The key to the Chef’s Choice 120 is it’s three stage polishing system. The three levels of sharpening provide a level of flexibility not present in cheaper models.  They mean you can sharpen a staggering variety of knives.  Table knives, chef’s knives, butcher’s knives, basically any piece of cutlery you can imagine can be sharpened with this model (except scissors).  Even better, you can custom tailor your sharpening to your needs.  From fine work on tomatoes or potatoes to work on thick cuts of beef, the Chef’s Choice 120 can customize each knife to to meet specific needs.

Stage 1 is a 100% diamond abrasive sharpener that creates two blade facets. This is the roughest stage and, frankly, you will probably not use it much unless your knives are extremely dull. Having said that, it did an excellent job shaping our dullest knives very quickly.  Do not use stage 1 or stage 2 one serrated knives, it will take too much metal off.

Stage 2 uses a similar diamond abrasive and creates the appropriate bevel. If you sharpen your knives a few times a year this will be how you start most of your sharpening sessions.

Stage 3 employs what Chef’s Choice calls “revolutionary,” the polish/strop step. One or two pulls on this stage will leave your knives sharper than razor-sharp, although Chef’s Choice recommends further pulls for certain applications. If you sharpen your knives very frequently, you’ll use this stage almost exclusively. It removes only microscopic amounts of metal from the cutting surface, so it is great for frequent polishing. This is probably the biggest advantage of the Chef’s Choice 120 over cheaper models: the ability to frequently honing sessions without removing too much metal.

Using the Chef’s Choice 120 Electric Knife Sharpener couldn’t be easier. But, before you start, please, please read the manual. Although it is easy to operate, you do not want to make any silly mistakes on your expensive cutlery. Also, the manual if full of great tips to specialize your cutting surfaces that are not obvious without reading the manual. Basically, you insert your knife into the left side of your beginning slot and make contact with the sharpening wheels. Pull the knife towards you at the recommended rate and repeat on the right side. Then move on to the next stage and repeat. Easy, right?  Sure is!  Even so, take a few practice pulls with the motor off before doing it live.  When you finally try it out you will be amazed how sharp the knives come out.

The manual also suggests certain routines to special cutting tasks. For example, for cutting through raw meat it recommends using the rougher stage 1 followed directly with the polishing stage 3. This supposedly will create microflutes that makes cutting through fibers easier. We did not get a chance to try this out, but it does show that the Chef’s Choice 120 is quite versatile.

The Chef’s Choice 120 comes in seven colors (see the end of the review for pictures):  White, Red, Chrome, Metal, Brushed Metal, Platinum and Black.  In short, there is a model to fit any kitchen or decor.

As we stated in the introduction, we give the Chef’s Choice 120 Diamond Hone Electric Knife Sharpener our highest recommendation.  Just remember to use it as instructed.  It is much faster than than sharpening by hand and probably much better, but it is not magic.  But if used as instructed, it can make knife sharpening a breeze.  More importantly, it is so easy and quick that you will find yourself giving your knives a quick polish very frequently.  The resulting super-sharp cutlery makes cooking so much easier.

We only had the opportunity to review the Chef’s Choice 120 for one week, so we cannot assess it’s long term durability. However, it gave every impression of being a well-built, sturdy kitchen appliance.   For whatever it is worth, the Chef’s Choice 120 electric knife sharpener is made in the USA.  Also keep in mind that it has a three-year manufacturer warranty, so there is little risk to you. Almost no maintenance required, although you may need to send in the sharpeners every 5 years or so.

The manufacturer’s suggested retail price for the Chef’s Choice 120 electric knife sharpener is $150.00, but you can find it on sale for much cheaper.  Even with a discount, this is more than most sharpeners.  However, keep in mind that this is not some chintzy kitchen aid.  It will be a permanent fixture in your kitchen that will last for years and years- like a refrigerator or oven.  The cost probably isn’t worth it for everyone, but it is definitely worth is for anyone that frequently cooks.

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Chrome

Platinum

Red

Black

Metal

White

Brushed Metal

The Presto Pro EverSharp Electric Knife Sharpeners is a good product for its low price point.  While we found the Chef’s Choice series of electric knife sharpeners do a consistently better job than the Presto (much better, in the case of the high-end models), the better Chef’s Choice models are often $100 more expensive than the Presto sharpener.  For that reason, we call the Presto EverSharp the best “discount” electric knife sharpener on the market. 

Would I use the Presto EverSharp on my Masamoto Chef’s Knife? No.  But is it great for routine use on moderately priced blades?  Absolutely.  Many would be well served by using the Presto EverSharp on their table knives and the like while saving their very best few blades for the professionals.

Like many electric knife sharpeners, the Presto Pro EverSharp utilizes a two-stage sharpening system.  Stage 1 uses sapphirite grinding wheels to shape the cutting edge while stage 2 hones the edge to reduce cutting drag.  Although I could not measure the angle of attach of the sharpening surface, they seemed blunter than the Chef’s Choice models and certainly more than the fifteen degrees of Asian knives.  Note that single-sided serrated blades can be sharpened, but not double edge serrations.

