After getting a bunch of inquires about sharpeners I started looking into different kits. After reading on the forums about different kits I kept reading about the Apex Edge Pro kit. So I did some research on the kit and even watched some of the videos the founder Ben Dale created. At this point I was 70% sold on one of these kits. It just seemed from the videos it was a very simplistic approach to sharpening your knives. I did have some further questions though about stone grits, blade steels etc.. So I gave Tim a call at Accurate Sharpening & Cutlery Sales since they are authorized dealers of the Edge Pro. I explained to Tim I never sharpened a knife before and gave him my thoughts that I've gathered from my research on the kit. Tim went over the kits with me in such a thorough manner that our phone call lasted almost half an hour. After that I was sold and placed my order.
Four days later I had the kit on my doorstep. Upon taking it out of the package I could tell this wasn't some flimsy plastic junk that was thrown together. Rather it is high quality materials built right here in the United States. The picture above shows my (used) Ultimate kit which includes:
- Apex Edge Pro Sharpener
- 120 Stone
- 220 Stone
- 400 Stone
- 600 Stone
- 1000 Stone
- 2000 Grit Polishing Tapes
- 3000 Grit Polishing Tapes
- Ceramic Hone (1200 grit)
- DVD (Not shown in above pic)
- Water Bottle
- Instruction Manual
Immediately after unboxing it I wanted to use it. So I grabbed a Kershaw One Ton that I have been abusing for weeks on end. It was to the point that some of my butter knives had a better edge. So I took a sharpie and put marks on the edge bevel. It's a trick that I read about on the forums. If you haven't read about it contact me and I'll explain it to you. Anyhow, I marked the bevel on the edge and set the angle on the Edge Pro accordingly. After 2-3 clean passes on each side of the blade it was almost a night and day difference in sharpness. So I went on to the 400, 600 and finished off on the 1000. At this point the knife was WAY sharper than ever! I was totally impressed that right out of the box I could get such impressive results considering I've never sharpened a knife before.
Before:
Before:
After:
I started getting a mirror finish once I got to the 600 grit. 1000 grit really made it pop and then the 2000 and 3000 grit polish tapes was icing on the cake. Here is another before and after on my Zero Tolerance 0560.
Some other notable things about this kit. There are four different colored indicator marks on the pivot arm. You will see a red, green, yellow and blue. These are degree marks. There three degrees between each one and red is 15 degree and blue is 24 degree. Another thing is if you are sharpening a blade that is pretty thin such as a kitchen knife. The plastic clip on the blade support is removable so you can get the angle just right. Here are two pictures illustrating that - Picture 1 , Picture 2
Overall I am thoroughly impressed with this kit. Now I really look forward to using my knives more because I don't have to wait a few weeks to get them back from my friend when they get dull. And while the Edge Pro kits may not be the cheapest kits on the market, I feel that the quality results you can get from this kit and the fact that it's made right here in the United States with high quality parts makes this kit a worth while purchase. Coming from someone who has never sharpened a knife in my life. This kit really made it easy for me to obtain razor edges on even the toughest of steels like S30V, S35V, El Max etc. If you're in the market for a sharpening kit I would highly suggest you try out the Apex Edge Pro.
Give Tim a call at Accurate Sharpening & Cutlery Sales and he'll get you set up with a Edge Pro kit and answer any questions you may have.
0 comments:
Post a Comment