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EdgePro patent seems to have expired.

rotuts

By rotuts
in Kitchen Consumer

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rotuts

rotuts

Posted
Posted (edited)

I have the EdgePro and have had it for quite some time

 

I love it.

 

I was fiddling and fading the other day looking to see if there were some new stones I might enjoy and :

 

AGPtek Professional Kitchen Knife Sharpener System Fix-angle with 4 Stonesir?t=egulletcom-20&l=am2&o=1&a=B00ABVS5V

 

the reviews on the knock offs are mixed.

 

they seem to say you need to get the real-deal stones   which run about 17 USD

 

so Ill leave the ball in your court.

Edited by Smithy
Adjusted link to be Amazon-friendly (log)
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lindag

lindag

Posted
Posted

I bought This one when I realized my most used knives all were Asian blades.

But I also own a small compact 15 degree sharpener (that doesn't seem to be available anymore) that I use most often because it's quick and easy to use.  I never was able to master a sharpening steel.

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rotuts

rotuts

Posted
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Posted

@lindag 

 

the only thing that matters is if thou are happy w the edge you create.

 

the advantage of " Jig Systems "

 

and EP is a fine example

 

is that the edge on your knives is consistently the same.

 

for 20 or so USD  for the jig

 

and maybe 17 USD  x 2  ( you might get a 400 and a 600 or a 1000   the 400 might be enough w technique )

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kayb

kayb

Posted
Posted

Apropos of the "things you might want to know for no particular reason" someday category, EdgePro is a fine Arkansas product, and has been since 1886, when Mr. Smith, whose name I don't remember, began mining Arkansas novaculite in the Ouachita Mountains and making whetstones. They no longer manufacture in Hot Springs (like so much else, it's been offshored), but their HQ and distribution center is here. 

 

Somewhere, I have a couple of pieces of raw novaculite I picked up from the grounds of their former plant, now DC, in Hot Springs. Really nice guy that's the CEO now. 

 

FWIW, Microplane is an Arkansas company, as well.

 

 

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Don't ask. Eat it.

www.kayatthekeyboard.wordpress.com

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scubadoo97

scubadoo97

Posted
Posted
12 hours ago, rotuts said:

I have the EdgePro and have had it for quite some time

 

I love it.

 

I was fiddling and fading the other day looking to see if there were some new stones I might enjoy and :

 

AGPtek Professional Kitchen Knife Sharpener System Fix-angle with 4 Stonesir?t=egulletcom-20&l=am2&o=1&a=B00ABVS5V

 

the reviews on the knock offs are mixed.

 

they seem to say you need to get the real-deal stones   which run about 17 USD

 

so Ill leave the ball in your court.

 

I've seen these near identical knock offs for the last several years.  Not sure if and when their patent expired but I spend a bundle for my EP back over 10 yrs ago. 

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rotuts

rotuts

Posted
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Posted

EP  is well worth it

 

I thought Id mention the cheaper versions so that someone might consider them if there budget did not fit the original

 

however  Id advise the real deal stones  and read the review of the knock off carefully first.

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scubadoo97

scubadoo97

Posted
Posted

I know there were knock offs even before the patent expired.   Due to this post I pulled out my original EdgePro and sharpened 5 of my most used knives this morning.  Usually go freehand but I was impressed by how nice my edges looked off the EP.   Was a little slower than my freehand method 

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ojisan

ojisan

Posted
Posted
On 7/20/2017 at 6:17 PM, kayb said:

Apropos of the "things you might want to know for no particular reason" someday category, EdgePro is a fine Arkansas product, and has been since 1886, when Mr. Smith, whose name I don't remember, began mining Arkansas novaculite in the Ouachita Mountains and making whetstones. They no longer manufacture in Hot Springs (like so much else, it's been offshored), but their HQ and distribution center is here. 

 

The Edge Pro referred to in this thread, and founded by Ben Dale, is located in Hood River, OR.

http://www.edgeproinc.com

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Monterey Bay area

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rotuts

rotuts

Posted
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Posted

Yep

 

the right way not go

 

but

 

the only reason for my post

 

was to note just this :

 

If the EP   original 

 

was not it your current budget  

 

and you deeply enjoyed  super find knives  

 

wall  

 

you would get then original  wet sone blanks 

 

from EP

 

and have the finest sharpening system ever 

 

Id never consider  under cutting the original EP

 

I have it my self !

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Martin Fisher

Martin Fisher

Posted
Posted
On 7/22/2017 at 8:39 PM, scubadoo97 said:

I know there were knock offs even before the patent expired.

 

Yep!!!

I bought a stainless steel Edge Pro Apex knock-off back in November of 2015 for it's ability to sharpen scissors.

The Chinese stones are garbage!!!