Another important factor to consider is that the Presto seems to remove more metal from the blade than some of the other manual and electric knife sharpeners we have reviewed.  There was no way to verify this, it is just an educated opinion.  Also keep in mind that this is not necessarily a bad thing, unless you sharpen your blades very, very frequently.

Using the Presto Pro EverSharp is a breeze.  Simply insert the blade in the left hand slot of stage 1 and pull it toward you at a steady rate.  One or maybe two pulls should be enough.  Then insert the blade into the right slot and pull at the same rate to achieve a proper bevel.  Then repeat this process with the finishing stage 2.  Afterward your knife will be razor-sharp.

The Presto Pro EverSharp electric knife sharpener retails at $40, but you can probably find it for less online.  This represents one of the least expensive electric knife sharpeners on the market today.  In fact, you’ll find many manual knife sharpeners sell for more than the Presto EverSharp.  For what it does, it is a steal at this price.  Just be sure you are fully aware of its limitations in comparison with the more expensive models.

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This knife sharpener is designed with eight diamond-coated sharpening fingers. If you look at the picture, you can see that the fingers a set a specific angle. This means that there is no complications or difficulties in setting the sharpening angle. Of course, the downside to this is that you cannot select a specific sharpening angle– you are stuck with the designed angle. Keep this in mind when deciding to make a purchase.

The Furi Ozitech Diamond Fingers Pro Knife Sharpener has a modern, clam-shell design. This should fit with most kitchen decors, but if not it can easily be stowed in a drawer at a compact 1×3.5×4.5 inches (folded). While the clam-shell design looks pretty cool, it can lead to some complications during operation. Firstly, it is not immediately intuitive. In other words, it does not open up like it looks like it should. This can be a problem and can potentially damage the knife sharpener if operated incorrectly, so be sure to get it right. Consult the manual before opening. One positive about the design is that it is relatively portable.

Design issues aside, how well does it sharpen knives? The answer is pretty well. The manufacturer claims that 4 or 5 pulls through the Diamond Fingers Pro Knife Sharpener will sharpen most knives. Our tests show that this is adequate for knives in need of a quick tuneup but very dull knives will need 10 to 20 pulls. This is pretty typical of this kind of sharpener. Keep in mind that serrated blades cannot be sharpened with this product.

Actually operating the Furi Ozitech Diamond Fingers Pro Knife Sharpener is a breeze. There are no angles to set or motions to get right. Simply place the blade into the fingers and pull. Simple as that! As alluded to earlier, this simplicity is probably a turn off to those that demand a great deal of customization in their sharpening tasks. But is simplicity is your goal in a knife sharpener, you cannot do much better than the Furi Ozitech Diamond Fingers Pro Knife Sharpener.

The system consists of a knife clamp with guide slots for four bevel angles (17, 20, 25 and 30 degrees), four honing stones (coarse, medium, fine and medium-serrated), guide rods to help maintain your selected sharpening angle, honing oil and complete instructions, all in a handy carrying case. Additional stones are available for purchase, but I found that the included stones are fine for most sharpening applications.

The key to the Lansky Universal Sharpening System is the knife clamp with guide holes. This allows a user, even one with limited skill, to maintain a consistent angle throughout the sharpening procedure. Better yet, there are four guide holes, giving the user the flexibility to select any one of four angles– fine angles for fillet and Asian knives, wider angles for sport knives and hatchets. This kind of flexibility is lacking in all but the most expensive electric knife sharpeners.

Operating the Lansky Universal Sharpening System

Operating the Lansky Universal Sharpening System couldn’t be much easier. Clamp the blade (the non-sharpened side) into the clamp and tighten. Then attach and align the guide rod to the sharpening stone of your choice. Very dull blades will probably require the coarse stone, but relatively sharp knives in need of a tune-up can get by with the medium stone for the first few passes. Insert the guide rod into the selected angle (20 degrees is appropriate for most kitchen knives) and begin sharpening the blade with firm sweeping strokes into the blade. Once you see a burr form (a thin sliver of metal), you should flip the blade over and repeat on the other side. After feeling the the burr again, you can switch to the next finer stone. Repeat the same process (without waiting for a burr) with each stone, using less and less force with each successive stone. Of course, for more complete guidance, please consult the very rigorous manual included with the set. More advanced multi-bevel techniques are also possible with the Lansky Universal Sharpening System. You may find this short, basic instructional video useful.

It is also possible to sharpen serrated blades with the included triangular stone. Keep in mind that this is much more time consuming that straight blades. On the other hand, serrated knives need sharpening much less often than straight knives. Another caveat is that longer knives will require resetting the clamp to reach the extremities of the blade. Failing to do this results in too much variability in bevel angle. This requires more time and more effort. Given that most people do not sharpen their longer (think 8″+) blades too often, this probably will not be a huge issue. Also keep in mind that similar products that do not require resetting (like those from Edge Pro) cost 2-4 times as much as the Lansky Universal Sharpening System. Only you can make that cost-benefit calculation, but be mindful.

Since the Lansky Universal Sharpening System is very simple to operate with no moving parts, it is quite durable. Even so, there is a one-year warranty on materials and workmanship for added security. In closing, we give the Lansky Universal Sharpening System our recommendation, with some of the caveats listed above.