Zebra M-701 Stainless Steel Mechanical Pencil

The nice folks over at Zebra offered me a few items to take a look at recently, and one of them was this really cool .7mm stainless steel Zebra M-701 mechanical pencil.  I think I’ve made it clear that I’m not a big fan of writing with a pencil, so I’ll keep this focused on the pencil itself and my feelings about pencils in general.

Zebra M-701 Mechanical Pencil Clip

As I already said, this mechanical pencil is made of stainless steel, or as the Zebra product page says “Designer steel from clip to tip,” very catchy.  It isn’t just the look of the stainless steel that makes this mechanical pencil so nice, the build quality and construction are also top-notch.  There do not appear to be any gaps, ill-fitting parts, or loosely attached parts.  It feels like a very solid writing implement when you hold it in your hand.  Since we are zoomed in on the clip up there too, I thought Id mention how I really like the subtle way hat the clip has the Zebra brand name and the model name imprinted,  I hate when companies go overboard with the branding and their product looks like a giant billboard.

Zebra M-701 Stainless Steel Pencil Grip

Moving on to the grip you can see that the stainless steel body has a knurled section designed to provide lots of friction for the grip area, giving you a good deal of control while you write  Initially I was a little bit worried that this section might be a bit rough to the touch, but it definitely was not.  It is just rough enough to be grippy, but not so rough that its uncomfortable to write with .  As I was writing with the pencil I was impressed by its overall balance and weight.  Considering it is made of stainless steel, it’s not overly heavy, but it certainly has a nice hefty feel to it.  Like most other mechanical pencils, the eraser on this one is stored under a metal cap on top of the plunger that you use to advance the lead.  The plunger has a nice rigid and responsive feel when you click on it to advance the lead, and it does its job of keeping your eraser handy at all times.

Zebra M701 Writing Sample

A writing sample with a mechanical pencil isn’t as telling as when I do a writing sample with a pen because its more a reflection of the lead itself which can be changed.  Overall though the pencil wrote well, and I had no issues.  Advancing the lead with the plunger worked well, and as you can tell from the photo above, the eraser dutifully did its job when called upon.  I think that the Stainless Steel Zebra M-701 Mechanical Pencil is a very solid choice for anyone looking for something durable, sturdy, and just plain cool looking.  You can also check out the review by Brad over at The Pen Addict for his expert opinion on this great little mechanical pencil.  Thanks again to the folks at Zebra for providing this nice sample of the Zebra M-701 for review, as it was a pleasure to get to try it out.

© 2010, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

The Sun-Star Knock Free Mechanical Pencil

Although I’ve been pretty clear about the fact that I am not a huge fan of regular pencils or mechanical pencils (excluding my Uniball Kuru Toga) I couldn’t resist the urge to pick up the Sunstar Knock-Free Mechanical Pencil from Jetpens.  The obvious thing that stands out about this mechanical pencil is that it looks exactly like a standard wooden pencil, except for the blue color…but it is also available in yellow, light blue, and green.

Sun-Star Knock Free Mechanical Pencil and Lead Storage

The entire body of the pencil is made of plastic, and in the photo above you can see the chamber that unscrews and slides out with the eraser on top.  On the opposite end of the eraser there is a black cap that snaps on the white tube to hold your extra .7mm lead.  The one bad thing about the set up here is that the pink eraser that you see on the top actually is not replaceable.  I would have thought that a replaceable eraser on a set up like this would be really simple to achieve, but I guess not.

The Sun-Star Knock Free Mechanical Pencil Writing Sample on Doane Paper

Writing with the Sun-Star Knock Free mechanical pencil is interesting because the tip of the pencil has a spring loaded mechanism that actually advances the lead for you as  you write.  This little feature is completely unnoticeable as you write, and it just keeps feeding the lead as you need it.  At no point in my writing did I feel as if the lead had advanced too far, it was always at a nice short length that was suitable for writing with and not too long to the point where I felt that it might snap on me.

Overall if you are a pencil person, this is a pretty cool option at only $1.50 from Jetpens.  Just make sure you have an extra eraser, or dont plan on making any mistakes once you have used up what it comes with.

© 2010, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

The Sharpie Liquid Pencil

When I first heard about the Sharpie Liquid Pencil (via Amazon), I was excited to get my hands on one and try it out because I’ve come to expect great things from Sharpie and Newell Rubbermaid (ie. Stainless Steel Sharpie, Sharpie Pens, and the self rotating, always sharp Uniball Kuru Toga Mechanical Pencil) and their new products.  Lucky for me, the kind folks over at Sharpie helped me to get my hands on one of these a little bit early so I could put it through some tests, so as always a big thanks to Sharpie and Newell Rubbermaid for their continued support here.

Sharpie Liquid Pencil in the Package

Right off the bat there are two important things called out on the front of the package of the Sharpie Liquid Pencil.  First and probably the biggest question I had, is that it is identified being a #2 lead equivalent which is important for many reasons such as filling out scantron and other forms.  The other important thing to note is that it is also “approximately” the same point size as a .5mm mechanical pencil.  Another interesting claim on the back of the package is that the ink becomes permanent on paper after about 24 hours, however the official Sharpie Blog says it may take up to 3 days for this to happen.  Also, you can see in the photo above that you get 3 extra erasers in addition to the one that comes installed right on the top.

