Posts filed under Mechanical Pencil

Leuchtturm Drehgriffel Mechanical Pencil Review

The fact that I’m sitting here thinking about if the Leuchtturm Drehgriffel Mechanical Pencil is better than the Drehgriffel Ballpoint pen I already love tells you what I think about this pencil. Is it better, though? Maybe. Is it better than a traditional mechanical pencil? That’s a tougher question to answer, but I’m going to give it a shot today.

The Mechanical Pencil was a surprise entrant into the Drehgriffel lineup, at least for me. The Ballpoint seemed to be a success, so why not a pencil? From standard colors, to gel ink refills, to building your own pen from an array of colors, I’ve enjoyed all things Drehgriffel. Would I enjoy the pencil? Clearly, yes.

What is it about this lineup that I like so much? The design is wonderful. It has a vintage feel with modern colors. It’s small and slim, so it fits in many places, including in the hand nicely when it’s time to write. The aluminum barrel feels sturdy, and both models - Ballpoint and Mechanical Pencil - use a twist mechanism to extend and retract the tip or graphite.

Leuchtturm Drehgriffel Ballpoint and Mechanical Pencil — *My custom built ballpoint.*

The pencil ships with 0.7 mm HB graphite, and it does a nice job. I do find it to be slightly on the Hard side of the scale, but that works well if you are looking for a portable pencil. That’s where this Drehgriffel thrives. In other areas, like when compared to more traditional mechanical pencils, it falls a bit short.

For starters, there is no eraser. That’s not a deal-breaker for me, but is mandatory for others. What may be closer to a deal-breaker, is the aforementioned twist mechanism. To extend the graphite, you give the mechanism on the end of the pencil a quarter-twist, counter-clockwise, for each stage you would like to extend. For me, that’s two clicks (it’s a ratchet-style mechanism that snaps back after each twist,) to get my preferred writing length.

Leuchtturm Drehgriffel Mechanical Pencil Comparison — *Rotring 600, left. Pentel Sharp, right.*

While this mechanism is functional, it becomes weird when it is time to retract the lead. For that, you will hold the twist instead of letting it go, and push the graphite back in, either with your finger or on the page or desk. It’s easy enough, and it feels weird to complain about something that works fine, but decades of standard mechanical pencil operation had me overthinking this.

Leuchtturm Drehgriffel Mechanical Pencil Grip — *You may have to grip the Drehgriffel further back on the barrel.*

Another design element to consider is the grip section. While it matches the entire Drehgriffel design aesthetic, the large nose cone is more befitting of a traditional wooden pencil than a mechanical one. Most typical mechanical pencils, especially of the engineering variety, have some form of straight-sided grip section. There are some notable exceptions - the Pentel Sharp is a big one - so keep that in mind if that is important to you.

With all of the pros and cons laid out, there is of course one more detail to consider: price. This is a $34 mechanical pencil, which puts it well into the upper end of the price spectrum for mechanical pencils. I think that limits who this pencil is for. Leuchtturm fans will enjoy it, as will stationery nerds like myself. It would also make for a good gift. Otherwise, I think it might be a tough sell for a user needing a mechanical pencil, or a random stationery purchase.

Leuchtturm Drehgriffel Mechanical Pencil Writing

For me, I enjoy it and I can see using it frequently. It will be a nice travel companion since it doesn’t have a lead pipe on the front that can get bent, and it is more writer-ish than my favorite travel pencil, the Caran d’Ache Fixpencil. And who knows, if Leuchtturm ever offers the opportunity to build your own, I may add another one to the arsenal.

(Vanness Pens provided this product at a discount to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Leuchtturm Drehgriffel Mechanical Pencil Close

Posted on July 14, 2025 by Brad Dowdy and filed under Leuchtturm, Drehgriffel, Mechanical Pencil, Pencil Reviews.

“I very much disagree with your list.” An Artist’s Look at their Top 10 Mechanical Pencils.

(My good friend Carol, aka Slumberland Studio has thoughts on mechanical pencils. As an artist, she has needs that I don’t have, and was happy to share them with me. She kindly allowed me to share them with you, too.)

Hi Brad,

You got it incorrect, and I’m sorry I very much disagree with your list! As we are pals I think you know I love you and I would like to be the first to help you with this. ;)

I have been using mechanical pencils - or as I knew them in my teens as drafting pencils some 50 years ago - and still do daily, when I was in drafting class in high school. Drafting pencils were used for detail in class - they were constant width and line quality and thin lines. They are purpose made.

I write this as to first define the topic. Over the decades (gasp!) these pencils are more widely used by artists and writers, however the primary rationale still is valid. Technical lines with consistent value, hue, and weight. Wooden pencils are for tone, and line shading weight for thick and thin, and light and dark. Mechanical - these are the go to for “let’s not change - let’s be reliable for no variation whatsoever” - haha.

Here’s a look at what my list would look like.

