I invested in a Lansky kit a few years ago. I think it's a testament to the original design that it can give good results despite the best efforts of Lansky to ruin the product. Given a lot of time and attention I could get things scary sharp but with the exception of the stones themselves, every single aspect of the kit was the absolute flimsiest cheap garbage imaginable and a misery to use. Rods (lengths of fencing wire) weren't straight to start with and bent without provocation, clamp loosened constantly, plastic stone holders had sharp edges and moulding flash all over, case didn't stay closed or retain items. The only way I could tell that it was a genuine $60+ Lansky kit and not a $9.99 chinabay knockoff was that the package contained a thick, glossy, luxuriously produced catalog touting all sorts of Lansky-branded backpacks, hatchets, torches and whatnot, it was the highest-quality item in the entire package. I used for a while but it was always a chore and done only when absolutely necessary.
Then I was given a Worksharp which looks almost as unimpressive but reliably gets things sharp in seconds without any effort or frustration. In the years since the only time I've touched the Lansky is to move it on the shelf (and be annoyed because the case inevitably springs open and something falls out).
