Sharpener for knives with widely different edge angles

Abstract

A wide range of knives and blades, including Western, Asian or traditional Japanese style blades that have a primary edge facet on at least one side of the knife edge are sharpened through use of an electric knife sharpener having a first sharpening stage with at least one rotating abrasive surface disk and a knife angle guide to position the blade's facet at a first relative angle of approximately 15 degrees as it contacts the moving abrasive surface. The knife sharpener includes a second sharpening stage with at least one rotating abrasive surfaced disk and a knife angle guide to position the blade's facet at a second relative angle of approximately 20 degrees as it contacts the rotating abrasive surface. The knife sharpener also has a third stropping stage with at least one rotating stropping disk containing abrasive particles of less than 1 thousandth of inch diameter and a knife angle guide to position the blade's facet at a third relative angle larger than the first and second angles as it contacts the rotating surface of the stropping disk. The rotating sharpening and stropping disks are displaceable from a rest position against specific restraining forces when contacted by the edge facet being sharpened or stropped.