SHARPAL 194H Whetstone Knife Blade Sharpener Sharpening Stone Angle Guide, Chisel/Plane Iron Blade Honing Guide, Knife Edge Angle Finder, Knife Sharpening Trainer (Angle from 15° to 45°)

I LOVE this thing! I use this level/sharpening angle finder device on my leather working tools. I am new to leatherworking, and have quickly realized that 85% (or more!) of this craft is actually tool sharpening! I also quickly learned that I am not so good at sharpening tools. I had gone as far as I could with cheap tools and made the leap and upgraded a few key tools. However, when these new tools got to the point that they needed sharpening - well even just stropping, I didnt want to mess things up. So I searched and found this device! It is a tool saver (not to mention sanity and pocketbook saver too!). Supper easy to use, right out of the box!Now when I use it on my edge beveler, the rod or neck of the tool is very narrow and so this angle finder does sit slightly eschew. Because of this, the actual sharpening angle may not be completely accurate. to me this doesn't matter that much. The magnets are powerful and keep its position steady, even when it has to sit slightly off center. The biggest advantage to me is it helps me attain consistency. I know that as long as I keep my eye on the bubble of the level (which is easy to do with the design of this device), and keep the bubble centered as move the tool down the strop, then I am maintaining a consistent angle! Using it on my skiving knife is more straightforward. Overall, it has a clean design. Easy to see and read level bubble. The magnets are powerful enough to keep its position every time I have used it. And it stays at the setting that I set it to. The settings are in increments of 5s. So, for example, when I use it on my skiving knife, I just set it right below the 15 degree marking. I am not certain if I am then sharpening at a 13 or 14 degree angle, but I do feel very confident that each pull down the strop will be the same angle and in the ball park of where I want it, within less than a 5 degree error, and that is way better than I was achieving free hand!!

I like the small size. I love the magnetic feature. I’m still practicing using it for achieving the proper angles. But it’s easy to use - almost intuitive.

I'm terrible at using a stone for my knifes. I'm hoping this will be a great tool in helping me get better. Seems legit, sticks to the knife, I just wish the magnet was a little stronger.

In concept it is brilliant. Yet it needs a secure way to attach to the knife so as to keep the proper angle throughout the sharpening process.It shows you the proper angle. But after that, it’s all up to you to KEEP that angle as you guide the knife across the sharpening stone. It’s tough.

I'm fairly new to using Japanese water stones for sharpening knives. The most important skill you need to develop is to keep a consistent angle on the knife. I have tried the little pyramids that show you the correct angle, but I found it hard to maintain the angle as I moved the knife away. And I've tried the little device that is often included with water stones that you clip onto your knife blade to hold the knife at the correct angle. But I quickly realized that relying on this crutch was not helping me learn to hold the knife correctly and was probably even allowing me to develop bad habits in terms of technique.Enter the Sharpal 194H Angle Guide. This little doodad securely attached magnetically to the 7" santoku knife I was sharpening. Before starting the stroke, I could establish the correct angle. Then I could watch what happened to the level bubble as I continued the stroke. At first I went slowly to establish the muscle memory. Then I found I could take my eyes off the level and only check it occasionally. Very soon, the bubble stayed centered throughout the stroke. This happened in the first session I used it, so it was a very quick aid to developing good sharpening technique.There are a couple of shortcomings to the device. For one, it does not clip securely to a small paring knife or pocket knife. You could still use it to establish the correct angle at the beginning of a stroke and stop mid-stroke to check it again until you were confident you were maintaining the correct angle. The second limitation is that it does not have a setting below 15 degrees. The markings are at 5 degree intervals between 15 and 45 degrees. You can estimate angles between the markings. If you are sharping a knife below 14 degrees using whetstones, you are probably already an advanced sharpener. If you need a reference point for a narrower angle, you could try Wedgek angle reference guides, which go from 10 to 20 degrees.All in all, I'd say this is a great little device for keeping your angle consistent while sharpening and improving your sharpening technique. Highly recommended.

I have better, but I was curious about this one. Sharpened my knives for about 30 years on Arkansas Stones. It has been a long road of experience...failure to success, but, sometimes I do well free-handed, but I have a system that keeps me on track. I just received my SHARPAL today, 07/27/24. Given the negative reviews, I was cautious in removing the SHARPAL. It is firmly packed in a plastic frame. Once removed from the securing frame, with gentle care, I lifted the angle base using the fingernail of my thumb. It is tight so you must adjust the pressure in lifting. Here I can understand how these things can be broken. The bubble arm rises one click at a time. You can independently determine the correctness of the angle with whatever tool you might have. Mine appears to be accurate. The bubble arm goes one click at a time, but, it is somewhat tedious to do. The magnet is fine on mine. SHARPAL will take time and practice. I warn you to be gentle with this tool. Do not force any part as the plastic is not of a quality grade. Does it work? I have no idea as I have not tried to sharpen a knife with it yet. I do suggest you make sure the angles are correct. If not adjust ti the correct angle. That is all folks. Continued 1Oct24. Now I would NOT RECOMMEND.

Simple idea for keeping knife honing angle consistent. Works well. Good value!