The Sharpie Liquid Pencil has a pretty basic body, with a rubber grip and translucent barrel, although I don’t know why one would bother with a translucent barrel when the ink cartridge itself is solid metal so you can’t see the level of the liquid graphite inside anyway.  I found the body and grip to be rather comfortable to write with, although you will see in the video below that the top of the pen that acts as the plunger rattles around quite a bit once it is depressed.  A nice and interesting feature is that the eraser on the top does not come with a cap to cover it, which I know has been a complaint for many mechanical pencil users, so it is one less step when you want to erase something.

Sharpie Liquid Pencil Cartridge

The liquid graphite cartridge that you find inside of this pencil looks like a regular roller ball ink cartridge, so instead of having a fixed stick of lead,  you instead have a rolling ball that applies the liquid graphite to your paper.

Sharpie Liquid Pencil Point Head On

Here is a different viewpoint on the liquid graphite cartridge in the Sharpie Liquid Pencil that gives you a better look at the tip.  Again, just as a reminder, this tip is mentioned on the package to be comparable to a .5mm mechanical.

Writing with the Sharpie Liquid Pencil proved to be an interesting experience, so first take a look at the video below and then you can come back here to continue reading through my explanation of what I found.   Also, note the end of the video shows how the top of the pencil rattles around a bit as I mentioned earlier.

One of the first things you will probably notice in the video is that there is a little bit of a blotchy spot on the “f” in the word Office.  As I wrote with the pen, the first thing I noticed was how light the line was, however after getting used to writing with it, I was able to get a bit of a darker and more solid line by applying a little more pressure.  Writing with the Sharpie Liquid Pencil was a fairly nice experience in terms of how smoothly it glided over the paper, although after some extended writing, the extra pressure I had to exert to get a reasonably solid line became slightly fatiguing.  The eraser test was next, and it did an OK job.  You really don’t need to apply a great deal of pressure to get the eraser to work, and while the effort required is minimal, it still doesn’t quite remove all of the liquid graphite from the paper.  It seems to do a slightly better job than most erasable pens.  I believe that this is partially due to the fact that the metal tip of the pencil puts a slight groove into the paper which makes it hard to completely erase your marks.

Scan of The Sharpie Liquid Pencil in a 5-Star Notebook from the Above Video

In addition to the above quick writing sample, I also did a more extensive writing sample in my Doane Paper Idea Journal with some better comparisons and a test of the dry times.  Following are some scans of those tests and comparisons for you to take a look at, you can click on any of the images for a much larger view.

First up is the standard writing sample below that I usually do, and you can see that there is some minor clumping and skipping, which reminds me a bit of what you get with a standard ballpoint pen.

Sharpie Liquid Pencil in Doane Paper Idea Journal Writing Sample

Next I tested the eraser to get an idea of how easy it was to erase and how cleanly the eraser could wipe the liquid graphite off the paper.  This part was pretty surprising because the claim on 24 hour permanence didn’t seem to hold up as you can tell.  My only thought as to why this may have been the case is that I closed the notebook so maybe it needs more exposure to air in order to become permanent?  You can also see that over time from 1 minute up to 24 hours, the eraser seems to remove about the same amount of liquid graphite.  I also noticed that in my shading on each of the eraser tests, the eraser did a much better job with the lighter lines, which I guess is to be expected for any pencil and eraser.  I’ll probably return to this page once the 3 days have passed to see if that last box is erasable or not.  Just an additional note on the erasing, this is not a friction based eraser like the Pilot FriXion line, so putting an erased line into the freezer will not bring the lines back as it did when I tested those.

On the right hand side you can also see that the type of eraser you use here doesn’t matter, as I found out by using a regular pink eraser.

Another thing to note with the sample immediately below is that I tried to do a three-tier gradation from dark to light, and while I think I was somewhat successful, it was a little bit difficult to accomplish the desired dark to light shading.

Sharpie Liquid Pencil in Doane Paper Idea Journal Writing Sample Eraser Test

The third thing I looked at was the dry time and the fact that you can kind of erase your writing by just simply using your finger, which might be bad news for lefties.  The dry time was impressive, coming in at about 1-2 seconds, but the test below that was a bit more surprising.  For each one, I waited the number of seconds that you see written there, and then lightly rubbed at it with my finger tip to see how much of the line could be erased.  The longer it dried, the harder it was to remove, but never really completely removed with just your finger.  The simple fact that you could use your finger as an eraser was surprising.

UPDATE: almost 7 days to “dry” and the liquid graphite is still very much erasable…not sure this stuff will ever become permanent.

Sharpie Liquid Pencil in Doane Paper Idea Journal Writing Sample Dry and Smudge Test

Next up I wanted to take a look at the Sharpie Liquid Pencil as compared to other more traditional pencils.  As you can see below, I put it up against a regular old Ticonderoga yellow pencil, and Uniball Kuru Toga .3mm mechanical pencil.  This comparison is telling of the writing experience with the Sharpie Liquid Pencil because you can see that the swatch that I shaded with it has a more grainy and noticeable track of lines in it, while the two traditional pencils show a smoother and almost solid shading box.

Sharpie Liquid Pencil in Doane Paper Idea Journal Writing Sample Dry and Smudge Test

My last test was to see how the Sharpie Liquid Pencil estimated .5mm point size compared to an actual .5mm mechanical pencil.  To me the lines appear a bit thinner with the mechanical pencil, and they are definitely more crisp and solid, but again, click on the photo below to enlarge and judge for yourself.

