Review on 🔪 GATCO GTC10005 Hunting Camping Kitchen Sharpeners by John Miranda

I have to admit that I've looked at expensive $160 sharpeners and read 4 reviews on this product. Everyone said it was great so I decided to give it a try. Here are my thoughts: 1. The first reaction when I first opened the box was. I WAS CHEATED ON. It looks like a pile of junk2. After reading the instructions: I WAS FOOLED. It looks like a pile of garbage3. After the first use: WOW! IT REALLY WORKS! Overview: The main unit is a T-shaped piece of aluminum that comes in two pieces (two L-brackets). It has notches for different angles you want to put on the knife i.e. how sharp do you want it to be. You put the knife between two pieces of aluminum and tighten it. They then take a Rough Stone, one of the screwdriver-like items in the picture. Holding the base of the T with the blade toward you, insert the stone's metal rod into the corner notch you want to use and press the stone against the bar. Then pull it out again, move the stone along the blade about ¾ of the stone's width, and repeat the process until you've worked the entire side of the blade. Then turn the angle bracket over and repeat the same for the other side of the blade. You do the same with a medium and finally a thin stone. After doing this, depending on the angle you choose, you will end up with a terribly sharp knife. PROS: IT WORKS GREAT! CONS: Okay, you're not paying $160 for it, so it has something. Most of the downsides will go away once you understand that you DO NOT have to press hard to get the job done. Pretty cheap but can easily last a lifetime if used properly.2. Holding on to the base of the L-bracket is pretty silly and tricky when you first try to use it. They had to add some kind of handle to make it easier to hold.3. Depending on how hard you press and how long the blade (a long kitchen knife) is, it's quite difficult to keep the knife from rotating between the clamps. Once I realized that I only had to apply light pressure, this problem disappeared. You slide the stone along the blade. Don't slip or interfere with your fingers or you'll turn into a bloody mess. Again, as long as you apply light pressure and make sure your fingers aren't in the way, this isn't a problem. When you first apply oil to the stones, it immediately disappears. This isn't really a disadvantage since the stones are new and need drinking, but once they're reused this problem goes away and you'll still have plenty of oil left. 6. The metal rod of the stone should be steel, not aluminum, so that it cannot accidentally bend and change the angle of inclination. Again, if you don't push too hard, this shouldn't happen, but let's face it, people think steel would be better. Depending on the angle chosen, the stone may come into contact with the T-Bracket. This is more attention for the user when installing the blade between the corner brackets.8. If you press hard on the stone and momentarily bend the knife, the stone will contact the metal sides of the blade and leave scratches. Apply light pressure again. Conclusion: It works great and YES I would definitely recommend it and buy it again. No I will not buy a $160 sharpener as this one works great. When you first get it, try a long junk kitchen knife you don't need. This way you can practice how much pressure to apply. After a few tries I get pretty good at it, and with light pressure I can turn one side of the blade into a rock in under 20 seconds. Then I do a second pass since I'm only applying very light pressure (20 second part). Making the whole knife on both sides with all three stones takes about 3 minutes. I could go faster but I want to make sure the blade doesn't get scratched and comes out perfect and I don't want to make a mistake and cut myself. I do not recommend this device unless you coordinate by holding the T-bar in one hand and moving the stone across the blade with the other hand. However, for most people, especially those who have worked with tools in the past, this is a much cheaper alternative than paying $160, and it really works!