Lanksy Blademedic 4-in-1 Knife Sharpener - PSMED01

I always keep 2 of these handy and over the Christmas break I gave both of mine away to family members who wanted one on the spot. I still have to send out 2 more that I promised to others, and order 2 more for myself. These are the best value for your dollar of any pocket pull-through knife sharpeners on the market.In the picture it looks like it is made of cheap plastic like most other pull through sharpeners. When you hold this for the 1st time you will be surprised at how solid it feels. This is the main reason I pass it around for others to have a gander at it, I like watching the surprise on their face when they feel how solid this little sharpener is.The carbide sharpener will take a lot of steel off of your knife blade, so I would recommend using it sparingly and only when you have deep nicks to take out of your blade. The ceramic pull through sharpener is perfect for regular maintenance and is mainly what I use for on-the-spot touch ups. I find that usually I can touch up a knife in 10 strokes or less if maintained regularly. If I am working out small nicks it takes a bit longer. On bigger nicks I start on the carbide sharpener until the big nick becomes a small nick, then I finish working it out on the ceramic side.I like the that diamond rod is held closed and held open via magnets. It doesn't come open in my pocket and stays in place while opened and being used. It is great for serrations and sharpening scissors or other blades they usually require a file. Once again you have a ceramic rod mounted on the frame that can also be used in place of the diamond rod and will take off less metal. This is also great for quick touch ups on blades that are maintained regularly.This does not replace a full sharpening solution, but it is the best sharpener that I have found for everyday carry that will fit in my pocket.

This is a very well designed, hefty for its size all purpose sharpener. I sharpened a Buck 119, a Leatherman micro, and both the plain and serrated blades on a Leatherman Supertool in under 15 minutes with this thing!I like the angle of the cutting edge this thing puts on the knife, very useable.To use:Plain edge knife (non-serrated): Pull the knife through the side labeled "carbide" several times, applying a good amount of pressure as you do as though you are trying to cut through the carbide blades. Pull it through 3 or more times until a decent edge has been achieved. You will feel less resistance from the carbide blade when it is ready to move on. Next, run it through the ceramic side several times until it feels smooth, as before use some pressure like you are trying to slice it in half at first then less pressure as it sharpens up. You are done! Knife should now cut anything you want.For the serrated blades, first use the diamond rod on them by holding the knife so that the serrations are facing up, run the rod up across the individual serrations, small point of the diamond rod to the bigger part. You are filing it down so use some pressure. Once you have hit all the individual serrations with the diamond rod, next you will use the exposed piece of ceramic on the serrations like you would use a regular stone, this polishes the edge to a razor sharpness. Use some pressure at first then back off till it is just gliding across the stone. So easy to do but long winded to explain.I highly recommend this as a pocket or pack sharpener. I will be buying several more of these. 1 for the car, 1 for the day bag, 1 for the house, and 1 for the bug out bag.

Lansky's PS-MED01 looks very much like Smith's Pocket Pal, which I have used and recommended as a good kit item for blade repair and quick sharpening of most blades. But the Smith has a plastic body while the Lansky's is metal, so the Lansky is heavier.The Lansky is also longer, which means that its tapered diamond rod is longer as well - a good thing. As with the Smith, the tapered diamond rod can be pulled from its stay and rotated 180 degrees to a locked open position for use as a diamond file (sharpening hard to reach items, serrations, etc.). The Lansky rod's longer length gives advantage in use.The Lansky's length afforded mounting an almost 2 inch length of exposed ceramic bar on angle to the sharpener body. This ceramic bar has a rounded-point cross section to engage and sharpen most serrated edge scallops; of course it can be used as a ceramic rod to fine-sharpen any edge as well. I've done both with good result.The Lansky, like the Smith, also includes "Vee" sharpening notches of carbide (for edge repair or sharpening a rough-use edged knife) and of ceramic (for easy fine sharpening to a good edge). These Vee's are set at 40 degrees compound, which means the sharpening surfaces are at 20 degrees from the center line of the Vee; this is standard for a sharp, yet strong edge. Not all knives have secondary grinds of 20 degrees, however. You may be blunting a knife with a super fine bevel of 15 degrees, or only grinding away at the bevel shoulder of a "hard use" knife with bevel of 25 degrees.Caution using these Vee's - the body is metal versus the Smith's plastic, so take care not to press downward strongly when using a Vee; these are meant to be drawn through, not sawn through.All in all, The Lansky Blade Medic is a more useful field sharpener than the Smith Pocket Pal, and would serve well; but it would likely ride in pack or kit, not in pocket due to weight and size (as would the Smith, too, for that matter). The difference between them is weight versus increased usefulness; this is a user preference. I've given the Lansky 4 stars only due to its weight (I'd give the Smith 4, too, due to its lack of a sharpening bar surface).