Best electric knife sharpener for hunting knives: Top 5 Reviews and Guide

Why do we need an electric knife sharpener?

What is the best way to sharpen a hunting knife? You might think about buying a brand new one. But, you can bring your old knives back to life with electric knife sharpeners.

Electric sharpening stones and devices are designed for hunters who want to maintain their knives or place new blades on their equipment for skinning and dressing out the game. Even if you own more than one…

Sharpening of hunting knives: What you should know before starting?

The reason why choosing the proper sharpening stone type and grit rating is so important when it comes to maintaining your blade edge lie in how each stone interacts with steel at a microscopic level. As far as good quality whetstones go, this interaction occurs between the surface of the abrasive and steel molecules.

What is needed for proper sharpening of your hunting weapons?

It’s not only important to use proper tools to sharpen your knives or blades; you’ll also need good material on which to hone. A stone that won’t wear out too quickly can be found at local hardware stores. There are water stones (both natural and man-made) and oilstones (also called Arkansas stones).

The most essential thing in knife sharpening is having a steady hand and taking time to perfect the process. It may take hours before you get used to using an edged tool in a slashing motion across a whetstone, but when done properly, you’ll be rewarded with a sharp cutting edge.

Our Best electric knife sharpener for hunting knives

Once you have decided to buy an electric knife sharpener, one question may come to your mind. Which type of hunting knife should I sharpen?

Of course, it can be a little bit confusing and a time-wasting task if you don’t know how many types of hunting knives exist and their main differences. With this guide, we will try to simplify all.

1. Wusthof PEtec Electric Sharpener

The Wusthof PEtec is a newly designed, compact, and precise sharpening system. It delivers professional results in record time. The unique newly-developed sharpening process uses 100% diamond abrasives in a flexible stropping disk to create razor-sharp edges in less than half the usual time with other methods.

Sharpening angles are indicated by laser markings in the onboard guide so you can sharpen with precision every time. A simple switch of a button changes the guide’s angle settings (15° to 30°) for either an extremely sharp Asian style edge or more durable European blades (which require 20 to 30°). The same switch locks the stones to remove them for easier cleaning. The PEtec sharpener also has large, easy-to-read water-resistant markings that indicate exactly how far up the blade’s edge to sharpen.

The Wusthof electric knife sharpener is equipped with 100% diamond abrasives which are much harder and less harmful for knives blades than simulated or ceramic abrasives.

PROS:

Sharpens all types of high-quality cutlery

Quickly sharpens knives to “scary sharp” levels in seconds

CONS: 

Doesn’t work well on serrated edges.

1. Smith’s 50008 8-Inch Diamond TriHone Bench Stone

For those who want a medium-coarse hone, look no further than the 8-inch Diamond TriHone from Smith’s. This tri-hone features a coarse diamond stone (325 grit) and two fine diamond stones (600 grit and 1200 grit) mounted on a solid, non-skid base with storage for the stones between uses.

Sharpening angles vary by knife type and personal preference: this sharpener is designed to create a 15 to 20-degree inclusive angle on standard blades as well as other specific blade styles. The same three sides of this sharpener can also be used as an improvised pocketknife sharpening tool if needed.

The Smith’s electric knife sharpener comes equipped with its own set of 100 percent diamond abrasives for optimum cutting efficiency and longevity, as well as being able to use all types of water to lubricate and hone the blade.

PROS:

Sharpens all types of cutlery.

Coarse, fine, and medium sharpening grits.

CONS:

The coarse stone is quite small. Some customers complain about stones dismounting during use.

1. Edge Pro Apex 1 Knife Sharpening System

As a third choice for an electric knife sharpener, we’ve selected one more device from the Edge pro brand which is very popular, the Apex 1 system. The Apex 1 includes everything you need to get started with edge pro sharpeners in a single kit.

This kit includes a course (150 grit), a medium/fine (600 grit), and a finishing (3000) sharpener plus everything else you need to get started including instructional videos, printed instructions, and a universal knife clamp.

The course sharpener is used first to reset the level of an edge, then a medium/fine sharpener can be used as a daily sharpener or the finishing stage to refine the edge for extraordinary sharpness. The blade clamp included with this Apex 1 kit holds your knives securely during the sharpening process so you never have to worry about maintaining a secure grip on your blades.

PROS :

Sharpens all types of cutlery at an angle between 15-20 degrees inclusive.

Kit includes coarse 150 grit, medium 600 grit, and fine 3000 grit diamond stone.

All knives are held securely during the sharpening process. Easily adjustable angles.

CONS :

You can’t adjust your sharpening angles.

