Hey folks. I’ve been eying the Wicked Edge system for a while now and finally found a decent deal on ebay to get started. I toyed with jumping straight to either a Pro Pack II or a Gen3 Pro, but I’ll be getting started with just a basic kit. I went ahead and ordered a base, 800/1000 stones, and 3.5/5.0 strops. Should be plenty to get me going.
I’ll be sharpening mostly kitchen knives, nothing to crazy. Look forward to reading up more and more here.
Reading is the best way to get to know the wicked edge. Search for Knife placement and practice on some old knives. I watched the videos on utube and learned a good lesson. Start out SLOW! It will take a few hours to get the feel of the sharpening motion. Take your time,use precision when placing the stones to the knife. You will notice the difference after 6-7 knives in the stones breaking in. Be extra careful while learning, you will be better off in the long run.
Three word advice. Feel the burr.
Welcome to the forum. And enjoy your WEPS! Ski bum is right: reading is very helpful and there is a lot of information on this site. And do take some time for the stones to break in.
Thanks, folks. If I’m honest, I’m hoping that this setup will make me an expert–but I definitely understand that there is more to it than that and that precision and repeatability will be key to my success / happiness. I’ll definitely be reading up on everything I can find.
Longshot, but if anyone in the Northern Virginia area sees this and wants to give some tips, let me know!
Everything has shown up except my base and strops…grrrr. I had a quick test session last night, but a bit awkward since I had to basically clamp the system to my table. It worked though and I ran through the stones on just a cheapo kitchen aide steak knife. Definitely sharper than it was, but man that blade is wrecked–all sorts of chips and such.
Everyone making videos makes using the WEPS look so easy. Definitely going to be a learning curve here 
There is a learning curve. Don’t try to go as fast as you see on the videos. The first couple of knives should be done in slow motion. Your brain will learn the motions and it will become second nature. While learning I wanted to go as fast as the videos and the stones contacted,one fell from my hand and I almost cut the tip of my finger off! Lucky for me it was just a scratch. I then slowed down and proceeded with caution. Now the motions feel natural and controlled. You have all the time in the world to safely learn your wicked edge.
LOL. Consider yourself lucky comparing to those who try motorcycle wheeling after watching YouTube.
I’m definitely not in a big rush and fine with taking things slow. Fiddled around with the knife I sharpened the other day and it’s pretty impressive even after just 10min or so worth of work. Had a cherry tomato and the same type of knife dragged across it does nothing. Sharpened knife goes right through without even adding any pressure. Wife is convinced 
Base shows up tonight, that should make the whole system much nicer to work with.