Smith's PP1 Pocket Pal Knife Sharpener Preset Carbide & Ceramic Stone Sharpeners Fold-Out Diamond Coated Rod Outdoor Hunting Knife & Hook Sharpener, Handheld, Compact, Lightweight, Multiuse

I've always loved knives since I was young and received my first boy scout pocket knife. These days I carry a knife for all of the same reasons I did back then and more (always keep a good, sharp knife on you, never know when you may need it). The only downside I ever experienced (other than the occasional minor laceration) was that all knives I ever owned would get dull. Just a fact of life, even for the best of them. I was taught how to use a traditional wetstone to sharpen knives with and always thought that there should be an easier way. It can be hard to get the correct sharpening angle by hand and each stroke on the stone that is too steep or too shallow only serves to make an already dull blade worse. Other sharpening options are either heavy and expensive (electric sharpeners) or cheap and ineffective (little hand sharpeners or blade guide systems). With this in mind I thought that this sharpener would be cheap and unable to do the job. I was wrong. It does a wonderful job of sharpening most normal to thin bladed knives even though at first it appears to be nothing more than any other POS plastic and ceramic sharpener. It is able to reset an edge on highly worn pocket knives in just a dozen passes and restores the razor sharp edge to any tactical clip folder in just a few strokes. Even better the fold out diamond rod is very easy to use to sharpen serrated edges. It can even be used to repair some deep nicks to blades from abuse (not that I would ever abuse a blade but skulls are thick). I have even used it to sharpen a K-Bar Tonto Ka-Bar 2-1245-1 Black Tanto Knife . To make a long review short, I keep one in my Bag of Evil along with the two leagal length for daily carry knives it would sharpen. It is idiot proof in use, even for serrated knives. It does a wonderful job sharpening blades. It is inexpensive and compact. I think I'll buy another one so I can store it in my 72 hour bag. 5 Stars, well worth much more than Amazon charges.

This little sharpener is a total game-changer. It works great on all my knives, even the serrated ones, and it feels super sturdy. Since it’s so small and light, I just throw it in my bag whenever I’m heading out camping. Definitely a must-have for your gear!

Alright, first off, the only reason I'm giving this four stars instead of five is because I haven't used it yet. It seems like a great sharpener right off the bat. It has a carbide groove for rough or dull knives (straight edge,) just to hone into the right shape, and then a ceramic groove for fine sharpening to put the finished edge on your blade. I'm assuming that it works well, and if it doesn't then I'll change my review. The other nice thing about this sharpener is the flip-out diamond rod. The rod can can be to sharpen single-beveled edges the old-fashioned way if that's how you prefer to do it, but it can also be used to to sharpen serrated edges and gut-hooks. I'm sure if you are willing to put the time into it, this little tool can be used to put a nice, sharp edge on anything (even an axe; although a grinding wheel would be more optimal for a tool of that size.) I have a folding Gerber knife upstairs with a partially serrated blade that I will test this thing out on a little later. I'll update my review after using this to see how effective each aspect of this tool is (I believe this tool was made with knives like that in mind.) My Gerber is rather dull on the straight section of the blade, so I'll be able to use the carbide groove, the ceramic groove, and I'll even try out the rod on the serrations (even though they're still pretty sharp,) but a good review is an informed one, and I think I owe you that much. As for construction and quality, everything seems pretty solid, and this tool is small enough to fit into just about any pocket you can have, so its extremely portable as well. I'll update after trying it out, and tell you what kind of edge I get on my Gerber.

I am the world's worst knife sharpener. I'm also a BIG believer in the old saying, "A dull knife is a dangerous knife." What a dilemma. At least until I ran across the Pocket Pal while looking for something idiot-proof to put a real honest-to-goodness edge on my blades. One, it IS idiot-proof. After spending a few days FOLLOWING THE DIRECTIONS I had all my knives sharper than I'd ever had them before. My Gerber survival knife cut like it hadn't since I first bought it. My Gator was sharper than it had EVER been before. My various other blades; machete, Arkansas toothpick, Swiss Army and various carving knives were all SAFE now. But, best of all, my brand new Ka-bar Big Brother was the sharpest of the lot. It (and the toothpick) had come dull as they could be and to be able to get them the way they should have come from the factory was very, very satisfying. To be able to buy such a wonderful tool so cheaply was mind-boggling. To have it be so portable I can stick it in my watch pocket is absolutely great. So now I have the four essential and mandatory survival items every outdoorsman must carry without fail; compass, Bic-type lighter, excellent all-around knife and, finally, something easily portable with which to keep it sharp. (Next on the list would be 550 cord and water purifier.) All else is "obtanium" as that nut on tv likes to call it. Anyone who wants a sharper edge, such as you might get with a high-grit waterstone is simply looking for bragging rights or is suffering from OCD. Finally, the reason I say this is the world's best sharpener is because a) it is inexpensive and therefore obtainable by all, b) easy to use by anyone, even me, c) it gives an excellent edge without hassle and d) is easily portable and therefore removes the excuse that it's a pain to carry. It IS "the better mousetrap."

