Hi,
Overheating knives on a beltsander could easily explain knives going dull after a few days (ignoring plate contacts).
Even a $1 knife will last more than a few days.
Most chefs use a "chef steel" or "butchers steel" to keep the blades cutting for months and months.
This is what you see for sale at restaurant supply
one ~$5 knife steeled once a day lasts this professional chef 6 months 
A hand sharpened Vic will still be dull in a few days. Just for kicks I've sharpened them up to 5k, a level of polish which proved to be a complete waste of time save for the experience gained. Bear in mind that a restaurant cook will make more cuts one shift than most home cooks will make in several months. It's not uncommon to cut a fifty pound bag of onions or a half bushel case of peppers all in one go. Sometimes this is done on various other gear (choppers, etc) but just as often it's done by cook on the lowest rung on the seniority ladder.
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“I'd rather have questions that cannot be answered than answers that can't be questioned.” —Richard Feynman
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