This little device greatly elevated my sharpening results. It makes it much easier to maintain a specific angle while sharpening (even mid-stroke). An inexpensive alternative to the fancy jig systems if you already have the stones/diamond plates or want to use your own.

I'm fairly new to using Japanese water stones for sharpening knives. The most important skill you need to develop is to keep a consistent angle on the knife. I have tried the little pyramids that show you the correct angle, but I found it hard to maintain the angle as I moved the knife away. And I've tried the little device that is often included with water stones that you clip onto your knife blade to hold the knife at the correct angle. But I quickly realized that relying on this crutch was not helping me learn to hold the knife correctly and was probably even allowing me to develop bad habits in terms of technique.

Enter the Sharpal 194H Angle Guide. This little doodad securely attached magnetically to the 7" santoku knife I was sharpening. Before starting the stroke, I could establish the correct angle. Then I could watch what happened to the level bubble as I continued the stroke. At first I went slowly to establish the muscle memory. Then I found I could take my eyes off the level and only check it occasionally. Very soon, the bubble stayed centered throughout the stroke. This happened in the first session I used it, so it was a very quick aid to developing good sharpening technique.

There are a couple of shortcomings to the device. For one, it does not clip securely to a small paring knife or pocket knife. You could still use it to establish the correct angle at the beginning of a stroke and stop mid-stroke to check it again until you were confident you were maintaining the correct angle. The second limitation is that it does not have a setting below 15 degrees. The markings are at 5 degree intervals between 15 and 45 degrees. You can estimate angles between the markings. If you are sharping a knife below 14 degrees using whetstones, you are probably already an advanced sharpener. If you need a reference point for a narrower angle, you could try Wedgek angle reference guides, which go from 10 to 20 degrees.

All in all, I'd say this is a great little device for keeping your angle consistent while sharpening and improving your sharpening technique. Highly recommended.

I absolutely love this tool, it helps you keep a consistent angle easily and is compact enough it doesn't take up any space at all

I was having no luck using a stone to sharpen knives. Within minutes of using this I was getting good results, but I still can't get razor sharp. My fault and I need more practice.

I've used mine for almost a year and it's been very helpful. I would say 5/8" is about as small of a blade as it will work properly on, and that needs to be on a flat. Any smaller and it gets bumped off of position. For a knife like a chef's knife it's great. It's worth the price!

It's very helpful for checking yourself.