This is my first traditional ceramic sharpener and I have to say I'm impressed. I own numerous other sharpening media including DMT diamonds, glass-based ceramics (expensive water stones affixed to a glass base), Arkansas stones, oil stones, as well as Japanese water stones, but none compare to the portability of this stone and its ease of use. Oh, and did I mention it rarely needs cleaning and never needs flattening?
I was a little concerned about the width of the stone as I'd always brought the tool to be sharpened to the stone and at 1" wide I figured I'd have to skew whatever required sharpening so that it wouldn't hang over the edge of the stone. Simple fix: Bring the stone to the tool, which ended up simplifying the sharpening process considerably especially for penknives and kitchen knives. The medium grit feels abrasive to the touch and does a nice job of restoring the bevel on a dull blade, while the fine grit is as smooth as a baby's backside and produces a stunning hone. However, if you have a severely damaged tool and need to reset the primary bevel I'd suggest something more abrasive than the medium grit unless you have a lot of patience and a great deal of free time.
A nice bonus is the leather pouch, which is not the smooth leather as shown in the photograph but the rougher variety; exactly the type that takes honing/buffing compound and allows you to strop a 'wicked sharp' edge on whatever you're sharpening (keep the stone in the pouch, apply the compound, then strop to your heart's content.)
Overall a superior quality tool that's an all-in-one sharpener that even provides a means for stropping if you don't mind one of the surfaces of the pouch getting a little beaten up and soiled with honing compound. Oh, and did I mention it rarely needs cleaning and never needs flattening?