Sharpie Liquid Pencil in Doane Paper Idea Journal Writing Sample Dry and Smudge Test

Overall, my initial excitement over the Sharpie Liquid Pencil ended up with a bit of a letdown after testing it.  I finished my review feeling as if this performs more like a mediocre ball point pen that erases pretty nicely, rather than a being a step forward from a traditional or mechanical pencil.  The idea of being erasable for some range between 1-3 days is nice as is the fact that its more of a pen-like experience but with a #2 compatible lead.  Once I have allowed the writing sample to sit for 2 more days to hit the 3 day limit, I’ll finish up my test and update this post, but in the mean time, when I need to reach for a pencil, it will surely be my handy Uniball Kuru Toga that always lays down a sharp, clean, and consistent line.

Again, big thanks to the folks at Sharpie for helping me get my hands on the Liquid Pencil a little early for this review, and if you are interested in picking one of these up for yourself, you can find the single pack, two pack, and 12 pack on Amazon, or at your local Office Depot.

Update From Sharpie:

As you noted in your review, there has been a lot of interest in the Sharpie Liquid Pencil.  Last week we wrote about it on the Sharpie blog and lots of people responded and commented, excited about this new innovation from Sharpie.  Of course along with the kudos came questions, including some that you raised in your review. Hopefully this will help clarify.

As you noted, the Sharpie Liquid Pencil’s liquid graphite is easy to erase.  It will initially completely erase from paper. However, over time, the marks – while faint — will remain visible even after attempts at erasing.  I suppose this could be called either “permanent” or “not completely erasable” depending on your perspective.

I thought it might be helpful to share some insight on permanency.  A group called the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) sets the technical standards for permanence in this area. The Sharpie Liquid Pencil was tested and beginning about 24 hours after writing, our testing showed that it met those standards.  (Just to cover off, lightfast, water- and chemical resistance are other permanency qualifiers, and Sharpie Liquid Pencil meets all those too).

So does the Sharpie Liquid Pencil become permanent or “more permanent” over time?  Yes, it does, but not “permanent” in the same way as a Sharpie marker and we’ve updated our blog posting to clarify that.  You’ll always be able to erase it – a little or a lot depending on how much time has passed, the type of paper used, how hard you write and how hard you try to erase.

You also noted in your review that the Liquid Pencil reminded you of a standard ballpoint pen in terms of performance. Sharpie Liquid Pencil features the same rolling ball mechanism used in ballpoint pens so the flow of the liquid graphite may occasionally skip just as a ballpoint pen sometimes skips. The flow of liquid graphite from the Sharpie Liquid Pencil should become smoother as you use the pencil and the rolling ball becomes fully coated with liquid graphite.

Finally, you asked if the Sharpie Liquid Pencil works like a No. 2 pencil for scantron and other forms.  The answer is Sharpie Liquid Pencil is in the process of being tested now for use on scantron, so it is not yet approved.

Again, thanks for giving me the opportunity to clarify this. Please let me know if you have additional questions.  And as always, many thanks for continuing to support us.

My Thoughts:

First I want to thank Sharpie again for getting me this sample, and for responding to the issues that I wrote about with the pencil.  It also took me quite some time to get this posted because I had a few issues with being able to edit existing posts here on OfficeSupplyGeek, but with that issue resolved now, I am able to post the above and weigh in with my own two cents.

I couldnt agree more with Brad from The Pen Addict on his views with the Sharpie Liquid Pencil when he says that it is great to see Sharpie trying to innovate and not just rest on the Sharpie brand name.  It is important to test the limits and see what the market wants, and for this Sharpie should be applauded.  Also, knowing Sharpie and how they evolved their Sharpie pens a bit based on user feedback, I’m sure there will be other products in the works that might replace the liquid pencil.

As for some of the points addressed in the response from Sharpie, I see what they are saying about the International Standards set for the permanence of the writing, and I guess its a tricky spot to be in because from a more scientific approach I can’t fault them for applying such rigid standards, however from a consumer perspective, there is clearly a different perspective on what “permanent” means, especially considering the standard that Sharpie has set with their permanent markers.

As for the skipping, they mention that after some extended period of writing, the skips tend to die down.  I’m not sure that it will ever write better than a standard ballpoint pen, however I’ll have to write some more with it and see how it goes.

I’m definitely looking forward to seeing what the results are for the scantron testing though, that could be a great use for these pencils

Regardless of the good and bad about this pen, I do expect that Sharpie will continue to make great new products, and for every great one like the Sharpie Pen, there are bound to be some bumps in the road to get there.

© 2010, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

Uniball Kuru Toga High Grade

I think I’ve stated my hatred for writing with a pencil on this blog before, which is why I thought it was pretty funny when I found myself writing down notes the other day with my Uniball Kuru Toga High Grade (via JetPens) that I picked up a while ago.  The interesting thing about this was that I didn’t even remember making a conscious decision to pick up the pencil, that I’ve been carrying in my pencil case ever since I bought it.   In the past I claimed that the standard Kuru Toga is the best mechanical pencil ever, (for the old review) but having used the high grade version now I may have to change that claim.

High Grade (bottom) and Standard (top) Comparison

Above you will see a side by side shot of the standard Kuru Toga, and the High Grade versions, and other than the high grade being slightly longer, the big difference is that the high grade is made of aluminum instead of plastic.  To me the aluminum body with its little bit of extra weight makes it so much more enjoyable to write with.  I wouldn’t consider this to be a heavy pencil, however there is a noticeable difference between the two, and since I tend to like heavier writing implements I am really a big fan of the aluminum body.

