lie they used to. The plastic components dont seem to be as durable.

 

[gwchem]

The lansky works fine. I had one for a while.

Then I got a worksharp. So much faster.

 

[John from MD]

Hello everyone, I usually sharpen my kitchen knives with two Arkansas stones and oil, but ran out of knife oil so I was going to use olive oil. While I was looking for the olive oil, I found a Lansky knife sharpener I bought several years ago but didn't use. It's got a clamp with a guide to hold the stone at a fixed angle, but it doesn't use any oil. Does anyone have experience with the Lansky sharpener and know if it works as well or better than a set of two Arkansas stones in sharpening unserrated knives?
I've always sharpened knives with oil or some other lubricant, so I'm a bit leery of dry stones ability to sharpen as well as an oiled stone.
thanks in advance.

Landsky sharpeners are too much work for long blades. I would invest in one of these for long knives.

Amazon product ASIN B08VD8ZGFZ

 

[outrider58]

Is it a diamond Lansky? I've always used oil with mine. It came with a bottle(long gone now).

I use a Work Sharp on my kitchen knives, maybe every couple years. All are Wustofs with very hard steel. It does a great job on them.

Amazon product ASIN B08VD8ZGFZ

 

[Doco Overboard]

The lansky works fine. I had one for a while.

Then I got a worksharp. So much faster.

How does the work sharp function?
Is it the one with the belt system, a few years advertised?
The Lansky comes in a small portable box about the size of an envelope as you already know.
The boxes are kind of cheaply made now as well. The latch is not very positive and fiddly I think.

 

[Doco Overboard]

Oh, I see the work sharp now.
I dont use anything motorized on any knives I own.
I'm not in that much of a hurry to sharpen a knife.
I can tell they're getting dull when I use them so I just do maintenance when necessary.

 

[outrider58]

Oh, I see the work sharp now.
I dont use anything motorized on any knives I own.
I'm not in that much of a hurry to sharpen a knife.
I can tell they're getting dull when I use them so I just do maintenance when necessary.

Nor do I normally, but Lansky type sharpeners suck for the long kitchen knives as well as some of the harder steel out there. The Work Sharp is not a rotating stone, but a belt, so the grinding is linear, not circular. It has multiple sharpening belts that go to very fine grits, which are mainly what I use.

All my pocket/hunting knives get the Lansky and finish with crock sticks except my EDC deer knife, a Buck 110. It has never been touched by a sharpening stone in 20+ years of field dressing deer. It gets a once-over on the crock sticks after each "job" and still goes through sternums like butta!

 

[inkd]

Hello everyone, I usually sharpen my kitchen knives with two Arkansas stones and oil, but ran out of knife oil so I was going to use olive oil. While I was looking for the olive oil, I found a Lansky knife sharpener I bought several years ago but didn't use. It's got a clamp with a guide to hold the stone at a fixed angle, but it doesn't use any oil. Does anyone have experience with the Lansky sharpener and know if it works as well or better than a set of two Arkansas stones in sharpening unserrated knives?
I've always sharpened knives with oil or some other lubricant, so I'm a bit leery of dry stones ability to sharpen as well as an oiled stone.
thanks in advance.

If it is a regular stone Lansky kit, you should use oil. I have the diamond kit and you don't use oil for that one. I do finish the blades off with a extra fine stone that I oil. I like the Lansky kit. it is about as idiot proof as you can get. But, as others have said, it is a bit frustrating for larger kitchen knives since you have to move the clamp along the blade to get the entire blade done. Not a horrible problem, but, if you are doing a lot of long blades, it can be a PITA.

 

[gwchem]

Oh, I see the work sharp now.
I dont use anything motorized on any knives I own.
I'm not in that much of a hurry to sharpen a knife.
I can tell they're getting dull when I use them so I just do maintenance when necessary.

Yeah, the work sharp is a mini belt sander.

It's just so much faster. I get 99% of the results in about 2 minutes per knife. And there's a ton of different belts out there. When you get into the harder steels, it takes forever to manually sharpen them.

 

[John from MD]

Yeah, the work sharp is a mini belt sander.

It's just so much faster. I get 99% of the results in about 2 minutes per knife. And there's a ton of different belts out there. When you get into the harder steels, it takes forever to manually sharpen them.

Amen to that. My EDC Kershaw S30V blade is a bitch to sharpen by hand.

