Finally broke out my Work Sharp 3000 and set it up last night. Worked on the blade of a Simmonds block plane I bought off the bay a few years ago. Ran through the four grits that were mounted out of the box to flatten the back, then installed the wide blade fixture and ran the bevel through the same four grits. then conditioned the leather wheel, mounted it, and charged it with buffing compound (actually think I over charged it,it was a little messy) and ran the back and bevel. Wow, was that blade sharp. I took a very wispy shaving off of some poplar. From reading here and elsewhere, I've come to the conclusion that my Simmonds block plane is so-so at best, but it was cutting good last night. Think my record block plane will be amazing once I sharpen it! I noticed that I had packed my dad's crappy Craftsman block plane in my air hammer bag last time I was doing some work up there, think I'll run it through and see how it works before I take it back.
I'm impressed with this thing. I'll be buying some of the Klingspor abrasive packs, a couple of more glass disks, and building a stand with some storage. Thinking I want the Work Sharp to always be setup and ready to go. If I discount the setup time, my initial fumbling around, reading the instructions, and did the back and bevel on each grit before changing to the next, I think I could run the whole blade in less than five minutes!
I'm sure a skilled sharpener and dedicated neanderthal could get a better edge with stones and know-how, but for someone whose use of hand tools supplements his normal power tool usage (is that a hybrid woodworker?), the Work Sharp is easy and convenient enough to use that I'll always have sharper tools.
Noticed that my dad had a wet grinder sitting on the shelf that hadn't seen use in a long time and was thinking of permanently borrowing it, think there is any place for that if the Work Sharp is going to be the go to tool for sharpening? I already have dual speed grinders, a Wolverine, and vari-grind for my wife's lathe chisels.