Stick with the real deal!

convert?fit=crop&w=640&rotate=exif&quali

convert?fit=crop&w=640&rotate=exif&quali

 

 

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~Martin :)

I just don't want to look back and think "I could have eaten that."

Unsupervised, rebellious, radical agrarian experimenter, minimalist penny-pincher, and adventurous cook. Crotchety, cantankerous, terse curmudgeon, non-conformist, and contrarian who questions everything!

The best thing about a vegetable garden is all the meat you can hunt and trap out of it!

 

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Martin Fisher

Martin Fisher

Posted
Posted

FWIW:

Here's Ben's patent.

Professional Cutlery Sharpening Machine US 5185958 A

~Martin :)

I just don't want to look back and think "I could have eaten that."

Unsupervised, rebellious, radical agrarian experimenter, minimalist penny-pincher, and adventurous cook. Crotchety, cantankerous, terse curmudgeon, non-conformist, and contrarian who questions everything!

The best thing about a vegetable garden is all the meat you can hunt and trap out of it!

 

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boilsover

boilsover

Posted
Posted

OK, someone help me out here, please?  I have handled an EdgePro in Bob Kramer's shop (he used to sell them), but I've never owned one.  I've read the EP patent, and other than a certain "heavy duty-ness", I must be missing what made the EP the sine qua non of sharpeners.  Lansky and several others offered variable angle jigs/clamps and guided stone sets long before EP.

 

So what made it a better mousetrap? 

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Martin Fisher

Martin Fisher

Posted
Posted
53 minutes ago, boilsover said:

....sine qua non of sharpeners. 

I wouldn't necessarily say that.

 

It's possible to get great results with a Lansky*, Gatco*, or the like.

 

What I like about the Edge Pro compared to the above....just a few things I think set it apart....

  • Build quality is very good.
  • Ease of use...no clamping....speedier sharpening.
  • Most importantly, flexible angle selection between ~10 and ~24 degrees.. Among other advantages, this makes it possible to adjust for precise bevel when switching stones to compensate for stone wear......not possible with fixed angle slots as with the Lansky or Gatco.

 

 

* I own both systems in addition to two of the Edge Pro Apex (one for home and one for camp.)

 

 

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~Martin :)

I just don't want to look back and think "I could have eaten that."

Unsupervised, rebellious, radical agrarian experimenter, minimalist penny-pincher, and adventurous cook. Crotchety, cantankerous, terse curmudgeon, non-conformist, and contrarian who questions everything!

The best thing about a vegetable garden is all the meat you can hunt and trap out of it!

 

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rotuts

rotuts

Posted
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Posted (edited)

I agree with @DiggingDogFarm 

 

I have the Apex.   the ' kit' had a fixed number of stones    you don't really need all of them for KitchenWear   but they are nice.

 

Id say 1 ) ease of use    ( once you study the video's and get the hang of it   2 ) reproducible bevels

 

it was worth the full price for me over the long run , as I could not sharpen my Globals  very well  "" free hand  ""

 

I have two knives from Japan coming soon .   Watanabe

 

Im confident Ill be able to pick the correct angle w the EP  and keep them in tip top shape.

Edited by rotuts (log)
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ojisan

ojisan

Posted
Posted

I use an Edge Pro Pro with Shapton Glass Stones, which I find to be notably more efficient than the EPs. They're twice the cost, but they're also twice as thick, and I only use 2 grits - 320 and 1K.

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Monterey Bay area

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Porthos

Porthos

Posted
Posted

No clamping is my most appreciated feature. I sharpen a lot of 10" blades and just moving the blade across the machine is sweet.

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Porthos Potwatcher
The Once and Future Cook

;

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scubadoo97

scubadoo97

Posted
Posted
On July 26, 2017 at 6:40 PM, ojisan said:

I use an Edge Pro Pro with Shapton Glass Stones, which I find to be notably more efficient than the EPs. They're twice the cost, but they're also twice as thick, and I only use 2 grits - 320 and 1K.

I have a near full set of Shapton glass stones bought after I first purchased my EP and decided to go freehand.  Love the splash and go nature of the material but you don't build any mud and there is less feedback from the stone compared to more natural stones.  Still it's my go to method of sharpening 

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rotuts

rotuts

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted

I thought about Shaptons a long time ago when i first got my EP

 

as far as I can recall 

 

they made them that fit the EP back then

 

I learned a lot about sharpening from

 

Knifeforum

 

it seems to have moved on.

 

I didn't get them way back when as they were thicker than the EP stones.

 

no matter.

 

I know that the EP jig allowed me for years to put any edge I wanted on my knives

 

and there was no other way I could hand hone  my small collection of Global knives

 

now

 

the EP will allow me to take exceptional care of my Watanabe knives

 

 

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