Smith’s PP1 Pocket Pal Multifunction Sharpener has been on Amazon’s bestsellers list for over 600 days. It’s also on the “most wished for” list, as well as our own wishlists. And it’s a top gifted item. So what’s so great about this sharpener?
For starters, it’s under $10. Sharpeners can get very costly, so it’s nice to see that there are affordable options. Plus, it can be a hassle to whip out and set up premium sharpening gear for a short honing or touch-up. Sometimes it’s just nice to just whip out something quick and simple.
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While we wouldn’t expect premium results from the Pocket Pal, its features look pretty solid. It comes with a diamond-coated rod that can be used on both plain blades and serrated edges, a set of carbide blades for rough edge definition, and a set of ceramic stones for honing to a razor-sharp edge. Both sets of blades are reversible and replaceable.
If you’ve used one of these before, what do you think about it? We might pick one up for review, but still have a Spyderco Sharpmaker that we purchased and haven’t even opened yet.
Sam
Have it. Like it. In conjunction with a steel, it’s sufficient to keep our kitchen knives much sharper than is necessary. Its results are as good as I am capable of producing with a more traditional sharpening stone, though I’m certainly not an expert.
JohnTMcD.
I’ve had one of these for probably 10 years and keep it handy in my camp kit glove compartment. It will put on a decent functional edge on a very dull knife and will get the job done. It may not do as fine a job as a fine whet stone but many people I talk to don’t have the experience and patience to do that anyway. For a convenient and fast edge, you won’t be unhappy with this little tool. I’ve used it on everything from my little Camillus SS navy knife to my KaBar heavy blade knives and even used it to help straighten a nicked up blade on an old Enfield Bayonet.
James C
I’m happy with mine. Personally, I don’t have a need for an expensive set of stones (yet). So as far as these type of sharpeners go, which can get just as expensive as nice stones, I think this one is a pretty good deal considering how decently it works. I’ve used it a few times on my assortment of generally cheap kitchen knives.
Maikeru
I have this one and it was quite a steal. I’m actually quite surprised with how well it’s worked out considering the price. I figured that I’d only really use it for touching up a few knives, but I’ve ended up using it to help out a few friends with unusually dull knives as it stays in my standard carry bag. So far I’ve sharpened up around 6 average knife blocks worth of dull knives with it and it’s still holding up quite well.