Thursday, 20 August 2009
Pencil Sharpener - school supplies, pencil sharpeners
Only buy this pencil sharpener if you want to replace it each year. The sharpener worked very well until the end of the school year and then the blades became dull and would not sharpen the pencils. Hunt Company replaced the blades under warranty. Now that the warranty has expired, they refuse to replace the blades and won't sell the blade replacements. What a shame that electric pencil sharpeners are supposed to be disposable! X-Acto School Pro Heavy-Duty Electric Sharpener (1670)
I have gone through three School-Pro Sharpeners in four years. When it works, this sharpener is wonderful. It accomodates several different pencil sizes, has a huge shavings receptacle and runs quietly. My first sharpener lasted through two school years. The second one lasted about a year and a half. The company replaced it for free after I complained. The replacement lasted only a few months. They all had the same problem. When a pencil was inserted the the blades would spin, but they didn't sharpen. I think there was a problem with the automatic pencil stop feature. If the company would address this design flaw, I would consider buying another School-Pro.
I bought this sharpener because we have a large collection of very thick color pencils which require the largest hole on this sharpener to sharpen. This sharpener works fine.However, I was rather surprised by its large size. It is twice as tall as most of the electric sharpeners one sees in offices and homes, and it is wider and heavier.
While it worked, this was a great sharpener. The problem is that it only worked for three months. RIP OFF! Don't advertise that it's for school use unless it will last at least one school year. I have a much lower quality model that is going on its third year in my classroom, and it advertises for office use. The jokes on me!
I loved my Boston School Pro. The kids in my class were forever griding away on my old fashioned crank sharpener, and other teachers were contantly complaining about their loud electrict sharpeners that would quickly burn out on standardized testing weeks. With the Boston School Pro, teachers came to my room (or sent kids to my room) to sharpen pencils for the Stanford 9 test. There is a audible difference when students pencils have achieved ultimate sharpness. No more wasting time at the sharpner!
Every teacher at our school got one of these at the beginning of the year. NONE of them made it through March. The internal gears are made of cheap plastic that quickly wear out. While the cutters no longer turn, the units do squeal quite nicely! One star becuase it's the minimum available!
I'm a middle school teacher and bought two of these on the advice of a colleague. Both broke down before the end of the year. So did the two my colleague bought. It turned out she hadn't used one before but was taken by the imposing hero shot of the sharpener.
The company was completely unresponsive to the several phone messages I left.
A hand sharpener works better in the long run. Don't waste your money.
I have been teaching math for a few years and have had more trouble with sharpeners than students. I was going through several sharpeners a year. I was comfortable spending 20is dollars at Wal-Mart(where America shops for value). I was getting about 6 months out of each sharpener. This Boston School Pro is much better. While more expensive, it has lasted 2 and a half years. I have had trouble getting new blades and feel that I will never, I end up saving money in the long run. I was spending $60 plus every two and a half years and now spend $30 every two and a half. If Texas will get it's act together and give teachers the raise they were talking about I might be able to cover my pencil sharpener budget. - Pencil Sharpeners - Electric Pencil Sharpener - School Supplies - Electric Sharpener'
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