Kum Masterpiece Pencil Sharpener Review

(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Twitter.)

I'd heard legends of the Kum Masterpiece long before it landed in my mailbox. When it arrived, I was anxious to see if it would live up to its reputation--and the layers of packaging only served to heighten the anticipation. The handmade magnesium block sharpener sits inside a clear plastic box that slips into a neoprene sheath with a snap closure. Overkill? Maybe. Or maybe it's there to keep this precision device from sharpening the very air you breathe into stabby spears of oxygen death.

You see, this doesn't just sharpen pencils--it weaponizes them. It does this with a two-step process. Step one uses hole #1, the wider of the two. This blade strips the wood from around the graphite core. When the tip of your exposed lead touches the blue barrier at the end, you're ready for step #2. The second blade sharpens the exposed graphite to a needle point. It took a little practice to hold the pencil at just the right angle to engage the blade, but when you've got it lined up, you'll see a little pile of lead shavings appear.

Step 1

Everyone has one of those pinprick pencil lead tattoos from where they accidentally stabbed themselves with a pencil, right? Well, you're about to get a few more. In fact, you might not want to give this sharpener to your kids, or junior's third-grade class might end up looking like the stone men from Game of Thrones.

Step 2

I tried the sharpener on several brands of pencils of varying hardness. All the pencils I tried--from a very soft Blackwing, to a very hard pencil of indeterminate brand, to a Prismacolor Verithin colored pencil--sharpened beautifully. Each had a very small piece of the tip break off when I started to write, but the remaining tip was, in each case, still what I would consider an ultra-fine line. How long that fineness was maintained was more due to the lead hardness than anything, but the long narrow point that the Masterpiece creates definitely prolongs the writing session between sharpenings.

Things I will definitely use this for:
Sketching charts and diagrams for my knitting and crochet projects
Helping my son with his math homework
Sharpening all of my colored pencils into an arsenal of fine-tip fun

I'll also do my best to keep this powerful tool out of the hands of those who would use it for evil. Namely, the aforementioned third-grader.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Autopoint Jumbo All-American Mechanical Pencil Review

I remember Autopoint mechanical pencils from when I was a kid. Not because I used them regularly, but from the fact that my grandfather’s art studio had them in nearly every drawer, or on every desk.

They were there because in the 1970’s, and I’m sure before and after, Autopoint did a lot of corporate branding work. I remember Exxon and Esso models specifically (my grandfather was in the oil business), and mostly I remember the big, bulky design of the pencil. I didn’t recall the name of them until I saw them show up recently at JetPens. Seeing that design brought back a wave of memories and I knew I had to get one to try out.

I went with the basic red 0.9 mm model. They don’t come any finer that that, but that is ok. These pencils were made to be used hard, and the width and strength of the 0.9 mm lead helps out with that. The same goes for the bulky barrel and large eraser.

One of the calling cards of the Autopoint design is how you refill the lead. You unscrew the tip of the pencil, unscrew the plunger, load a single lead, then put it back together. The pencil is twist to extend, too, so most of the action is up front.

The rear of the pencil can hold your spare leads under the eraser, and you will need them because they are half size leads. I hate to call them proprietary because you can snap other leads in half to make the length work, but it’s easier to just buy the Autopoint refills I think. As a bonus, they do come in a variety of colors.

The eraser itself works better than I remember, but that is mostly because they were petrified on the old pencils I used. Hooray for fresh erasers!

Auto point pencils are still made in the USA, come in several colors, and also in the amazing Twinpoint model, which I remember liberating from my grandfather quite frequently. I need to pick one of those up soon as well.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Enjoy reading The Pen Addict? Then consider becoming a member to receive additional weekly content, giveaways, and discounts in The Pen Addict shop. Plus, you support me and the site directly, which I am very grateful for.

Membership starts at just $5/month, with a discounted annual option available. To find out more about membership click here and join us!

Kutsuwa Stad T'Gaal Pencil Sharpener Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

I haven't been in the woodcase pencil game very long, but one of the first things I realized after buying a few pencils is that I didn't really have any pencil sharpeners. Thinking back, I hadn't owned a pencil sharpener since middle school, which makes sense given that's the time I was allowed to switch to using pens for class. And, just like the woodcase pencil world, there's a wide variety of sharpeners you can buy.

After trying a few, I noticed the Kutsuwa Stad T'Gaal sharpener on Jetpens. Besides, the difficult name, it sported a unique dial on the front that caught my interest. The benefit of this sharpener is that you can choose between 5 different sharpened lead core lengths. In other words, this sharpener can give you a short, stubby writing length, a long, pointy writing end, and three degrees in between. There are a number of reasons you might want different core lengths, but most of them boil down to preference. For me, it was mostly curiosity because I didn't really know what kind of length I preferred.

For less than $7, you can buy a sharpener that gives you an idea of what different core lengths do to a pencil. In a way, each length setting gives the pencil a different character.

So, how does it work? Simple: just rotate the dial to the core length you want (represented by the numbers 1 - 5), and sharpen away.

Setting 1 will sharpen the pencil to a short core length. This gives the tip a sharp angle that produces a stubby writing tip. I like this setting for some uses because after you wear down the initial sharp point, you have a wide, blunt tip to work with. This is great for shading or writing with a wider line width.

Setting 3 looks like the standard pencil core length you get from any other sharpener in school. It's the middle-ground setting, so that makes sense here. For most people, this will feel very familiar. It's a good setting for general writing.

Setting 5 produces the longest core length, accompanied by a very sharp tip. Obviously, you can get a very fine line with this setting, but it also makes the tip brittle.

Settings 2 and 4 are, shockingly, in between their surrounding settings. Is setting 3 too long, but setting 1 too short? Setting 2 might be perfect for you.

As an added bonus, there's also a "Closed" position on the dial that closes a small door at the sharpening hole to prevent shavings leaking out when being carried or moved.

When it's time to empty out all those shavings, there's a small door on the back of the sharpener. In my use, this door is a little small and needs help to empty the shavings, but it gets the job done. More importantly, this sharpener does a great job at keeping all the shavings inside while using it and carrying it in bags.

JetPens offer these sharpeners in four delightful colors: Orange, Green, Pink, and Light blue.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Enjoy reading The Pen Addict? Then consider becoming a member to receive additional weekly content, giveaways, and discounts in The Pen Addict shop. Plus, you support me and the site directly, which I am very grateful for.

Membership starts at just $5/month, with a discounted annual option available. To find out more about membership click here and join us!