Chef’sChoice 15XV EdgeSelect Professional Electric Knife Sharpener with 100-Percent Diamond Abrasives and Precision Angle Guides for Straight Edge and Serrated Knives, 3-Stage, Gray

If you own lots of expensive knives, you need this machine. The more you own, the more you need it. If you have invested a decent amount of money in knives, it's a good bet you did that not just for how nice they look, but for how sharp they are. Consider how much their value diminishes with a dull or even slightly dull edge. Most people don't even know what sharp is. After the initial factory edge wares off, they never feel that super clean slice of a tomato again. That's why some people buy serrated knives, to cut tomatoes. That's crazy because serrated knives really don't cut well and a razor sharp knife does, they just can't get back to that razor sharp edge, not on their own. No matter how much I tried, I could never duplicate that factory fresh edge for myself. I didn't have the skill to pull it off, even if I had all the tools for sharpening, the steel, the crock sticks, the wet stones, I tried but failed to shave hair with my kitchen knives. That was until I bought my first Chef'sChoice model 120. Instantly I became an expert sharpener and found myself offering to sharpen any of my friends and family's knives too because I hated seeing them struggle with dull knives. If you cook, and you like quality gear, like sharp knives, then you have a real treat coming. This is one of the best things you will ever buy. It's half the price of one good knife but it will keep all your knives razor sharp. Once you have the shape of the edge down with the first wheel or two, all you need is the last wheel on the right to touch it up once in awhile and from then on, that's probably the only wheel you will need to use on your knife. Good knives only need sharpening once or twice a year. The key is using a great quality blade with a decent cutting board like wood or soft plastic and stay away from cutting into bones except with your one and only boning knife. Fish bones are no big deal but the other types can mess up a nice edge fast. Also, keep the uneducated away from expensive, sharp knives, give them something else to use. This is very important because it only takes about 3 seconds to ruin the edge on a good blade. I have owned the Chef'sChoice model 120 for about 12 years and love it. I bought this 15 Trizor XV for my Japanese knives. They come with a 16 degree edge so this model is better for them. I have changed all my kitchen knives over to 15 degrees now and I like it even better than the original 20-22 degree German edge. It makes a big, very noticeable difference when slicing just about everything. I keep my folding pocket knives at 20 degrees because they need to hold up to much tuffer chores working outdoors. Some people claim that a machine like this can't produce the ultimate sharpness of large Japanese wet stones and 15-30 minutes of sharpening. That may be true. It's a totally different approach to the task at hand. I believe I can get a more perfect, slightly sharper edge if I took 30 minutes per blade and slowly stroked the edge to sheer perfection of wet stone treatment. Sometimes, when I have nothing to do, I still like to play around with wet stones but 99% of the time, I don't find it worth it. I can get such a sharp edge in about 5 seconds with the Chef'sChoice machines that it's not even close to deciding witch system I'll use almost all the time. Comparing the two very different techniques is comparing apples to oranges. One way is results in a near perfect edge in less then 10 seconds and the other maybe gets you a slightly sharper edge but maybe not, but it will take several minutes maybe 15 or more to get similar results as I can get with the Chef'sChoice system. Don't listen to reviews that say this will ruin you blades. It won't. No more than any system will. It's all up to you. Do you want to read the manual for five minutes so you learn how to use this thing or just wing it. It has the power and the discs to destroy a blade in seconds if you don't know what you are doing. But, It's so easy, a child can use this thing. You just need to take a minute at first so you know exactly what to do. Practice with cheap knives first and get your skill level up to the job. Once you do that, your good forever but like anything, if you want to pay attention and get really good at it, you can always improve what you're doing. Once you have your edge right, the only disc you need to use is the last one on the right. It is like super fine, basically polishing the edge to super sharpness. It's almost all I ever use and if you wanted to, you could run you very best knives through that last disc every day, without any significant ware to your blade. Knife sharpening is mostly about consistent angle and nothing provides fast sharpening with a consistent angle than Chef'sChoice. I told you it will be the best thing you ever bought. That applies only if you really, really care about quality gear, sharp knives and the ability to always have razor sharpness to your expensive knives. Once you learn how to use this, and it won't take but a few minutes, you'll love it. The more quality knives you own, the more you will appreciate a device like this. It's so easy and so fast, the price is like nothing because it will restore all your expensive blades and probably outlast you. My first model 120 is right here working fine after a dozen years, but this new 15 Trizor is even better, faster and it's the exact same price I paid over a decade ago for my 120. Good luck.

