BackpackGearTest.org Review - /reviews/Knives/Sharpeners/Furi Ozitech Diamond Fingers Sharpener/Greg Mehojah/Test Report by Greg Mehojah

Test Unit Description:

The unit arrived in a blister package that contained the knife sharpener in its folded configuration, along with multiple pieces of promotional and instructional material. Most notably, the outer package contained a small instructional sheet describing how to open the unit for the first time user. The unit is a fold out device that is made of durable plastic, rubber and diamond coated metal "fingers". The fingers are at the heart of this unit's operation, which are made of metal and, according to the manufacturer, coated with diamond dust. The user simply swipes a knife through the fingers, drawing the blade towards one's self between four and ten times to achieve a sharpened and honed edge. The manufacturer states that the configuration of the fingers provides an optimal twenty degree knife edge. While the device is advertised to work with all brands of knives, it is not designed to sharpen serrated blades.

Initial Impressions:

What a cool device! After I figured out how to open the sharpener, I opened and closed it repeatedly marveling at the engineering and thought that clearly went into the design. The opening of the device the first time for me was not really intuitive, but was aided by the small piece of photo-instruction attached to the outside of the product packaging. I hazard to say that that the Ozitech sharpener is genius in it's simplicity, at least from a form-factor perspective. Opening the unit requires that the side locks be disengaged (center photo above) and the clam shell side folded down, which then becomes the base the unit rests on (see initial photo at top). These side locks, which become blade guards, prevent knife blades from striking the surface upon which the sharpener sits when in use. The stainless steel diamond fingers appear to be securely attached to the device and have a rough texture to them, which I presume is the diamond dust the manufacturer refers to in its literature.

When sharpening a knife, I simply place my left hand on the side base plate to hold the unit steady, and with my right hand, run knife blades through the diamond fingers, pulling the blade towards myself. There is, literally, no measurable resistance when doing so, and it takes very little effort to pull the blades through the sharpener. My initial tests with very dull kitchen knives that I had nearly forsaken show very promising results, but I need to spend more time with them and the sharpener prior to making any definitive statements.

Test Plan:

This concludes the Initial Report for this item.
Please check back for the results obtained from Long Term Test period.

Field Report:

I have had an opportunity to use the Ozitech knife sharpener on three campouts and in the kitchen throughout this test period. Each is detailed below:

Dome Wilderness:

My son and I escaped town for a quick overnight to the Dome Wilderness which resides in northern New Mexico and is adjacent to the boundary of Bandelier National Monument. We had heard a little about the Dome Wilderness, but had not ever been there and wanted to have a secluded and solitude filled weekend by ourselves. The added benefit to the Dome Wilderness is that there were no fire restrictions so we could have a camp fire, something my son really enjoys. We started out in the early morning and hiked 4.5 miles (7.2 km) to our campsite dropping down about 1,500 ft (457 m) into the wilderness area from the trail head. The temperatures ranged from about 50 F (10 C) during the day, and into the 20s F (-6 C) at night. The terrain is much like Bandelier, but it was clear that this area gets little to no use. The trails are really overgrown, not well maintained, and involved a lot of downfall navigation. I brought the Ozitech knife sharpener with me in the car to the trailhead, and sharpened my Gerber Paraframe prior to heading out for our campsite. I did not bring it with me in my pack, because we were only going to be out one night. I do not think that it would be helpful to bring the knife sharpener for such a short trip unless I planned on using my knife or other cutting utensil extensively.

Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge:

My son's Boy Scout Troop goes to the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge annually for an event called Festival of the Cranes. This refuge is a completely managed and engineered wetlands area operated by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service about 3 hours south of Albuquerque, New Mexico. The temperatures were in the 60's F (15 C) during the day, and down in the low 20's F (-6 C) at night. On this trip, we stayed in a developed campground within the refuge boundaries for two nights, and about 15 Boyscouts were involved in the trip. Each scout is required to bring their knife with them on each of the campouts during the year, and keep their knifes sharp and in good condition. Of course, as with most Scouts, the first thing they did when they arrived at the campground was to look for suitable sticks to whittle into various objects. Not long into the first day, the boy's knifes were all pretty dull. I had brought my Ozitech sharpener to use on all of our cooking knifes, but after hearing the frustrating sounds coming from the scouts due to their dull knifes, I decided set the sharpener up at a table for each of the scouts to use. Each scout used the sharpener a few times under my close instruction, and were all very impressed with how sharp their knives were after only a few swipes through the device.

Field Report Closing Thoughts:

I have been very pleased with the Ozitech knife sharpener in both its quality and design, and ease of use. I especially like the apparent fool proof method that the diamond fingers employ to provide a perfect angled blade with only a few pulls of the blade through the device. Additionally, the device appears to be made with longevity in mind. By this, I mean that I have noticed very little wear on the diamond fingers themselves despite the large number of knives I have used on them, and the frequency with which I have used the device. While I may not carry the device with me in my pack on overnight or multi night trips, I certainly will use it prior to hitting the trail, or in the kitchen on my every day knives.

During the last two months of this test series, I will keep an eye on the unit to determine whether it maintains its rigidity, or develops any sloppiness in the spring tension of the diamond fingers or the unit enclosure. Additionally, I hope to determine whether there is any noticeable wear on the diamond fingers and whether I am able to overcome what appears to be a fool proof knife sharpening design.

This concludes my Field Report for this item.
Please check back for the results obtained from Long Term Test period.

I would like to thank Füritechnics USA Inc., and Backpackgeartest.org for allowing me the opportunity to participate in this test.

Reviews > Knives > Sharpeners > Furi Ozitech Diamond Fingers Sharpener > Greg Mehojah > Test Report by Greg Mehojah

Reviews > Knives > Sharpeners > Furi Ozitech Diamond Fingers Sharpener > Greg Mehojah > Test Report by Greg Mehojah