Uniball Kuru Toga High Grade Eraser and Cap

When you get down to the nuts and bolts of the high grade version of the Kuru Toga mechanical pencil, you will notice that the eraser is a bit different.  Instead of just sliding into a plastic hole, there is an aluminum sleeve that holds the eraser, so you can actually continue to slide it up a bit higher as you use it and it wears down.

The Eraser and Metal Clamp

The next photo shows the eraser and component completely broken down so you can see how the aluminum eraser holder actually splits apart.  Below is a quick writing sample done in my Whitelines notebook with black cover, but even further below that is a better example of what the Kuru Toga is really capable of.

Uniball Kuru Toga High Grade Writing Sample

If you enlarge the first photo below, you will see a crossword puzzle from my previous Kuru Toga review where I filled it out with a regular pencil from start to end.  Working from left to right and from top to bottom, you can see that as you get to the bottom right, the width of the line that the pencil puts down gets wider and the letters look more sloppy.  And just for the record, yes I did cheat on the crossword puzzle so I could make sure to get all the answers correct without skipping anything from left to right and working my way down.

A crossword puzzle done with an ordinary mechanical pencil.

Now the last photo here shows the same crossword puzzle filled out using the Kuru Toga.  If you click on the photo to see the larger version you can see that using the Kuru Toga results in a consistently sized sharp and crisp line from start to end, and it takes no extra thought or effort yourself to rotate the pencil as you write with it since its automatic clutch system just does it for you.

The same crossword puzzle done with the Uniball Kuru Toga mechanical pencil.

Bottom line is that I think that as good as the standard Kuru Toga is, the simple act of making the body partially out of aluminum gives it such a better feel, but honestly, you cant go wrong with either version of mechanical pencil from Uniball if you like to always be writing with a nice sharp pencil point.  I may be a bit biased, who who knows, maybe Im missing out on some other fantastic pencil out there, but I just cant imagine making a conscious decision to write with any pencil besides this one.

© 2010, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

Pentel Hi Polymer Red Pencil Leads

Sometimes the search for cool office supplies leads me down a disappointing path, and unfortunately when it came to trying to find some nice red pencil leads for a mechanical pencil, things just didn’t work out as I had hoped.  These Pentel Ain Hi Polymer color pencil leads were purchased from JetPens for about $3.00, so luckily this disappointment didn’t result in much of a hit on my wallet.

The unique dispenser on the Pentel Hi-Polymer pencil lead case

Before I get into why I didn’t really like these colored pencil leads, I did want to share one cool thing about them.  I really like the case and dispenser itself, it has a pretty cool top that flips open and when you go to shake a lead loose, it comes out individually in this little shoot.  This is different from most other mechanical pencil leads because you usually have to flip the top off and fumble around with pulling only one lead out yourself, but this design makes it much easier.

Pentel Hi Polymer Colored Pencil Lead Writing Sample

When I started writing with these colored pencil leads using my Uniball Kuru Toga, I was pretty surprised at how light the red was, so I decided Id do what any other person would do, which was press a bit harder.  Unfortunately, the pencil leads didn’t cooperate at all and decided to snap when I did that.  Now I don’t usually write with such a heavy hand, and even my little bit of extra pressure to get a darker line wasnt THAT hard, yet it still snapped the lead.  I experimented with various writing pressures, and for the most part, anything even slightly heavier than normal resulted in a snapped pencil lead.  Beyond just breaking more frequently than I would have liked, I was also surprised at how ineffective my trusty eraser was with these colored pencil leads.  In the writing sample above, you can see that the line is not completely erased, and I spent a good deal of time (along with a good deal of rubber) trying to get rid of that pesky line to no avail.

Needless to say, I am going to be on a hunt for some good quality colored pencil leads to see if I can find something suitable because these unfortunately didn’t do the trick.

© 2010, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

The Zebra Sharbo X Carbon Fiber Body Multi Pen

I’ve seen the Zebra Sharbo X around some of my favorite office supply review sites such as The Pen Addict, and there have been tons of people asking if i have used one and plan on reviewing one, so I figured I should just take the plunge and see how it goes.  Back in November I finally ordered the Sharbo X Multi Pen from JetPens and have been using it daily since then, is it the best multi pen out there?  Well my verdict on this one might surprise some folks so keep reading and see to see how this pen has worked out for me and hopefully it helps you make the right purchase decision if you are considering the Sharbo X for yourself.

Zebra Sharbo X Carbon Fiber Multi Pen

When I got the pen in the mail, I was immediately concerned that my fancy new multi pen might have been a bad idea.  Unfortunately I didn’t think to save the box to share pictures with you, mostly because I was kind of let down and annoyed with it, but it was basically a cheap plastic box with a flimsy cardboard sleeve over it.  Now I don’t know how many of you have purchased “nicer” pens or pencils before, but I’ve had pens that cost 1/3 of what this one did come in nicer boxes.  Do I ever really need or use the box?  Not really, but having that box be my first impression of the pen certainly was a downer.  When I opened the box I was now very impressed by the build quality and the look and feel of my Sharbo X.  There was a very nice heft to it, not too heavy, but just very solid, and with a quick twist, turn, and screw, I opened and removed each component of the pen and was impressed by the tight fit and smooth way that each part came apart and went back together.  Sometimes with lesser quality pens, you get lots of play in the threading of the different components, which just give it a low quality feel, not the case with the Sharbo X though, I would say the build quality on this pen couldn’t be more solid.

