That cheap knife sharpener I bought on Amazon messed up my jointer blades

Picked up a $15 diamond plate sharpener off Amazon thinking I'd save some cash on keeping my jointer blades fresh. After one use it left weird scratches and the blades never cut the same. Cost me $80 to replace them plus a whole afternoon of setup headaches. Anyone else had bad luck with those budget sharpeners?

2 comments

2 Comments

amybarnes1mo ago

That $15 sharpener probably uses a lower grit than advertised. I noticed this pattern with cheap sharpening stuff in general - they claim a certain grit but it's all over the place. In my experience, you're better off just using a quality diamond stone or sending blades out to a sharpening service. The cost savings on the tool ends up costing you way more in ruined blades and frustration. It's like buying cheap sandpaper that leaves deeper scratches than you started with, just a false economy all around. Your mileage may vary but I stick to known brands now for anything that touches my cutting surfaces.

jessicajohnson1mo ago

That cheap sandpaper analogy is spot on - I ruined a $80 chef's knife testing one of those pull-through sharpeners from Amazon and it turned the edge into a jagged mess.