Work Sharp Elite Knife Sharpening Solution (WSKTS-KO-ELT) review

The Work Sharp Elite Knife Sharpening Solution WSKTS-KO-ELT is the original-generation Ken Onion Elite, a retired powered package that combines a conventional guided cassette with a separate long-belt Blade Grinding Attachment (BGA). It is not the later WSKTS-KO2-ELT Mk.2 Elite. That distinction matters because this original package’s two sharpening arrangements have different angle spans, belt sizes and task procedures. This is a source-based product assessment, not a hands-on test, and it does not evaluate any particular seller’s machine.

Two different sharpening arrangements in one package

The exact Work Sharp page identifies the SKU as WSKTS-KO-ELT and marks it retired. The box list includes the original Ken Onion power sharpener, its BGA, an adjustable BGA guide spanning 10° to 35°, a separate guided sharpening guide spanning 15° to 30°, and a tool cassette with 65° scissor guide. It also lists two belt kits: a 3/4 × 12-inch cassette set with P120, X65, X22, X4 and 6000 belts, and a 1 × 18-inch BGA set with P120, X65, X22, X4 and 12000 belts. These are separate systems and consumable formats, not one interchangeable set.

The BGA’s angle guide is continuously adjustable from 10° through 35° in one-degree increments according to the product page and the attachment manual. The cassette’s own 15°–30° dial belongs to the matching Ken Onion guide; that manual describes its values as per-side. Do not take the cassette’s convention and apply it to the BGA, or describe the BGA’s broader span as the range of every cassette operation. The product page describes BGA speed adjustment from 1,200 to 2,800 SFM, while its listed motor is called dual speed; on a retired offer, check the physical control and power unit rather than assuming a specific motor condition or control behavior from another Ken Onion generation.

Which belt does which work?

The long 1 × 18-inch belt supports broader grinding and shaping work, while the 3/4 × 12-inch cassette belts correspond to the guided knife and task cassette. The pages identify the grits but do not make the belts interchangeable. The BGA user guide identifies the 12000-grit belt as a stropping/polishing step; it is still an abrasive belt, not a leather strop. The box list contains no leather strop. That distinction matters if your buying requirement is specifically for an included leather finishing surface rather than a fine abrasive stage.

The BGA instructions describe setting an angle, tensioning and tracking the belt, controlling strokes and following the blade profile. They also caution against overheating a blade during heavier grinding and recommend learning on a practice knife. Those are procedural cautions, not evidence that this assessment personally sharpened anything. A high-adjustability feature does not establish that a chosen angle or profile suits every knife.

The smaller cassette handles additional tasks

The package’s 15°–30° guided cassette is a separate plain-edge arrangement with its own belt ladder. The included tool cassette lists a 65° scissor guide. The original Ken Onion guide also describes separate powered serration and scissor procedures; those tasks do not use the BGA’s 10°–35° plain-edge range. The package thereby combines multiple methods, but it also requires careful setup and the correct cassette or attachment for the job. Users should follow the matching manual for belt placement, speed, angle and edge direction rather than infer procedure from the product family name.

Work Sharp’s public page calls the Elite a heavy-duty shaping and sharpening system, but that broad marketing phrase does not establish suitability for industrial or commercial work, continuous-duty expectations, or every blade. The manual’s safety instructions and the exact model’s power-unit instructions should govern use. This review does not substitute for them.

Retired model identity and offer checks

Before comparing an older unit, confirm the exact WSKTS-KO-ELT identifier, the original power unit, the BGA frame and angle mechanism, the guided cassette, the tool/scissor cassette and each belt size and grit. Do not let a listing that says merely “Ken Onion Elite” blur this original SKU with the newer WSKTS-KO2-ELT. Replacement belt families or an image of the attachment alone do not prove every package component is present. Inspect condition, electrical markings, belt wear, tracking controls and completeness for the actual unit; those facts are not knowable from this manufacturer archive.

Assessment

The original Elite stands out on paper for offering two genuinely different powered sharpening paths: a long-belt attachment with a wider adjustable range and a narrower guided cassette with its own documented angle convention, plus separate tool tasks. That range is useful only when the buyer knows which part of the package a stated angle belongs to. Its drawbacks are retirement, a more complicated accessory/abrasive inventory, safety-sensitive powered-belt operation and the possibility of confusing it with the Mk.2 generation. Compare the separately documented Mk.2 Elite and standard Mk.2 only as different configurations. No price, availability, personal use, measured result or seller quality is claimed here.

Primary references: Work Sharp Elite Knife Sharpening Solution page, the Blade Grinding Attachment guide, and the matching original Ken Onion guide for the separately included cassette.