Great tool still have it

The rod used for serrated edges is what should make this a winner of a product, however it actually becomes the weak link. You will note the pictures of the product, and how it comes in packaging shows the rod extended out and not in the stored position - for a good reason - it is a tight fit to place it either in the fully extended or fully closed position. I understand you do not want this flopping around when in use or folded away for storage but first and foremost you are in constant danger of snapping the rod in two trying to extend and lock into position, or fold and lock into stored position, and once in the stored position extreme care is needed to keep from breaking the rod trying to get it open again. The rod is either glued or screwed on the plastic hinge, if it comes off, good luck reattaching. The overall size is nice, great for keeping with you out in the field. The ability to attach to a lanyard is a plus as are the flat sides on which to rest it when using the blade sharpening slots. The carbide sharpening blades can be rotated when one side becomes worn, the ceramic ones however can not be. Luck of the draw on if the sharpening blades (stone) is set correctly to provide the correct angle for the knife blade edge, seems a few out there are useless and dull rather than sharpen, the majority however work as advertised. Price and functionality, size, and multi-use make this a nice choice for putting a good edge back on a knife, not a keen edge but a nice and workable one...better than nothing. The round rod for serrated edges...hmmmm...not so good, if used with caution it "works". A solid three star product.

So, I got this based on other reviews and upon receiving it, gave it a second thought about actually opening it. It wasn't that it didn't look impressive or that it was too expensive but in the past I would just get out a few stones and oil to spend some time sharpening knives while camping. After a minute, I decided that this Pocket Pal would still be worth it so I ripped it open, read the brief instructions, and grabbed a relatively dull pocket knife of mine. This knife was struggling to open anything lately and definitely wouldn't have been cutting through cables ties and the like. Instructions suggest 8-10 times or until your blade is sharp. I didn't need a blade edge repair so I used the "Fine" side and after the 1st pull through, it was noticeably more sharp. I stopped after the 4th pull as it is ready to go. This all took less than a minute, didn't include any messy oils, and anyone could use it to sharpen a knife without having to worry about their skill level. Also, I barley appied any pressure to sharpen the knife. The Pocket Pal has a molded in finger / thumb grip and was comfortable to use both with my left and right hand. While the peice is light. It doesn't feel cheap and doesn't seem like it will randomly fall apart (I'm big into high quality / durability products and expect any item I purchase to be such no matter the price point) yet it is very light weight. I'm glad that I purchased it and actually used it. It is going into my hiking / camping pack and I'm taking out those heavy stones and the heavy oil. My only question now is what will I do with my spare time now that I don't have to spend it sharpening knives? I'm now going through my house, bug out bag(s), and vehicles searching for more knives to sharpen! Highly recommend. I paid full cost for this item and it was not discounted or provided free for review unlike so many other reviews we read today on Amazon.

I bought this to get me over the Free Shipping amount, and figured if it was a Smith's product, it must be okay. I'm very happy with the tool! It rapidly dresses blades from my 'fingernail cleaner' up to the 8" kitchen knife. It is not the tool you use to salvage a round-edged blade, but that is what stones are for. The other feature, the 'spur', as I call it, does the trick on serrated blades. My beloved old pocketknife, a Gerber EZ-Out, had gotten to a bad state. I use it for everything, including some tasks that I'd be ashamed to mention. The serrated edge and the standard edges had dulled, and the standard edge a bit rolled. Note: Although I suppose you can use the PocketPal freehand, I don't. I hold the tool down on a table (or bench) edge to control it. The carbide cutters take a fair amount of pressure to work well. The Pocket Pal made short work of the bad edge, with the carbide sharpener actually pulling some slivers of steel (ATS34, if you care) off the edge. The ceramic tool then put a pretty nice dress on the blade. The spur took care of the serrated edge in no time! I then took on the kitchen knives. They were in good shape, but I figured I could get a dressed edge. Well, the Gerber kitchen knives (6 and 8-inch) and the various blades in the Wustof set took only a few strokes, and they are REALLY SHARP! (as my wife tells me). Two cautions: Use a newspaper under the PocketPal when you use it on a table, to avoid damaging the table or the blade. Second, when you use the spur, be very careful of your angle, as the spur is fairly aggressive, and you can really mess up the serrated edge. A great little tool; well worth the money! I'm not too sure about the 'Pocket' part though. It's a good sized (almost 3") tool.

Sharpens well

Il prodotto è ben fatto, ho affilato alcuni coltelli di cui uno aveva la lama "mozzicata" in alcuni punti, adesso sono quasi nuovi e tagliano molto bene. ho provato ad affilare una lama in ceramica.... non credo sia idoneo a questo scopo anche se in una resensione veniva consigliato anche per questo. E' molto piccolo, idoneo per tenerlo in tasca, un po scomodo quando si utilizza con oggetti grandi.... Comunque funziona bene!

Affûtage impeccable. Se glisse dans une poche, idéal pour les sorties en randonnée.

This is my second Smithy sharpener. I keep one in my backpack, this one i keep in my pocket when working in the garden. It's a good tool to do a quick sharpening of small pocket knives. ps : the keychain is not included.

Good