Knife sharpening

I've seen some discussion on the boards about knife sharpening. I thought some on these boards might really benefit from some good instruction.
It seems there are more knife sharpening gadgets out there than anything except cheap gimmick workout machines. Some do a good job, but unfortunately most don't. Some are even dangerous. Many do damage to the knife. They may make it sharper for a short time, but in the end ruin the edge.

If you take the time to read the information on this site you will have a much better idea of what proper knife sharpening is.
http://sharpeningmadeeasy.com/index.htm

Look about 1/4 of the way down the page and you will see the links to the instructions. They look like this.

# Chapter 1    INTRODUCTION, SHARPNESS TESTING, KNIFE SHARPENING EQUIPMENT
# Chapter 2    KNIFE SHARPENING EQUIPMENT continued   
# Chapter 3    THE KNIFE SHARPENING PROCESS, HOW TO SHARPEN A KNIFE
# Chapter 4    ADVANCED STUFF - Knife Steels, Sharpening Abrasives, Theory, Stropping, Electric Machines
# Chapter 5    MISCELLANEOUS STUFF - Sharpening Methods, Professional Knife Sharpening machines

Hopefully this info is useful for some fellow fish fileting nuts like me. 

Thanks for this post, much needed.

Best thing I found for sharping is a puck. Love them

redwoodfox,
What's a puck?

My favorite place to get knives and sharpening gear is Smokey Mountain Knife Works. I got a diamond stone there a couple of years ago for about half what I could get it for locally. It's an awesome stone.

Here's the link.
http://www.smkw.com/webapp/eCommerce/main_front.jsp

redwoodfox,
What's a puck?

They are hard to find anymore. Its a circular stone, rough one side smooth the other. They rock. Great for sharpening anything from ax to knife. I have a big one an was lucky enough to find a small one at a yard sale awhile back. Not trying to say its the only good stone out there, Its just what I've always really enjoyed

There's certainly more than one way to sharpen a knife. The puck looks like a cool gadget. Smokey mountain knife works has it. The shipping would add a bit to the cost if that's all you bought, but it is available.

http://www.smkw.com/webapp/eCommerce/products/sharpening/Lansky%C2%AE+The+Puck%26%23153%3B/SI3700.html

I use a Smith's system with three different stones and a stone guide that clamps to the back of the blade of the knife.   It insures the correct angle, and you have two angles to choose from.  It has worked well for me, but it is a bit time consuming. I dont think it would work on serrated blades. I will check out the website for Smokey Mtn Knifeworks---having one of those pucks sounds like a good idea especially for axes. Always good info on this site.----Jeff

Chef's Choice Diamond Hone 112 is what I use. It keeps all of my kitchen knives razor sharp, and I use it on my Benchmade pocket knife. The guides ensure you always keep the right angle, and it's fast. I can resharpen all of the kitchen knives (about 12 knives including the steak knives) in 10-30 minutes depnding on how dull I let them get. For about $120 it wasn't cheap, but it sure makes me more likely to keep a nice edge on my knives, and makes the whole process a lot easier.

http://www.cutleryandmore.com/chefs-choice/model-112-electric-knife-sharpener-p115346?src=GoogleBase&cam=Products&kw=15346

I use a Smith's system

Of course you do Mr. Jeff Smith.  It's probably been handed down in the family for generations.