 

[alucard0822]

The oil/water is primarily to keep the stone from clogging, and keep it cutting. Diamond stones are usually non-porous, the diamond grit is on a metal backing, they don't really hold much oil/water, so you can usually use them dry, and just clean them periodically.

For porous stones, you ALWAYS use water or oil. Often times you can use either one, water is cleaner/easier/cheaper, but oil works better, and if oil is ever used, then water won't soak in the stone, and you should keep using oil. Waterstones tend to be softer, and the grit tends to wear off, so fresh sharp grit takes it's place, but they sometimes have to be leveled. I usually use water for most jig/guide systems for convenience, and I can just dip the small stones in a cup of water to keep them clean. For larger bench stones, especially natural or hard synthetic, oil is just better. Provided the oil does not dissolve the grit or binder, most any light oil works. I usually just get a can of Norton or Congress tools oil when I get stones.

Benchstones work, but it takes skill to hold a proper angle. A wide large stone can sharpen fast due to the large surface, and a large stone will work for large knives.

Worksharp/belt sanders are the fastest, by a mile. They also can F-up a blade in seconds, and take skill, proper setup, and proper belts to get the desired edge. They get hot, and can burn an edge, damaging the steel's heat treatment. You can also use wet grinding wheels or cardboard wheels with compound. I generally use my belt grinder with low grit belts around 80 to repair a damaged edge or profile. I also strop with a leather belt loaded with chrome oxide or green compound to strop/polish. For tools or cheaper EDCs, I might sharpen with trizact or mylar belts from 220-15micron belts, but it takes off too much metal, and too easy to round a tip, so I don't use it to sharpen good knives. You can sharpen most any size blade, and nothing beats it for a pile of cheap kitchen knives.

This leaves manual jig/guide systems, IMO they are the best for most all pocket knives. KME, wicket edge, edge pro, Lansky, Sharpmaker, there are tons of them. They make it easier to get a set angle, they are more efficient, and sharpen faster with relatively small stones, and are much easier to use than other methods. I use an Edge pro and congress tools stones with my pocket knives. Silicon carbide cut fast, Aluminum oxide last the longest, but are a little slow with supersteels. Ceramic, diamond, glass with paste or abrasive film, you can use a ton of different things to sharpen. The main downside is they can be expensive, and can only sharpen 4-6" of blade, so larger blades have to be done in sections. My edge pro doesn't clamp blades, so easier to reposition large blades, and works with some shapes that are hard to clamp, I can also use fat stones to sharpen fast, skinny stones to sharpen recurves, or triangle stones for serrated edges.

 

[Uncle Duke]

If it is a regular stone Lansky kit, you should use oil. I have the diamond kit and you don't use oil for that one. I do finish the blades off with a extra fine stone that I oil. I like the Lansky kit. it is about as idiot proof as you can get. But, as others have said, it is a bit frustrating for larger kitchen knives since you have to move the clamp along the blade to get the entire blade done. Not a horrible problem, but, if you are doing a lot of long blades, it can be a PITA.

This⬆⬆⬆. I've used a Lansky sharpener on pocket and hunting knives for over 20 years, mainly because I've absolutely sucked for over 40 years at sharpening such knives otherwise. Mine came with oil, does require oil, and does a much better job of maintaining the same critical angles than I was ever able to maintain by hand. No idea what else is available, but I've found Lansky servicable for knife sharpening stone hacks like me.

 

[wpage]

In a pinch for lube. Seen old timers use spit on the stone.

Others use a dry rub. Suppose any sharp method is better then dull blades.

 

[Doco Overboard]

I use Kroil or even kerosene sometimes for floating the contact surfaces.
Swarf, I think is the term used for lubricity of the stones.

 

[outrider58]

I use Kroil or even kerosene sometimes for floating the contact surfaces.
Swarf, I think is the term used for lubricity of the stones.

Years ago, when mostly what was around were stones, I would use Zippo lighter fluid for the final edge work. It worked great on fine stones.

 

[BFMIN]

The "Honing Oil" is just mineral oil. You can get it at places where they sell electric groomers & razors as "blade oil".
There are "Wet" stones & "Dry" stones, use wet ones wetted with water & dry ones dry, cleaning them with oil afterwards. They'll eventually collect oil anyway from cleaning, but either way works.
The oil in Lanskys & others is just to release the metal from the pores of the stone. After a bit of use the stone will remain a little oily anyway.
The Lansky does have one limitation, that's been mentioned. Long blades. even they admit you need to do them is sections if over 8" of sharp edge is needed.