Very happy with this sharpener. I have a decent set of knives that has a steel to sharpen them with. Unfortunately, due to age and arthritis, using the steel is no longer as easy as it used to be. After a bit of research this was a top choice on all the sites, so I went with it, and I am glad I did. It arrived and I was eager to give it a try. Unpacking it was small, and compact. I had some chicken breasts out for dinner, so I took out my chef's knife and ran it through the machine - 3 passes to each side on each level, per the instructions. I then gave the blade a quick rinse and gave it a try. WOW!!! This thing puts an edge on your knives that made slicing so easy. I moved on to my veggies. Paper thin slices for my stir fry - and the onion? I didn't even worry about slippage with the "paper" on the outside - it sliced right through that, and made peeling the onion a breeze. A few days later I needed to slice tomatoes. The ultimate test, right? Not even a challenge for a blade sharpened with this machine. Just "swish" and right through the skin, seeds, everything. It didn't even hardly leak juice. And the seeds were sliced through! About once every couple of weeks I take the machine out of the cabinet (it's small, about half the size of a toaster), and run the sharpened knives through the #3 slots before use, just to keep them honed. Over all this thing works like a charm. I would recommend it - yes, a bit pricey, but if you want to keep your knives SHARP, this will do it with zero effort.

I have had this machine for six years now and it still works great, and I’m about to buy my second unit. This machine gives very sharp result and extremely easy to operate. I do have a couple notes for potential buyers though. One, because the narrow angle this sharpener creates, knife is sharp but it also gets dull faster when using on hard cutting board like bamboo or plastic. It’s not an issue for me, I just sharpen my knifes more often (on average every two month). Two, don’t get disappointed if your knife is made from soft steel like those three for ten dollar stuff, yes you can sharpen it but probably won’t stay sharp long. I also sharpen ceramic knifes on it, just use the second and third stage skid the first stage, no problem at all. Serrated knife works too, I only sharpen one side, hope that’s the correct way. Overall, this is probably the best kitchen gadget I’ve ever purchased and I have purchased a lot of different gadgets and most of them are one time use regrets.

It looks and feels sturdy and well-made. It’s the same brand as the non-motorized one I’ve used for several years. I’ve been satisfied with the old one until I tried this new (electric) one. Holy cow, does it get things sharp! Sharper than my non-motorized one? Yes. It has a very informative how-to manual with drawings & pictures, that goes into detail about how to use it. I tried it out on some high-end German knives that I hone after almost every use. It made them sharper than I ever could using the non-motorized one. I tried the polishing end, 3rd slot on the far right, on some serrated steak knives, but it didn’t seem to make them any sharper. Of course, what I call serrated may actual be more “scalloped”, and it may not work as well on them. A couple of things: The knives started to cut into the plastic guides of the sharpener as I drew them out. Not sure if it’s poor technique, or just something that will happen. I need to find out more about this because I even saw some small bits of the black plastic on the counter. It takes some practice making sure you put the knives against the guides and don’t go right down the middle. Well, it won’t let you go right down the middle, but you have to hold the side of the blade against the guide to make sure it hones correctly. I noticed some scrape marks along the side of the knife blades after putting them thru the process. It’s possible they were already there, but I don’t think so. I do recommend this sharpener, but I need to check my technique, and maybe reach out to the manufacturer, to see if they have anything to say about the knives cutting into the plastic guides or leaving scratch marks. If I find something out, I’ll try to remember to update this review.

I bought this after reading a review on the NYT's website. In less than 10 minutes this sharpener transformed a knife that was barely able to slice through a lemon to one that effortlessly shaved the hair from my forearm. It's fast, easy to use and unlike sharpening stones doesn't depend on technique. I'm very happy with the purchase and recommend it to anyone that depends on having sharp knives.

I have an old Chefs Choice Sharpener that continues to work today, but after reading the reviews on the Chef’sChoice 15XV EdgeSelect Professional Electric Knife Sharpener with 100-Percent Diamond Abrasives and Precision Angle Guides for Straight Edge and Serrated Knives, 3-Stage, Gray - I knew I had to try it even though it was far pricier than I would have expected. Received today and immediately took up the task of sharpening a drawer full of quality knifes. The finished edge was indeed amazing and very, very sharp. I too was able to cut paper cleanly and cleanly shave my arms, WOW. Note that if you have specialized knifes like Japanese or perhaps filet knifes - read the manual PRIOR to sharpening. Very simple, but there is a method that is different from your regular knifes. I am extremely satisfied with the purchase and I hope it lasts as long as it's predecessor.

As an avid home cook I depend upon my kitchen knives. I have used a number of handheld knife sharpeners without much luck. I always buy Henkle knives and have even used their mail-in service. Even the mail-in resulted in rather dull knives! I have just purchased the Chef'sChoice 15XV and have sharpened all my knives. The process in the instruction manual were clear and precise. The results were more than outstanding!! I have always used a serrated knife to slice tomatoes but now my chef's knife glides through the tomato like it was butter. I will be purchasing another unit for my vacation home......it's just that good!

This is great for sharpening knives. It takes a little getting use to. I recommend starting out on a knife that you aren’t to worried about where the sharpening lines end up. Once you get the hang of using the sharpener it works great. It’s a real time saver especially if you have a few knives that need a quick touch up. We use an older model at work where we have a lot of lower quality metal blades that get over used. This thing makes sharpening easy.