A close look at the Zebra Sharbo X components

A close look at the components shows you the mechanical pencil component of the Sharbo X on the top with the black collar, and just below is the blue black .3mm gel ink component, the one you can’t see is the .3mm red ink component.  The awesome thing about this pen is that the components come in multiple types and sizes, you can get yourself not only ballpoint refills, but also gel ink refills in multiple sizes and colors, and obviously there are also mechanical pencil components that can be had, which come in three different sizes.  The mechanical pencil component comes in .3mm, .5mm, and .7mm sizes, while the gel and ballpoint components come in .4mm, .5mm, and .7mm refills…again, in a variety of colors.  The tip on each of the pen components is color coded with a ring so you can see the color when it is sticking out of the pen.

Zebra Sharbo X Outside Rubber Tip Cap and Eraser

The above photo shows the twist off cap that reveals the eraser for your mechanical pencil.  This is one of those areas that I mentioned before where when you unscrew and screw it back on, there is a very smooth and tight fit that indicates the high quality workmanship that obviously went into this multi pen.  Now I do like the location and functionality of this cap, but the rubberized tip on it really just doesn’t work for me.  On a pen that is entirely made of high quality metal and carbon fiber, I just wasnt expecting a rubber stopper on the top.  It just seems out-of-place on this pen, and I’m concerned about the possibility of it getting nicked up or worn down, although it does seem like some pretty firm and hard rubber, so time will tell.

While the Zebra Sharbo X is a fantastic looking pen, its got one major issue.

The way that you select the different components on the Sharbo X is pretty simple, just a quick twist of the body to one of three different positions reveals a different tip, either one of your two pens, or your mechanical pencil.  They feeling when you twist between the tips is excellent, very smooth, and there is a solid “bump” that you feel when you lock into the selected tip.  It is also nice that when you twist the pen to go to the next tip, you can go in either direction and continue in that direction forever, no need to go clockwise and then counter-clockwise because it goes perpetually in either direction.  Now with that said, this part of the pen is also the part that gives me the biggest problem.  When you twist from tip to tip, as I mentioned, the pen gives a responsive “bump “back to let you know that the color is now selected, BUT there is absolutely no “bump” or clearly marked spot to completely retract all of the tips.  You basically just need to feel around for a place that “seems” right.  I could be really dense and just missing something here, so feel free to point out what an idiot I might be, but had I known this before I bought the Sharbo X multi pen, it would have been a total deal breaker.  There have been plenty of instances where I thought the tips were all retracted, but I still ended up with ink or pencil sticking me or inadvertently marking something up. I might just be a clumsy fool on this, but I really just can’t believe that such a well manufactured and thought out pen has such an obvious void that needs to be filled.

Zebra Sharbo X Multi Pen Writing Sample

Now beyond my being possibly overly critical about the pen, there is one thing it does REALLY well, the writing experience is absolutely perfect with this pen in terms of the feel and results.  The three colors that I tried all wrote incredibly smooth, and there was no bleed through, show through, or feathering of the ink, and the .3mm pencil even wrote well…and thats coming from a guy who hates writing with pencils, except for the Kuru Toga.  I did most of my writing with this pen in my Levenger Circa daily planner, but also used the Black n Red notebook above for the actual writing sample.  Another noticeable point when writing is that the tips of each component slide in and out of the hole with ease, but with almost zero play when you write, so you don’t get that awful rattle that you get with so many other multi pens, or regular pens with retractable tips.   Again, the precision engineering of this pen are really evident through all of its design.

Overall I was mostly impressed with the Sharbo X, but I probably would not have purchased this had I known about the issue that bugs me so much regarding the inability to completely retract all of the tips in an easy way with a firm feeling about it.  To make it better for me, what I’ve done is remove the mechanical pencil component, and I use that notch in the twisting motion to know that none of the points are extended beyond the tip of the barrel, but I’ve essentially removed 1/3 of the functionality of this otherwise fantastic multi pen by doing so.  As far as cool office supplies and multi pens go, this Zebra Sharbo X is still something I’ll use pretty frequently, but that lingering oversight on the tip will always bug me, not to mention the rubber tip on the cap and that horrible box that it came in.  Zebra did SO much right with this pen, so by setting the bar so high like that, it really makes the other shortcomings stand out more than they would otherwise.

© 2010, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

O'BON Recycled Pencils Made from Newspaper

I received these brightly colored recycled pencils to review from the nice folks over at O’BON, who make a ton of nice green office supplies that are earth friendly, fun, and nicely designed.  The version I am reviewing today are the Rainbow Series pack of 10 2B pencils.

O'BON Recycled Newspaper Pencils Close Up Before Sharpening

At first glance, these O’BON recycled pencils don’t look or feel much different from your ordinary yellow pencil, but as you can see from the photo above, the composition of the bodies of the pencils are quite different.  You can see that instead of wood, there are individual sheets of newspaper that are rolled up around the lead.  You can actually even see the different shades and colors of ink printed on the paper if you look close enough, which is a good sign because obviously it doesn’t appear that they are bleaching or doing anything to use extra chemicals on the paper.

The benefits of using newspaper for the bodies of these pencils go beyond just saving trees, it’s also important to note that the processing of the paper instead of wood uses less energy and resources, plus it produces much less waste.  The only waste left over from the process of creating these pencils is some extra particles of newspaper, which O’BON actually uses to make mulch used in the landscaping surrounding their factory….pretty cool.

Beyond just looking cool and saving resources in the manufacturing process, these pencils are also a bit more sturdy.  With normal wood pencils, if/when you drop them the impact is not absorbed as well as that of the newspaper pencils.  The wood and lead can sometimes split with a normal pencil, but because of the softer and more cushioned properties of the newspaper, there is less of a chance that the lead will break inside the body, and shorten its useful life.