 

[mauser58]

I have always used a stone and oil. I have the Smith 3 sided 3 stones. I sharpen my kitchen knives after every several uses. I never use the coarse or medium to just redo an edge. I use the fine one and 3n1 oil. Works very well on my fillet knives also.

 

[toppkatt]

The oil/water is primarily to keep the stone from clogging, and keep it cutting. Diamond stones are usually non-porous, the diamond grit is on a metal backing, they don't really hold much oil/water, so you can usually use them dry, and just clean them periodically.

For porous stones, you ALWAYS use water or oil. Often times you can use either one, water is cleaner/easier/cheaper, but oil works better, and if oil is ever used, then water won't soak in the stone, and you should keep using oil. Waterstones tend to be softer, and the grit tends to wear off, so fresh sharp grit takes it's place, but they sometimes have to be leveled. I usually use water for most jig/guide systems for convenience, and I can just dip the small stones in a cup of water to keep them clean. For larger bench stones, especially natural or hard synthetic, oil is just better. Provided the oil does not dissolve the grit or binder, most any light oil works. I usually just get a can of Norton or Congress tools oil when I get stones.

Benchstones work, but it takes skill to hold a proper angle. A wide large stone can sharpen fast due to the large surface, and a large stone will work for large knives.

Worksharp/belt sanders are the fastest, by a mile. They also can F-up a blade in seconds, and take skill, proper setup, and proper belts to get the desired edge. They get hot, and can burn an edge, damaging the steel's heat treatment. You can also use wet grinding wheels or cardboard wheels with compound. I generally use my belt grinder with low grit belts around 80 to repair a damaged edge or profile. I also strop with a leather belt loaded with chrome oxide or green compound to strop/polish. For tools or cheaper EDCs, I might sharpen with trizact or mylar belts from 220-15micron belts, but it takes off too much metal, and too easy to round a tip, so I don't use it to sharpen good knives. You can sharpen most any size blade, and nothing beats it for a pile of cheap kitchen knives.

This leaves manual jig/guide systems, IMO they are the best for most all pocket knives. KME, wicket edge, edge pro, Lansky, Sharpmaker, there are tons of them. They make it easier to get a set angle, they are more efficient, and sharpen faster with relatively small stones, and are much easier to use than other methods. I use an Edge pro and congress tools stones with my pocket knives. Silicon carbide cut fast, Aluminum oxide last the longest, but are a little slow with supersteels. Ceramic, diamond, glass with paste or abrasive film, you can use a ton of different things to sharpen. The main downside is they can be expensive, and can only sharpen 4-6" of blade, so larger blades have to be done in sections. My edge pro doesn't clamp blades, so easier to reposition large blades, and works with some shapes that are hard to clamp, I can also use fat stones to sharpen fast, skinny stones to sharpen recurves, or triangle stones for serrated edges.

This. The oil is just to keep the steel particles removed from the edge suspended and keep them from settling into the crevices of the stone rendering them less aggressive (a clogged grinding stone/wheel). Every once in a while the stones need to be dressed just like a grinding wheel to keep the surface even (flat) and the pores open.
If you have the ceramic stones that are white, you can see the steel removed in the sharpening process start to turn the surface gray. When this happens they need to be cleaned to keep the abrasive surface working efficiently.

 

[wabbit]

If it is a regular stone Lansky kit, you should use oil. I have the diamond kit and you don't use oil for that one. I do finish the blades off with a extra fine stone that I oil. I like the Lansky kit. it is about as idiot proof as you can get. But, as others have said, it is a bit frustrating for larger kitchen knives since you have to move the clamp along the blade to get the entire blade done. Not a horrible problem, but, if you are doing a lot of long blades, it can be a PITA.

I'm finding out the Lansky is a PITA to use on a large blade like my kitchen knife. 8" long blade is not what the Lansky was designed for. I'm going to go back to using my Arkansas stones. That motorized Work Sharp looks neat, but I'm afraid I'll ruin a blade by grinding it on any motorized grinder. The Lansky kit didn't come with any oil and the instructions that came with the clamp didn't mentioned oiling the stone, so I think I got one of the kits that don't use oil.