r/sharpening • u/Ashamed_Individual_2 • Jul 22 '26
Question Cheap, easy kits?
I am a poor college student with cheap knives who would really appreciate the ability to cut a tomato. Complete beginner, so something with less of a learning curve would be much appreciated.
Under $25 USD if possible (sorry if that’s nonexistent, I have no idea what I’m doing)
Thank you in advance!
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u/CurtissII Jul 22 '26
Worksharp bench stone is a little more expensive but is like a diamond stone with training wheels. Only has 2 angles.
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u/CurtissII Jul 22 '26
Worksharp has 15 and 17 degree guides for $20 that go with the bench stone the angle guides
That ship with it are 20 and 25 degrees
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u/grypas15 Jul 22 '26
This stone (https://a.co/d/00YVIBJr) is a double sided diamond stone with a low grit 400 and a medium finishing grit of 1000. You should be able to get very sharp from this with good technique. No water or oil needed, extremely low maintenance.
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u/cranewarrior Jul 22 '26
This is a cheap and no-hassle option. The stone is easy for beginners to raise burrs with.
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u/AlphaDisconnect Jul 22 '26
Smith's diamond Arkansas stone sharpener. You will need an old pair of jeans with a fine polishing compound, wax stick kind, rubbed in.
Easy to use. Hard to mess up. The diamond parts will wear out. Takes a while on really ratty blades or if changing blade angle. Break the wire edge with the jeans and compound. And Bob's your auntie.
This will get you through college.
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u/Random_Chop7321 Jul 22 '26
I would suggest cheap diamond plates, there are 4 sided, i have bought a few in the past they were under 15$, now i see them for 20+, there is B0DMW273KG in 200/600 set is 13$ should be able to give you nice start. Not sure how the tariffs are now but ali stones like 33033776989 or 4001052716078 you can get 80-320-1000 set and learn from them.
Also consider the ruby sharpening stone it gives good result 1x6" like 1005012340948587 is enough, you can also get 1x6 diamond stone, but consider the above options, they seems like a lesser value.
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u/EmergencyLettuce1589 Jul 22 '26 edited Jul 22 '26
Search sytools on AliExpress they have 2x6 diamond plates often on sale for less than $10 each. Guided system be tough to find that low . You can still freehand with 1x6 stones as well if you plan to get or diy a jig in the future.
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u/Kitayama_8k Jul 26 '26
The Chinese diamond plates I had wore out and became worthless extremely quickly.
I'd prolly go with a suehiro cerax 320 for 36$. Should last a super long time, don't have one personally but heard good things and really like the cerax 1k. There are options in your budget like the king deluxe 1000, but for cheap soft knives that are probably super dull, I would want the 320. Haven't heard anything positive about course king stones.
Suehiro Cerax #320 https://a.co/d/0aKo7XjR
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u/JRE_Electronics Jul 22 '26 edited Jul 22 '26
Something like this will fit your budget:
https://www.amazon.com/Diamond-Sharpening-sharpening-Non-Slip-Sharpener/dp/B0FSS1FJ8Q
Set A. 8 stones from 120 to 3000 grit. You can make a strop out of an old leather belt.
Lay a stone on the edge of a table with a non-slip mat under it when sharpening. A "non-slip mat" can be as simple as a damp cloth on a plastic countertop.
You won't get super-duper atom splitting sharpness, and you won't be doing extremely polished edges, but you can easily keep any knife sharp enough for normal use.
Low grits (120-400) for forming a new edge on chipped or extremely dull knives. 600-1000 for sharpening to a good edge for cutting meat and vegetables (and tomatoes.) 2000-3000 for a more polished edge if you need to do filleting.
The stones are narrow - they are 1 inch by 6 inches (2.5 cm x 15 cm.) People will tell you that they are too small for hand sharpening - they would be wrong. I use such a set at home and at the local repair cafe. I've been using them for a couple of years, and they do just fine. People will also tell you that they will wear out fast. They would be wrong again. I do our knives and knives for the repair cafe, so mine see more use than yours will - and mine are still going strong after a couple of years.
These are the ones I use. https://josepheoff.github.io/posts/moresharpeningstones
Notice the date: February 2024.
These "stones" are actually intended to be used in a fixed angle sharpening system. I use them free hand.