Lansky Tactical Blademedic Knife Sharpener (4-in-1)

Keeps my sharp blades sharp (cutting paper easily) and gets my dull blades there too! A surface for every sharpness you need short of a strop.

I sharpened my knife w/this tool and it's helped give my knife a good edge to cut through my paperback and hardcover textbooks that I opened once or thrice back in college! I used all the tools provided so I can't say exactly which one contributed most.

However, doing the paper test, the rod and the ceramic+carbide sharpeners have sharpened my knife nicely.

I'm sure the ceramic bar does just as well, but I'm honestly still a beginner at this process so I feel that the bar requires some getting used to in order to get the desired results.

Overall, this is a fantastic tool!

Pros:
-Well built, solid metal construction.
-Small enough to put into whatever from a bag, a pocket, a tackle box, etc.
-Good for straight edges, serrations, curved blades, of any length.
-Works, gets blades pretty dang sharp.
-Easy to use.
-Good for honing too.
-Nice strong magnets hold the diamond rod in place securely.

Cons:
-Only one angle.
-Doesn't get blades razor sharp like a good stone does.
-Can't make me a sandwich

Seriously though, If you are not a perfectionist and just want a good sharp workable blade in a minute or so, can't go wrong with this. Most people will probably only use the ceramics to maintain their knives, the carbide pieces are for extremely dull blades or fixing a badly rolled edge. Have tried it on several common steels though not any extremely hard or exotic steels.

I keep this little sharpener in my work bag. I can't count how many buddies have complained about their dull knives "Man, I need to sharpen this thing." Blademedic to the rescue! It'll get you to just about shaving sharp if you take your time, or just a working edge in about 1 minute.

The body is metal, so it's not flimsy at all. Next year, a few friends and family members will be seeing these in their Christmas stockings!