Close up of the Point and Shavings from the O'BON Recycled Newspaper Pencil

One thing that I was really curious to find out about when I got these, was what it was like to sharpen them.  In the photo above you can see how the base of the pencil shows the different layers of newspaper, and better yet, the shavings that you see there are just newspaper and you can really see it when you unravel it.  Just my own personal suggestion here, but you could even follow in the footsteps of the folks at O’BON and use any of your pencil shavings for compost or mulch so you really make sure not to waste anything.

When it gets down to actually writing with these recycled pencils, they preform quite well.  After sharpening them, one thing I was a little worried about was how the section above the lead point would feel.  I thought it might have a feathery or frayed feeling to it if you ran your fingers up against the grain, but surprisingly its quite smooth and there is no edge or roughness to it.  Writing with them was quite smooth, as mentioned in the past I’m not a big pencil person, but these definitely write as well as any other standard pencil I’ve used before.

Overall I’m really impressed with these pencils because, they don’t show any sub-par qualities that you sometimes find with green office supplies, and they clearly have the added bonus of being environmentally friendly.  At about $4 for 10 pencils, these are a great option for those of us who like to try to be environmentally friendly with the things they purchase and use on a daily basis.  Also, one heads up for everyone who is interested in green office supplies, that link there consolidates all of the environmentally friendly office supplies I’ve reviewed, so it will make it easier for you to find them all in the future.

© 2009, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

Ticonderoga Antibacterial Pencils with Microban

With all the talk of Swine Flu, H1N1, and the boogie man, I couldnt pass up the opportunity to take a look at these Antimacrobial pencils from Ticonderoga that I saw at OfficeDepot.  Normally I dont even like to use pencils as I’ve said before, but I feel like that shouldnt limit the office supplies that I review.

Not to make this review a rant on over doing things, but the idea of antimicrobial pencils does seem a little bit overboard to me, but who am I to judge.  When I saw these pencils I just needed something to use with the gripsharp pencil sharpener, so I figured I would grab them since they looked interesting.  Usually when Im in search of cool office supplies to review, Im online and I have a chance to do a little research before I commit to buying them, but with an impulsive purchase such as this, I obviously didnt have that opportunity until I got them home.

After doing the gripsharp review, I started looking around for some more information on these, and it was kind of non-existent.  A little further digging and researching the Microban name did however lead to some interesting information though.  According to the site supereco, the FDA has classified Triclosan (the active ingredient in Microban) as a pesticide, although obviously manufacturers of products that use it claim its safe.

Now Im far from being a scientist, so I wont sit here and tell you that something is or isnt good for you, or that it will or wont kill germs, but I will tell you one thing….washing your hands is a fantastic idea.     Something about the push to rub chemicals all over every household item we have just doesnt seem right, especially when common sense and good basic hygene can be just as effective, if not more effective.

My non-scientific opinion here is that if you want to make sure your kids, or you yourself dont pick up some germs at work or at school, wash your hands with warm water and regular soap, get a good nights sleep, and eat a healthy diet.  Dont let manufacturers of office supplies or other products convince you that the way to go is lathering up everything with chemicals and relying on a quick and easy short cut to protect you from the Swine Flu or some other virus or epidemic.  Another lesson learned here (and thankfully a cheap one at only around $3.00) do some research BEFORE you buy something.  Anyway, apologies for this pseudo-review, but I just thought it was an interesting item to stumble over so I thought Id share my thoughts.

Oh, and one last thought, labeling your product “The Worlds Best Pencil” dosent make it true, because if things were that easy, there would be a new banner at the top of this site that said “Worlds Best Office Supplies Blog” and Id recommend that if you want a REALLY awesome pencil, (mechanical pencil actually) try the Uniball Kuru Toga, but just make sure to wash your hands every now and then between uses.

NOTE: Some of you may have seen the version of the image with the text directly on it, that was only reserved for one particular blog that insists on continuing to steal all of my content scraped completely from my RSS feeds, and thworn up as their own.  Anyone who wishe sto snip parts of my reviews/photos is more than welcome to as long as you are not pretending it is your own.

© 2009, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

The gripsharp pencil sharpener and grip

There are  so many cool ideas out there for office supplies, and I always find it fascinating because when it comes to something like a pencil or a pencil sharpener, I never think there is much room for improvement.  When I was contacted by the people that make the gripsharp pencil sharpener, I was surprised yet again by the creativity of their product.

The gripsharp pencil sharpener with pencil inserted, but not sharpened yet

It is pretty easy to tell from just looking at the gripsharp how it is intended to be used.  You simply insert the end of a pencil into the top and push it in  until it wont go any further, and just start twisting it to sharpen your pencil.  In addition to being a permanent addition to your pencil to act as a sharpener, it also helps to provide a nice meaty and noslip grip for you.  As you can tell from the first photo, it comes in various colors.

Close up of the gripsharp results infront of a regularly sharpened pencil

The first thing I wanted to do when I got this was compare it with a regular pencil sharpener to see how quickly it sharpens a brand new pencil.  I gave it a test and it turns out that the gripsharp does take a few more twists to get the pencil ready to go.  With a regular pencil sharpener it took me 25 twists (not full rotations) and with the gripsharp it took about 42 twists.  It was not evident as to why this was the case until after I took the pencil out of the gripsharp later on, but you will see the photo and reason why later.

