Today I had my CRKT (pocket clip knife) and my Leatherman blade sharpened by someone who's been in the sharpening business for 16+ years. It cost me $6.00. I now know the difference between "sharp" and "frighteningly sharp".

Knowing how to sharpen your knife is a valuable skill, but sometimes it doesn't hurt to have a pro pick up where you left off.

As a personal observation, this individual really seemed to appreciate answering questions from a complete "newb" about the "art" of sharpening knives and, what, in his opinion, a person should look for in buying a new knife. I imagine many of these people hold a wealth of information they are more than willing to give if they were only asked. I truly thank him, and wish him nothing but the best.

A search of www.bladeforums.com and www.knifeforums.com should provide everything you care to know about sharpening knives and then some !

Sharpening is an art, some people can do it very well, others end up with butter knives. I recommend you use a Sharpmaker, Edge pro, Lansky System, or some other kind of system if you arn't very good at freehand. Also, if you want scary sharp knives you need to strop. With my arkansas stones or using Lansky stones freehand and my leather strop I can get blades to the point where hair will pop off my arm without the blade touching my skin. Brings a whole new meaning to "razor sharp" <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />