Okay. I really tried to avoid going too broad in this question and before of all I did some research on my own in this community and here's what I found.
This post addresses which things should come in mind when selecting a knife sharpener. Well the answerer did some good hints into that but it didn't specifically pointed out some examples based on his/her previous experience and what would recommend based on brands or whatsoever, needless to say if a wet stone would be a way to go. Yet this does seem to help a little on what I'm trying to look for.
This other post addresses another important aspect I found about sharpening a knife, which is the angle that you have to grind? so that the desired result is the one which will do the right cut, but in that specific question the OP did have some issues with converting a ratio to an angle. Yet this is not my intended question, needless to say that the answer did not helped me much as well as probably the knife sharpener that I'm looking for would come up with some preselected angle or another way to select it to obtain a sharp edge.
This third question speaks about frequency which is kind of fine as a suggestion but it doesn't count as the kind of answer which I'm looking for. It also mentions about using an angle, and recommending that after once every couple of weeks and check for heavy use, again the answers featured does not address my question.
This fourth question is way off from what I'm looking to ask but it counts as a curiosity that I had which mentions that oil should not be used in waterstones. Yet I'm almost certain that this is not the method which a beginner like me should use for a small sized knife, needless to say that to sharpen a knife with a stone looks very time consuming and prone to errors if not taking care of the angle and rubbing method that you might use.
This fifth question it also doesn't count as it points out how to sharpen a different tool (a peeler) and I'm aiming to sharpen a knife.
The sixth question Seems a bit close to what I'm asking since it mentions if a knife can be sharpened using sandpaper, there are instructions and recommendations of which kind of sandpaper to use as one of the answerers does explain, but this method doesn't seem to what I look for since I dont have much experience using those and as I'm a beginner I don't want to ruin my knife, needless to say I wouldn't know how to select the right angle.
The seventh question addresses another curiosity, kind of obvious on how to know if a knife is sharp. Usually I begin to notice it when trying to cut soft veggies as mentioned. Not much to add really as again it doesn't solve my problem.
The eight question seems to come in handy as it adds to my question. Although there are some brands suggested by some of the answerers, the answer which does have more upvotes seem to discourage the OP from attempting to sharpen those kind of knifes at home. Seriously it is not the kind of answer that someone wants to read when looking for some DIY suggestion, but again my question addresses just a straight blade not a serrated one, so I can pass this for time being.
The ninth question I've found does cover sharpening with a stone which again I'm not getting used to and I don't have the necessary experience to do it right and obtain a desired pristine polished edge in the blade.
So far those are the questions with some insights individually I found in this community.
But to make clear my question is that I'm looking for a product or a recommendation on something which you guys have used that it works properly without much difficulty or craftsmanship and a bit of fool proof. Doing additional research in youtube, what I found is this guy who uses a stone sharpener and while he's very verbally outspoken it really isn't the method that will be for me, needless to say that it looked hugely time consuming and not for a beginner (as it was intended to imply in the title). My concern with his method is that the sharpening angle is not precise and it is more like guess-estimating which is not what I'm looking for.
The second method that I've found uses a weird tool which has some holes in it and the poster doesn't really explains much where did he obtained the so-called base other than just saying he bought it online. The video in which he does explains the method is much better than the first but again it doesn't seem one which would work for me as I don't seem to find what tool did he used and I don't have proper experience to do this by my own since in the end he seems to polish the resulting border left by the sharpening procedure on both sides of the blade. I must note that the video shows a serrated end and not exactly a polished one which I'm aiming to.
I know there are other methods such as using a wheel (which I also don't have and not really in the mood of spending that much in time and resources to use it) and of course the electric sharpeners.
With all that being said did you guys have had any good experience with a manual tool that a beginner can use to obtain a near "brand new" sharpened edge on the blade?. It would help me a lot if the responses include some links to amazon so I can review what buyers think on the suggested product and if did met their expectations or perhaps a video. A picture would be the best visual aid that can help me with that.
My fear is that I don't want to buy something which in the end will ruin my dull knife (which happens to be a kind of small as shown in the second video referred above). If possible what I'm looking for is something that can be manual but has good results as explained above or an electric one which isn't that pricey.
I'd be looking forward to read your responses and experience with different methods which beginners can actually try and have success in a polished and razor edge in the blade as described in my question.
Best Answer
The tools you're looking for are:
Money and a phonebook.
Call a professional, and pay him to do the work.
It's safe to say that after finding 9 posts covering how to sharpen knives, which all state more or less the same "..yes you can do it yourself, it's not too difficult, but it does require practice...", there is no magic tool. Yes you can do it yourself. It will take practice. You will get better. But, as with all things, it comes at a price: Time.
I'm not sharpening my knives with Japanese water stones (other people may have other preferred sharpening methods) out of sheer enjoyment. I'm sharpening them with Waterstones because there is no magical gadget that gets it done at a fraction of the time and effort, and meets my requirements.
I had to learn it, it took time, not even a ridiculous amount of time, and sometimes I still screw up. And if I screwed up, and I screwed up badly, I use my next favorite tool:
Money and a phonebook.