Comparison of pencil points, regularly sharpened (left) and sharpened with the gripsharp (right)

Before I even mention writing with the newly sharpened pencil, you can probably already see one glaring difference between the regularly sharpened pencil and the one using the gripsharp, and that is that the lead itself is not sharpened to a point, instead the lead is left alone, and all of the wood surrounding the lead is stripped away.  According to the manufacturer, this serves two purposes.  First is that it creates a much more sturdy and durable writing implement, and the second is that it makes for a pencil that actually uses ALL of the lead instead of sharpening so much of it away.

A pencil removed from the gripsharp after being sharpened

If you look at the photo above,  you can see that the sharpener does a great job of only removing the wood from the pencil, and it leaves behind all of the lead.  Obviously you can only use this with a standard size pencil to get these results, and a fatter pencil wouldnt really fit through the top of the gripsharp anyway.

Writing sample using the gripsharp pencil sharpener

The most important (and fun) part of reviewing all of these cool office supplies is putting them to use.  With the gripsharp, it goes against my personal preference to have a super fine writing implement, so I had to adjust to that and kind of block out any bias.  The thing that I noticed immediately was that the grip itself made writing with a pencil much more comfortable.  Although the majority of the gripsharp has kind of a rounded look to it, there are 3 flat surfaces that run up along the length of its rubber surface that have ridges (kind of like the ones on the side of the highway to keep you on the road if you fall asleep) to increase the friction between it and your fingers.  In addition to the better grip that it provides, it also just thickens up the area that you hold onto, which has always been an issue for me.  I feel that writing with a normal pencil forces your fingers to hold a smaller  and more slippery surface, which makes any extended writing with a pencil a laborious task.

After I started writing with the pencil for the first time, I found it helpful to rotate the tip a bit on a sheet of scrap paper just to take off any harsh edges.  As I continued to write with the pencil I got used to writing with a thicker point, but I did have a few minor issues getting my writing to line up where I intended to on the page.  This was mostly due to holding the pencil at a certain angle that didnt let me see the tip because I couldnt see past the fatter section of the gripsharp.  Again, this just took a few minutes of writing to get used to, so I wouldnt consider it a show stopper.  One other minor adjustment that I had to make was with rotating the pencil as I wrote.  Normally when I write with a pencil I tend to rotate it to keep the point sharp, so with the thicker grip and the previously mentioned 3 flat surfaces on it, you have to be a little more conscious about how far you are actually rotating it so that you turn 1/3 of the way around to get the grip to settle correctly between your fingers.  If you have used a Lamy Safari before, the grip on that is somewhat similar to the gripsharp.

Once I was able to get adjusted to the wider point, and the rotating issues, the gripsharp definitely made for a much better writing experience than I was used to with a traditional pencil.  The better and wider grip just makes it so much more comfortable, plus it eliminates the sweaty hands issue of having the pencil become slippery.  This might not be the ideal office supply tool for very fine or detailed writing, but for standard writing, and even for some art and construction projects, this is a great little item to have on hand.

Lastly, the gripsharp folks were kind enough to send over 5 of these as you can tell from the pictures so Ill be doing a giveaway a little later this week where there will be 4 lucky winners, so keep an eye out for your chance to win some more cool office supplies.  If you would rather not try your luck and wait though, you can always buy your gripsharp directly from their site here.

© 2009, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

The Uniball Kuru Toga Mechanical Pencil.

As long as there have been office supplies, there have been pencils, and as long as there have been pencils, there have been people like myself who could not stand writing with them because of how quickly the points of them became dull.  Leave it to Uni-ball to come up with a solution to this problem though, they have now brought their innovative Kuru Toga to the US and it is currently available here on Amazon.com.

You might also notice in the picture above, there are eight of the Kuru Toga shown, and curiously enough, the title for this post also mentions that there is not only a review of this fine mechanical pencil, but also a BIG giveaway…so to quickly answer what many of you might be thinking, yes…there will be a contest to win the Kuru Toga, and yes, there will be eight winners of this awesome pencil, so just read through to the end of this review to see why this pencil is so amazing, and how you can win one.  There are also some questions you might have about the pencil and the technology that @Uniball_Pen_Gal was able to answer for us, so look for those towards the end of the review.  If you are really impatient, then you can just go ahead and click on the Amazon.com link above and buy one…but for now, why not continue reading the review and find out why you NEED one of these pencils.

The Uniball Kuru Toga, an unassuming mechanical pencil that holds a fantastic surprise.

At first glance, the Uni-ball Kuru Toga mechanical pencil looks like your average mechanical pencil.  It has a nice sleek black body, a capped eraser, and a sturdy clip.  When you take a closer look, you notice the grip section of this pencil is clear, and it seems to be showing off something under there.  What you will find under the clear plastic section is the Uni-ball Kuru Toga Engine (KuruToga is Japanese for “Twist and Turn”) which twists and turns the pencil lead to provide an always sharp and evenly worn pencil lead which results in the finest line I’ve ever experienced when writing with a pencil.

A close up of the Kuru Toga Engine and the impact that it has on a mechanical pencil lead.

The above picture was supplied to me by the fine folks at Uni-ball (as well as the giveaway pencils) and it does a great job of showing the intricate machinery and how it works.  The best part of this picture is the close up of the ordinary pencil lead after writing with it compared to the Kuru Toga lead after writing with it.  The only better way to really show the impact of this great technology is by showing a writing sample which I am always fond of doing.  For this writing sample though, I decided I wanted more than just some text on a sheet of paper, so I decided to do a comparison with a crossword puzzle since I know many folks use pencils for this activity…not really office supply related, unless you are Stanley from The Office but I feel as though this is a really good way to show the benefits of the Kuru Toga.

