I attached my Lansky Universal Mount to a wooden cutting board, where it looks great and performs well. Without being anchored to something it would tip over. Do make sure you attach the knife blade securely with tight screws so it does not move around or fall out while you are sharpening.

It is a good tool to hold the vise which holds the knife for sharpening. I can see that it needs to be attached to about a 12" x 12" base to make holding it firmly while you stroke the stones across the blade. The vise wobbles a bit but I believe that is made that way so it is easier to reach the ends of the blade. Instead of holding the blade tight in place, if you turn the vise on the post when you are progressing the stones up or down the blade you can keep the stone in the same place and monitor the stone to keep it from tipping and grinding on the stone's edges. Also it makes it easier to sharpen a curved tip area.

Would buy again

I bought this stand when I purchased my Lansky 5-stone sharpening system. I thought it was something I'd really need. My concern just looking at a picture of it was that my sharpening jig wouldn't wat to stay on it. There is no way to lock it down. There is just a hole in the jig that sits on the knob on top there. However, it stays on surprisingly well.

This stand can be just set on a flat surface, but I'd recommned screwing it to something sturdy. Either a work bench or I've seen a set-up where you make an upside down "T" of wood and you sit in a chair with your legs over the t. This is a solid way to do it and portable as well.

My only issue with it is that it is fairly inconvienient to flip the jig around. It's not so bad if you're doing 10 or more passes of the stone per side, but when you get to where you're doing 1-3 swipes per side, it's more trouble than it's worth to wiggle the jig off the stand and flip it over, re-insert it, slide the guide rod in the hole, and do another swipe.

After having the system and using it for a while, I just hold it in my hand. As long as you're making even contact and pressure along your stroke, it doesn't matter how you hold it.

For starters, I received the actual item pictured. It's made of metal and I mounted it using #8 1" wood screws to a 2x12 cut down to about a foot and a half. The nub at the top was slightly too large for the intended part to fit on entirely. It would not go down completely onto it. I had to use some sandpaper for it to go on. With it's help I am on my way to paper thin tomato slices with any knife in the house. It does take some getting used to using the actual sharpening system... and then you have to decide on what angle to use on any particular knife, unless you know it, then re profile the edge. Took about 20 minutes from start to finish on a large kitchen knife. I expect occasional touch ups to be a snap as it is very easy to do.