I wouldn't worry about holding the perfect angle and screwing up the edge. Just try to be consistent with the angle and you'll get better at it the more you sharpen knives. A large, medium grit diamond stone works very well. There's nothing like always having sharp knives.

: Hello All,
: Through kayak building I bought some water stones and got good
: enough at sharpening chisels and plane blades. I'm interested in
: sharpening my kitchen knives but I'm also a bit scared to do it.
: With chisels and plane blades, I used Lee Valley's Honing Guide.
: With knives, I'm worried that I won't be holding the blade at a
: constant angle to the stone, and therefore may really screw up
: the edge. I'd like to hear about other people's experiences
: trying this, if they have any tips or other suggestions for me.
: I guess the other option is to buy a knife-sharpener like this
: one from Lee Valley:
: http://www.leevalley.com/en/wood/page.aspx?p=32995&cat=1,43072,43079&ap=1

: thanks
: Doug