10- Stadetler 925

9- Platinum Pro-use 171

8- Pentel Orenz Automatic

7- Pentel Sharp p205

6- Pilot S10

5- Spoke Model 4

4- Uni Kura Toga Metal Phantom

3- Rotring 600

2- Pilot S20 or S30

1- Pentel Orenz Nero Automatic

Runner up that I couldn’t get on the list but wanted to Pentel Kerry.

Pencils that are vintage that hold my heart are the Alvin Draftmatic but it can’t make my list because it’s not practical for use with that razor knurling. I can appreciate it and love it and would never sell or lose mine but they don’t get used. Tombow Shaker as well not practical as the shaking causes more problems than it solves for.

Likewise pencils that would compete high up on the list include Luddite Tech Draw/Everdraw from Japan and Pilot Automac, both are difficult to find and if you do will cost.

Oddball mechanical pencils that I adore include Ohto MS01, Pentel PG5, Rotring Tikky Retro (older model without that rubber grip), Pilot Legno, Uni Shift Pipe Lock, TWSBI Precision and Rhodia mechanical pencils.

Thanks for listening. I’m passionate about mechanical pencils as you are with fountain pens. First loves.

Love, Carol Slumberland Studio

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Posted on October 29, 2024 by Brad Dowdy and filed under Mechanical Pencil.

Uni Kuru Toga Metal Mechanical Pencil Review

Is the Uni Kuru Toga Mechanical Pencil the best technical advancement in stationery over the past 20 years? It might be, and if it isn’t, it’s near the top of the list. As a counterpoint, does anyone need the lead rotation mechanism that sets this pencil apart from the rest of the mechanical pencil market? We will get to that point in a minute.

This is far from the first Kuru Toga we have reviewed on The Pen Addict. We will mix one in every year or two when they come out with a new and interesting model. The pricey Kuru Toga Dive ($50-$100, depending on a litany of variables,) was, and still is, an outlier in the interesting department, and still brings all the pencil heads to the yard. The standard Kuru Togas, like the colorful $7 KS model, keeps the product lineup fresh, interesting, and popular.

Where does one of their latest releases - the Kuru Toga Metal - fit in with the rest of the product lineup, and the overall mechanical pencil space?

*The barrel opening helps show the rotation in action, moving from white to orange as it engages.*

On merit, this is a great pencil. The aluminum barrel gives it a nice feel in hand - sturdy and solid, but not heavy. The grip and barrel feature varying widths of ridges for a stable grip feel. The clip is strong, the knock is nice, the nose cone is designed … wait, what’s that in the nose cone?

Aside from the metal barrel, Uni is marketing a resin nib damper that reduces tip wobble. Has mechanical pencil tip wobble been a problem that I have overlooked for years, because never once have I run across it. I guess maybe if the pencil features a retractable pipe there could be, but the Kuru Toga Metal doesn’t have that feature. Traditionally, mechanical pencil tips feature one large nose cone that is rigid and static, with no opportunity to wiggle. And given the detailed work that is often required from pencils like this, I think I would have heard more about it.

*From L to R: no nib damper, nib damper, no nib damper.*

But then again, there has to be a reason to charge $36 for a mechanical pencil. I’m just not sure “nib damper” is on my checklist of required features.

Rewinding back to my earlier question: do you need a lead rotation mechanism in your mechanical pencil? I’ll be the first to tell you that I like this feature, and it absolutely works as described. To test it, I fixed my fingers on the grip and wrote the same phrase over and over to see what the tip of the graphite looked like when finished. It came to almost a perfect point, which is impressive.

*The graphite shape after my fixed grip writing. It works!*

What if I rotate the pencil in my hands while using it? Does the mechanism still work? Absolutely, but then you just have a normal mechanical pencil in your hands where your manual grip rotation works alongside the mechanical rotation and makes different width lines on the pages, depending on the position of the graphite.

Is this too much to think about? I think so. I’m a pen and pencil rotator, so outside of fountain pens, I’m constantly spinning the barrel in my hand. With pencils it is more prevalent, of course, and while it would be a choice to never spin the pencil and let the Kuru Toga do its thing, I don’t think that is possible.

*Top to bottom: Kuru Toga Dive, Rotring 600, Kuru Toga Metal, Pentel Sharp, Spoke Model 4.*

I buy Uni Kuru Toga mechanical pencils because they are well-made mechanical pencils and they look cool. I don’t buy them for the lead rotation technology, despite the fact I think the technology is awesome. I’m guessing this is an obvious take, and many people fall into this category. I like the rotation when I need it … have I ever needed it?

The last bit to cover is where the Uni Kuru Toga Metal Mechanical Pencil fits within my recommendations of the rest of the Kuru Toga product lineup. The $36 price tag makes it easy to move down the rankings, especially given that I believe the Roulette model is the best model, and is only $13.50. That is a steal at that price. The Advance model ranks ahead of the Roulette in style options, and costs even less at $8.50.

Instead of listing out even more I’d pick ahead of it, I think the only one I wouldn’t is the Advance Upgrade model. I didn’t get along with that barrel design at all.

I completely get along with the Metal model, I’m just not sure the price gets along with the competition.

(This pencil was sent to me by a friend living in Japan. Thank you Jacob!)

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