I don't usually write these reviews, but I was extremely irritated with the way this product turned out for me.
As a high school math teacher I am always in need of a good pencil sharpener, but considering I personally buy more than half of my school supplies, I couldn't afford to spend a lot on one. After reading the reviews, and deciding to purchase it, I anticipated receiving a great working sharpener for little money!
NOT THE CASE. After "teaching" my students how to work the sharpener - hold the pencil firmly, press VERY gently, take it out quickly - over and over again, it broke. It constantly would break the lead off the pencil and get stuck in the sharpener. And finally it just completely quit working. So after only four weeks of school, it is getting no use whatsoever but collecting dust in my desk, while my students are back using 99cent plastic sharpeners. It worked great for me personally, but for a classroom of young adults/teenagers, it is not worth it! X-Acto 16750 Battery-Powered Pencil Sharpener, Black
My old battery operated pencil sharpener died a miserable death a few months ago and I needed a replacement. I vacilated between a battery-operated one and an electric one. I finally decided on the battery-operated sharpener as I have noticed no difference in the life length between the two--I use electric ones on my desk at work. At any rate, I decided on the X-ACTO Razor Blade Battery Sharpener. I also purchased a package of rechargeable batteries for it.
The sharpener has worked perfectly each time that I have used it. Another reviewer mentioned art pencils and it is a valid point to take into consideration. I haven't used art pencils in a while so cannot speak to that. One complaint mentioned that the catch-container is only large enough to sharpen 1 or 2 pencils before it needs to be emptied. That has not been my experience. I can go several days--and several sharpenings--without needing to empty the container.
My only complaint about the sharpener--and it has been my complaint with most of those I have owned--it's noisy as in very. The cat runs out of the room each time that I use it. That said, it is a small price to pay for a perfectly sharpened pencil.
just about every time i've ever use this thing it pulls the lead out of the pencil and clogs the sharpening device with said lead. you have to take it apart and dig out the lead and then grind away another inch of pencil to compensate for the lead that fell out. if you are very lucky you only need to waste about 3-4 inches of pencil to get one point.
I needed a portable, light, and inexpensive sharpener for my pencils- regular graphite #2, a variety of drawing pencils (including charcoal and graphite in assorted soft/hardnesses), colored pencils, and watercolor pencils. This sharpener has done a perfect job on all of them. I haven't had any problems with tips breaking off or shattering, and the pencil tip is always a perfect razor-fine sharpness with a good balance of wood to graphite/lead. I especially like that I no longer have to use an X-Acto knife to get my pencils to a good sharpness for the different grips I use when I draw.
The only caveat to this sharpener is you must hold the sharpener in one hand and the pencil in the other, unless you manage to secure it to your work surface. The motor is powerful that either the pencil or the sharpener will try and spin when you insert a pencil and it turns on. But if you secure both pencil and sharpener, it only takes one or two rotations for the pencil to be sharpened completely. Beware of over-sharpening, which will weaken your pencil and sometimes I have a tendency to do. Less is more with this unit.
I can't recommend this sharpener enough. It can be a little loud (but not loud enough to cause shock and awe, or be heard in the next room) but what pencil sharpener isn't? It's small, inexpensive, sharp, hard-working, and super-portable. For only a few dollars for than a cheapy plastic "do it yourself" model, it's an essential tool for any artist, student, household, or crafter.
This thing was a disaster, and I gave it a chance. Really, I did. A few years.... It simply chews up pencils. Just when you think it's almost sharp, snap! Broken lead, and somehow, it breaks the lead way down the shaft so you have to chew off another inch or two before you finally get something resembling a sharp pencil. So frustrating!
Oh, and don't even get me started on what happens to those broken leads! You have to take off the shaving-catcher/cover thing and get something like a toothpick to dislodge it while the darn blade keeps moving..... Arrrggghh! Then, when you try to put the cover back on, it feels as though it's going to break, (though in all fairness, it never did).
In. The. Trash. Can. Sharpened all 24 required pencils for my son's school by hand, thank you very much. - Battery-operate - X-acto - Battery - Electric Pencil Sharpener'
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