Presto Pro EverSharp Electric Knife Sharpener
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List Price: Our Price: $27.54 You Save: $12.45 (31%) Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Buy Used: from $24.51 (click here) Category: Kitchen See more product details |
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Presto Pro EverSharp Electric Knife Sharpener
Customer Review: Was skeptical... Now a believer!
Summary: 5 Stars
I am a culinary student and sharp knives are not only convenient, they are essential to pass classes! Honestly, I am not the best with my whetstone, so I looked for an easier way to sharpen my equipment. I've always been taught that an electric sharpener is the worst thing you could ever use on quality cutlery, but the reviews for this thing were good. I took it to my mother's house to "experiment" with some of her knives that were just about ruined. I was shocked when they went from no edge at all to passable the first time through the machine. I was VERY shocked when they came out VERY sharp the second time through! After sharpening every knife in her house, I took it home and (gulp) tried it on mine... Fantastic!
This gadget has saved me quite a bit of money because I used to get my equipment sharpened by a professional when they really needed it. For about the same cost as one pro-sharpening you can have this device. I have used it on my school equipment as well as my personal collection of Wusthof classics and not had a problem.
However, I do prefer to steel them by hand after sharpening. If you use this device to hone a blade, it can leave a slight burr. I know some people prefer that, but I do not. Also, you need a steady hand to get the most out of the sharpener. You MUST read all directions and follow them to the letter. While not at all difficult, you cannot simply, "Stick in a knife, pull it out sharp."
I have never written a review for a product, but this one has inspired me. Get one!
Customer Review: It works.
Summary: 5 Stars
This sharpener works wonderfully well, shaping an excellent edge on my new knives, as well as resurrecting some of my cheaper, older knives at the back of the drawer.
The preset cutting edge angle seems to be between the shallow european angle (which produces a longer-lasting edge) and the severe asian (which produce a sharper edge that blunts more quickly) - a good compromise, though not an adjustable one.
I bought this in conjunction with a nice set of santoku knives, which were a good quality steel but ship blunted. The sharpener, which mounts on the counter with suction pads, effortlessly shaped and honed the blades.
The process of sharpening the knife will take about one minute per knife. A total of twelve slow draws, hilt-to-tip, are required (3 for each side to sharpen, and then repeated for honing).
Some care needs to be taken: you need to be sure to rest the blade on the outer side of the blade guide for a consistent blade angle, and only press the blade gently downward - for large knives, you can let gravity do all the work. If you press too hard, the grinding stone will stop spinning: this may be an unintentional feature, but it's an immediate indicator that you're "doing it wrong". Having said that, I bought one for my mother as well, and she "mastered the art" on the first blade.
Basically, I don't see why you would pay more for a sharpener. If you want a more specialized edge on your knife, then you're probably the type of person to hire somebody to do it for you.
Customer Review: Great product, couldn't ask for more.
Summary: 5 Stars
I own a very nice set of forged knives that my parents paid over $200 for as a gift when I went off to college. After living with three other guys for three years, these knives got abused and beaten to the point I wouldn't even consider using them anymore because my $20 walmart crap knives were sharper. I tried to sharpen the forged blades numerous times for hours with little to no improvement at all with my manual hand sharpener, after that I decided to go electric. I found this little unit and read a lot of reviews and decided to give it a shot. I LOVE THIS THING. It showed up at my door at 11am and by noon I had sharpened every knife in the house to a razor, I could literally shave with any of them, in fact my sharpness test was to try a little spot on my forearm after each sharpening and now my girlfriend is definitely going to make fun of me when she gets home from work, I have little bald spots all down my left arm (I'm right handed and didn't want to risk using my left hand an making a trip to the urgent care/emergency room for stitches). After a good washing to get all of the sharpening debris off these knives are ready to go. I think every person who loves to cook and uses knives a lot, should definitely spend the little amount of money and buy one of these. Don't throw out old knives and buy new ones, like I was ready to do, when you could spend way less on this sharpener and keep your knives going for years. Hope this helps, take care.Customer Review: Great Sharpener!! Better than a steel.
Summary: 4 Stars
I consider myself an amateur chef, I don't cook all the time but when I do I like to do it right. I have a set of Henckle knives in a block and a few extras I bought for it. It came with a knife steel-style sharpener.
Now, it may be that I'm ignorant as to how to use it, but my ex was in culinary arts school and she showed me how to hold one etc and I never thought the steels did a good job. Years later my, my knives were dull, even my kitchen ware steak knives etc were in rough shape.
Long story short, this thing can sharpen anything you throw at it, it does a good job for the money (I can't remember exactly how much it was, it's been awhile but looking at the current price of $29 something I think it was in that neighborhood). I was considering going out to buy a new knife set which would have cost more than 2x as much as the sharpener.
PRO:
- cheap
- does a good job
- mild, easy cleaning
CON:
- grinds off a lot of metal noticeably taking off from the blade
- loud (think buzz saw); shaky, even with suction cup feet
- lots of metal dust you don't want to breathe.
- kind of big for my insanely small kitchen with 0 counter space (YMMV)
I took off one star only because there is probably a more expensive one that does a better job (better toned edge/less wear on the knives), but for what it is I'd definitely recommend it.
Customer Review: Designed for 1st impression, not your knives.
Summary: 2 Stars
There are two major problems with this sharpener. Both result in a knife that *seems* sharp at first, but really isn't.
First, the stones are *very* coarse. I can't imagine a knife so bad it needs stone #1. Stone #2, the "fine" stone might be useful for sharpening hatchets, but will simply remove fine edges! Coarse stones cut too fast and leave deep striations on the blade. Without a smoothing step (e.g. a fine whetstone - and if you have a good whetstone why are you buying this thing?), the blade ends up with something like micro-serrations. It might "feel" sharp at first, but will quickly dull. Using a steel will only make it worse.
Second, the majority of Western knives are sharpened at a 22° angle. The blade slots on this sharpener are set - roughly - at an 18° angle. With a 3° taper on the blade, you'd be sharpening at 16.5°. (Maybe - the guides aren't very good so you might be 5° or so to either side of that.) Again, you get a blade that "feels" sharp at first, then quickly dulls because the metal can't hold the steep angle.
If you have a bunch of hopeless knives and can't afford something better, the Presto Eversharp sharpener is better than nothing. But if you have a knife that costs more than $20, feeding it to this little boy with a hammer should be considered a criminal act. It essentially will destroy the knife.
Two thumbs down.