I'm as susceptible to good advertising as the next guy and while Pro-Tool Mfg. makes a nice product, they are masters of marketing.
So moving past the hype, here's my take. I've been hand sharpening my chisels, gouges and planes since I started woodworking and the only reason I don't do more work with my hand tools is because I hate using my limited time maintaining the edges necessary to do precise work. Enter the "WorkSharp WS200". The tool is of a simple, straight forward design. The body is constructed of high impact plastic and what appears to be an aluminum alloy of some kind, making it light and I assume pretty rugged although I haven't yet thrown it at anything to find out.
Getting to the point (a little sharpening joke there), the unit is a snap to set up and effectively turned basic sharpening into a speedy, painless process. Much of hand sharpening is in the set up and while the WS unit does NOT do away with the need to fine hone your tools, it virtually eliminates 80% of the set up time allowing you to move through the basic process of sharpening in just a few ( 2 to 3 ) minutes. For many folks this basic process is all that they may ever need in which case this unit becomes all the more attractive and sensible. Even for those individuals like me who NEED "scary" sharp tools it is a useful and valuable asset, saving me quite a bit of time and providing me with an opportunity to use exactly the right tool for every job by eliminating my biggest excuse for doing otherwise, the time involved in sharpening,
So, is this going to make every woodworker into a hand tool aficionado? Probably not, but it will save everyone who buys it a lot of time and effort and give you good value in that respect. It will also provide a pretty nice edge for your tools. Work Sharp WS2000 Tool Sharpener
I was debating on getting this or the WS3000. I decided(or rather, my budget decided) to try the smaller model. I was not disappointed. I'm sure the WS3000 has some more advanced features I could use, but the WS2000 works just fine for my small shop. The edge vision wheel makes it easy to put a sharp edge on my lathe turning chisels. The chisel port works great, also. The first thing I sharpened was a cheap old chisel I use to scrape glue. After a few minutes it was razor sharp.
If you have the extra money, go ahead and get the WS3000, but if you're on a budget, the WS2000 won't let you down.
The tool does exactly what it claims to do and does it well. I ruined the edge on a three quarter inch Marple chisel last year and never bothered to dress it up due to the time required and my dislike for honing blades. With this tool I had a new, sharp edge on the chisel in just a few minutes. I have also sharpened knives and axes with it with good results.
I do have a couple of small problems with it, though. I found that chisels narrower then one half inch did not grind straight across (it looked as if the chisel was slightly cocked in the sharpener) so from now on I will only sharpen chisles one half inches and wider. This isn't really a problem, though. Narrower chisels are easier to sharpen by hand and the WS2000 can still be used to achieve a proper angle on the chisel which can then be finished by hand. My other problem is with the finish. The 220 grit discs leave a fairly rough face on the chisel when compared with a stone. Not a big problem but having gotten used to what a wet stone can do it looks unsightly and purists will complain that a rough finish causes too much drag. The faces can, of course, be touch up by hand, but I plan on getting some very fine grit discs and see if a smoother face can be obtained.
I have some very fine carving tools which, while I have not tried sharpening them on the WS2000 yet, I will problably continue to sharpen by hand. While the machine runs very smoothly it fills a little overwhelming for the small stuff. Maybe when I ruin one of my small tools I'll try it out.
Overall a very good tool and I would recommend it to anyone who, like myself, both hates to hone blades and isn't very good at it. Just be aware that it won't give wet stone-like results and seems to be more suited for relatively larger tools.
Really, all those weak moments where I grabbed the cheaper hand plane or bargain chisels have just about paid off. Usually it's just counted as a frustrating loss of time and money, but I put that HD block plane blade through the WS2000 and I covered the floor with walnut shavings in just a few minutes. Does it get any cheaper than HF? I put their 7 dollar set of chisels through and I was able to curve stop my huge chamfered edge. Admittedly, it did work better with my slightly more expensive chisel though, which makes me think it at least lets each tool reach its full potential (however low that may be).
This sharpener is really something I never thought I'd use, especially at $100. But then I looked through catalogs of sharpening stones, solutions and grinders - suddenly $100 didn't seem so bad.
I'm a little unsure of whether I'm doing the hand sharpening correctly though, since you sort of eyeball the angle and adjust this little handle bar like thing, but it seems to be working when I put the blades back into use.
The device is rather convenient for sharpening the chisel-like tools. However, if you try to sharpen a mere knife, you'll discover that it is almost impossible. To be precise, one side is sharpened fine, but sharpening another side is a challenge.
Also, I failed to find the required 150 mm abrasive disks in hardware stores in my area (Mass.) The 6" disks I found don't have a central hole (not a big deal, of course) and are 2 mm wider. This is OK for the top side, however, to be used on the bottom side, the edge must be trimmed.
Summing up, to sharpen chisels and likes, the tool is fine. But it cannot substitute a classical grinder if you don't have one. Also, you are stuck with proprietor abrasive disks, especially for slotted ones. - Chisel - Sharpener - Dry Sharpening - Woodworking'
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