1. LINKYO Electric Knife Sharpener

The LINKYO knife sharpener is constructed with 100 percent diamond abrasives for maximum efficiency and longevity.

LINKYO electric knife sharpener has two stages of sharpening to get your knives back to factory-standard cutting ability simply by pulling the blade through each stage multiple times.

The first stage contains coarse carbide blades which reset the primary edge, while in the second stage fine diamond stones provide a durable final edge.

The LINKYO diamond knife sharpener can accommodate knives between 6 inches and 12 inches in length, including all straight edge European/American style knives, daggers, fillet knives, pocket/hunting/utility knives, serrated edges, and Asian-style single bevel edges.

PROS :

Large sharpening area.

Coarse carbide blades to reset the primary edge. Fine diamond stones to provide a durable final edge.

CONS:

Sharpening angles are limited to 15 degrees on each side. A bit slow. If you have very large knives it’s better to look for higher capacity models.

5 . Chef’s Choice 15 XV Professional Electric Knife Sharpener

We’re continuing our review with another electric knife sharpener from Chef choice brand which is considered as one of the best manufacturers in this field, model no.15 XV professional.

This machine has 3 slots where two are used for coarse grinding and finishing, while the third slot is reserved for h and strops (optional equipment). If you want to use hand strops with this sharpener I would recommend getting the Chef’s choice 120 which is an ideal solution if your knives are very dull.

PROS :

• Sharpens all types of cutlery at a 15-degree angle on each side.
• 100 percent diamond abrasives.
• 3-stage process manual push-button control for convenience and easy operation.
• Can be used for hunting or pocket knives, serrated knives, sports/kitchen knives, etc.
• Wide safety interlock switches ensure safe operation during any stage of the sharpening cycle.

CONS :

• A bit expensive because additional equipment (strops) is required if you want razor-sharp edges on your blades.

Conclusion

Hunting has been one of the best sources of food, clothing, and shelter. So it is no surprise that there are many different hunting knives to choose from! But with so many options, how do you know which knife will be best? You’ll need a tool sharpener! This article reviews five top-rated electric knife sharpeners for hunting knives so you can find the perfect fit.

How to choose the best electric knife sharpener for you?

There is no such thing as one universal product that will be perfect for everyone, all knives and all their types and styles are different which makes customer preferences unique.

The most important thing in choosing an electric knife sharpener is to know what type of blades it’s meant for and what edge do you need after sharpening them.

Some sharpeners work better with certain blade materials than other sharpeners and vice versa so knowing this beforehand will help you pick a suitable device or at least eliminate those that won’t do much good for you.

You should also consider what do you need to sharpen. If you have a very dull blade then the sharpening process will take longer and the device needs to be more powerful. The same goes for serrated blades, because of their angles electric knife sharpeners can’t make them “sharper” but only hone the edge a bit.

Another thing that should be taken into consideration is how much time and effort are you willing to put into sharpening your knives? Hunting knives are usually severely worn down which means they need an advanced device with multiple stages even if your knives aren’t as dull as those from a kitchen drawer.

On the other hand, hunters who often use small folding knives find it better to buy a low-budget solution even if it can’t give them a razor-sharp edge.

Sharpening Angle – The key to achieving a great knife edge is consistency, and you can only achieve that by maintaining a consistent angle when grinding. 15-degree angles are almost exclusively used for knives, but some manufacturers go off of existing standards and offer 20 or 30-degree angles for serrated blades.

Ceramic Sharpener – These units use ceramic material to sharpen blades and will pull metal particles from your blade as you sharpen. This type of unit should not be used on serrated blades.

Tungsten Carbide – These units will remove small bits of metal as it sharpens and works very well on serrated blades.

Diamond Stone – These units offer a more abrasive surface and can be used to sharpen all types of knives, but will take longer than the previous two styles of sharpener.

FAQs Section

Do electric knife sharpeners ruin knives?

No. Electric Knife sharpeners are not meant to ruin your knives. Just because you are using an electric knife sharpener, that doesn’t mean your knives will be ruined. Many people have been using electric sharpeners for decades and have seen no decrease in the quality of their blades.

Can you sharpen a hunting knife with a kitchen sharpener?

Not highly recommended. It can be difficult to get the right angle when sharpening large knives at home, which is why you should use specialized units for your hunting knives.

How sharp should a hunting knife be?

For a hunting knife, a sharpness between 8-15 degrees works best. But also it all depends on what you are going for. However, for the best results, it is recommended to be at least 15 degrees.

How many times should you run a knife through a sharpener?

Newer knives with a good edge usually only require one or two passes, whereas more severely neglected blades may need to go through the stone several times to bring back their initial shine. It also depends on the sharpener and the knife.