If you're like me, you don't think about sharpening a knife until you go to use it and it won't slice through melted butter. Not only is a dull knife counterproductive, but it's also unsafe. My dad always told me that a dull knife is more dangerous than a sharp one.
So what do you use to sharpen your knives? For me, if it's a pocketknife or shop knife, I usually use a waterstone or diamond stone. For kitchen knives, I've tried just about every gadget in the book. Some worked better than others. And I've been known to bring my honing stones into the kitchen a time or two. But even then, the results were hit-and-miss. Occasionally, I'll know I got lucky when my wife grabs a kitchen knife to use it and exclaims, "My! That's really sharp!" I wish she could say that about all of our kitchen knives.
Infinity Tools carries the Work Sharp Ken Onion line of knife-sharpening products. And let me tell you, I've never used an easier, more foolproof system for sharpening knives. There are some really nice videos on the Infinity Cutting Tools web site that show how the system works. The basic system is handy — and small enough — to have around the shop or kitchen for keeping all of your tool and knife edges as sharp as a razor. Like I said, it's easy to use for those quick touch-ups on dull knives.
If you're a real knife purist, collector, or just appreciate a top-quality sharpening method, the Work Sharp Ken Onion Edition Knife Grinding Attachment (116-558) steps sharpening up to a whole new level. This add-on attaches to the Work Sharp Ken Onion Edition Knife Sharpener (116-550). It adds a lot of flexibility and capability for getting the ultimate in sharp, polished edges. With this system, you can even sharpen serrated knives.
As is usual for Infinity Cutting Tools, there are replacement belts available for the basic system and the knife grinding attachment. A blade stropping kit (116-560) is also available for the grinder attachment that includes a couple of cloth belts and two different honing and polishing compounds. You'll want to check it out.
Now there's absolutely no excuse for having a dull knife in the kitchen or shop.