A crossword puzzle done with an ordinary mechanical pencil.

The above crossword puzzle from BestCrosswords.com was filled out with an ordinary mechanical pencil.  For purposes of this writing sample and test, Ill admit…I had the answers so technically I cheated.   I filled out the crossword going across from left to right, moving down the puzzle, basically the same pattern you would normally read and write in.  I just felt that this gave the best visual of how the ordinary mechanical pencil point dulls as you write.  In my opinion, the deterioration of the ordinary mechanical pencil becomes evident at about 15 across, which is very early on in the puzzle.  The line starts to get a bit thicker, and you can really feel the drag of the pencil on the paper.  Enough of that I thought…but I suffered through and finished the puzzle, and you can see that by the time you get to the last row, the fine point from this ordinary mechanical pencil was long gone.  So lets move on…

The same crossword puzzle done with the Uniball Kuru Toga mechanical pencil.

This photo shows what happens when you do the same crossword puzzle with the Uni-ball Kuru Toga.  From 1 across to 69 across you get a crisp clean, and most importantly a very fine line with the Kuru Toga.  It is amazing to see that as you write with this pencil it is actually keeping up with you and giving the lead a slight twist to keep the dull point of the lead constantly turning away so you dont have to continually write with it and get a fat dull line.  Basically the pencil takes over the work that most mechanical pencil users need to do on their own by continuing to reposition the pencil between their fingers to keep the sharp point of the lead in place as the point you are writing with.

Side by side comparison of the Kuru Toga (top) vs the ordinary mechanical pencil (bottom) after the same amount of writing.

I think this last sample from the crossword puzzle shows the best contrast between the Uniball Kuru Toga and an ordinary mechanical pencil.  Each letter above is significantly thinner and more crisp when written with the Kuru Toga pencil as compared to the ordinary pencil.  I think that the Kuru Toga Engine probably turned the lead a bit once I finished writing the letter “E” above.  I typically write the letter “E” by starting off with an “L” and then making the short middle dash and finally the top line of the letter, so upon close examination of the picture above, I think the pencil turned the lead right after I made the top line of the “E” and the beginning of the “S” reflects the new sharp point of the lead hitting the paper.  The only thing that the bottom picture shows is why I have always hated using a pencil…until of course I was lucky enough to get my hands on the Kuru Toga.

Now that you can see the results of the Kuru Toga mechanical pencil as compared to an ordinary mechanical pencil, you can see why I’ve completely changed my tune when it comes to writing with a pencil.  The Kuru Toga changed writing with a pencil from a chore, to a pleasant experience that I now look forward to.  As I said before, this pencil is currently available here on Amazon.com and it comes with two extra erasers, and Uni-ball’s .5mm Diamond Infused lead that resits breakage.  With all of the technology and uniqueness of this pen, its easy to forget about the standard things I usually look at when reviewing a pen, or pencil.  I can say that this pencil is very comfortable to write with, and the grip section is pretty comfortable although I usually prefer a grip that is rubber coated as compared to just straight plastic, however there are some ridges on this grip that help to keep the pen from slipping.  It also has a thin rubber coated ring towards the bottom section of the grip, which is a tiny bit low for my taste, but it certainly is not a deal breaker on such a great pencil, and one that I would consider the best mechanical pencil you can buy.

There are some questions that I mentioned earlier that I had, and that you probably have about the Kuru Toga, so here is what I was able to find out from @Uniball_Pen_Gal:

-Will the Kuru Toga come in sizes other than a .5mm?
Currently the 0.5mm will be the only size offered due to the complexity of the engine inside the KuruToga that allows the lead to rotate while writing. The gear inside the engine becomes larger as the diameter of the lead increases causing the need for more force to rotate the lead. Ultimately this results in a less enjoyable writing experience for the consumer. Uni-ball is currently working a solution to this issue – stay tuned, a point 0.7mm is in the works.

-Will the Kuru Toga be available in colors other than black?
For now only the black barrel color will be available however; that does not rule out launching more colors in the future if the need is there.

-Will the technology be deployed to other lines of pencils, such as a more high end version that is made of some type of metal or alloy?
This is the first mechanical pencil that has launched under the Uni-Ball brand name and we have every intention to launch more in the future. Uni-ball continues to innovate the writing instrument category, developing new technologies to solve consumer frustrations. I am not currently aware of a high-end version of the Kuru Toga becoming available.

-Besides Amazon.com, where else can I get the Kuru Toga?
It will be made available at @OfficeDepot the week of 6/15.

Now…for the contest.  Ill keep it simple, post a comment on this thread, and you are entered for the contest, only one entry per person.  You have one week to leave a comment on this thread, so that means you have until Mon. May 18th at 11:59 PM Eastern.  On Tue. May 19th I will post the winners selected by Random.org, the post listing the winners will also give you instructions for claiming your prize.  There will be no reminders to check back here or to claim your prize because these pencils are so fantastic, I want to ensure that they will go to folks who really want them.  GOOD LUCK!

One last thing, I know that not everyone who reads my blog is a Twitter user, but if you are, you should make sure to follow @Uniball_Pen_Gal on there since she is the one who was good enough to make this fantastic giveaway of the Kuru Toga mechanical pencils possible for all of you office supply geeks (and me) out there.

© 2009 – 2010, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.