Kunisawa Find Smart Note Notebook Review

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

A couple years ago, I reviewed a collection of Kunisawa Find Smart notebooks. I wasn't terribly impressed by these notebooks in 2018, but it's curious what a difference two years can make. I don't think anything changed regarding the notebook materials, but after a second try I've decided I like these notebooks a lot more than I did originally.

The Kunisawa Find Smart Note Notebook is a small hardcover notebook that's slightly taller and less wide than a standard A6 notebook (the Hobonichi Techo is a popular A6 notebook for comparison). The size makes it easy to slip into most pockets, but the top will certainly stick out of the top of most pockets and bag dividers. At 5.9 inches tall and 4.1 inches wide, it's a bit awkward. Shorter than the regular Traveler's notebook, but a little wider than your standard pocket notebook (Field Notes), it took my brain a few minutes to determine if the paper size worked for me or not. In the end, I decided that I really like the additional height and width over the standard pocket notebook. Sadly, it still doesn't fit in any cases or pockets that are specifically designed for pocket notebooks (5.5x3.5 inches).

The hard cover is wrapped in a tough fabric-like material that has a pleasing texture and tactile feel. The only branding on the exterior of the notebook is an embossed Kunisawa logo with gold foil. The cover feels durable and sturdy without losing any elegance. The gold edging on the paper also adds to the elegant aesthetic of this notebook, which pairs well with the black cover. Inside the notebook, the front inside cover features a quote, "I do not seek, I find." This doesn't mean much to me, and I have to wonder if the meaning is somewhat lost in translation. Either way, it's subtle and doesn't detract from the overall aesthetic. The back interior cover features the same Kunisawa logo in a dark ink. Branding is minimal with this notebook, which just adds to the sleek elegance.

Inside the covers, you're greeted with a smooth ivory/cream-colored paper with a 2.5mm grid pattern. I'm not a fan of the paper color or the grid size, but I will say it's grown on me. I don't mind it as much after using the notebook for a while, but my eyes are glad to see a generous 7 or 8mm graph or dot grid after a while. The small grid just seems too busy. I appreciate it can be extremely helpful with architectural and design sketches that require a lot of precision, but it's still too much for normal use. Once you get comfortable with how small or large to make your writing in order to fit the grid properly, you quickly get into the swing. After a while, this became a convenient and stylish way to keep quick notes and lists during the day.

The paper is 81.4 gsm (precise!) and does a fair job of handing all the inks I threw at it. I haven't noticed any bleeding or feathering, but the ink shows through to the back of the page quite a lot. If you're using anything besides a wet fountain pen, water colors, or other really wet ink, the show-through isn't bad at all. But, if you like wide and wet nibs, this paper is really only good on the front page of each sheet. Speaking of sheets, this notebook only has 40 of them. Not a lot to work with by any means.

At almost $15, the Kunisawa Find Smart Note Notebook is hard to recommend. The materials and build quality more than justify the price, but the simple fact is that you can find lots of notebooks that provide more utility and value than this one. This is one of those cases where the aesthetic or form factor needs to grab you before you consider purchasing it. The paper size really is an interesting experiment in seeing how big a pocket-able notebook can be, and the durable covers just feel great in the hand. Despite all that, money is money and there are many other notebooks to recommend at the 10-15 dollar mark.

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

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Blackwing One-Step Long Point Sharpener Review

(Update: Blackwing sent me a replacement sharpener, and it is working as well as I expected the first one to work. I tested both sharpeners on new, unsharpened Blackwing Volumes No. 3 Ravi Shankar pencils. The original performed as poorly as it did previously, and the new one performed as well as all of the praise that has been heaped on it.

Original sharpener, top, new sharpener, bottom.

Blackwing is sending me replacement blades for the first sharpener to see if we can narrow down the issue. With the way the second sharpener performed, I would have no hesitation recommending it to anyone looking for a premium pencil sharpener experience.)

New sharpener, left, old sharpener, right. If you didn’t have anything to compare it to you might think the original sharpener was fine, but comparisons show it wasn’t.

--Original Review--

If there is anything I have learned about Blackwing over years of reviewing their products, I have learned that you should always wait until version two of their accessory releases to make your purchase. The new Blackwing One-Step Long Point Sharpener is no exception to that rule.

I can't argue that this isn't a compelling looking sharpener. The design is modern, and fits Blackwing’s new art style and aesthetic. The big problem with it is that it doesn't sharpen pencils well. That's kind of its job, right?

I was able to quickly test out this sharpener at the Baltimore Pen Show earlier this year and felt that it performed poorly. I chalked that up to the moment, and the minute or two I had with it. I looked forward to receiving my own model to test at home to see what I missed the first time around. Nothing, apparently.

On paper, the sharpener should give you a short, sharp, clean, concave tip on your favorite pencil. I was able to get sharp, sometimes. Other times, the tip of the graphite broke off inside the sharpener, despite my trying different hand pressures when sharpening. At least three times for this review alone I had to unscrew the top to retrieve a snapped lead.

Sharpened with Pollux, top, and Blackwing One-Step, bottom.

Concave I could get, too. The problem is that the concave cedar was left ragged and messy. The results looked terrible. Worse than any other sharpener I recall using. To use this sharpener was an exercise in frustration.

There is no pencil sharpener I own that isn't better than this one.

Side by side tests were the most telling. Blackwing's own Two-Step Long Point sharpener is far superior, and is half the price. So is the KUM Masterpiece, and the glorious Pollux, which is what this sharpener strives to be. The results show that it’s not anywhere close. The desktop Uni KH-20 sharpener is a far better investment if portability isn’t required.

Yes, all of these fall into the expensive sharpener range, but at $20, so does the Blackwing One-Step Long Point Sharpener. If you are paying this price, you expect performance commensurate with that. It's not in the ballpark, and is close to unusable - especially when compared to every other sharpener in existence.

Hyperbolic? Sure. But this sharpener continues a long line of version one Blackwing products that perform poorly. Hopefully there is a version two in the pipeline that works as well as the most basic sharpeners on the market. Until then, there are numerous better choices.

(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, for which I am very grateful.

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Misfill, Calligraphers of Color Edition

Each week in Refill, the Pen Addict Members newsletter, I publish Ink Links as part of the additional content you receive for being a member. And each week, after 10 to 15 links, plus my added commentary on each, I'm left with many great items I want to share. Enter Misfill. Here are this weeks links:

— Calligraphers of Color (Instagram)

— How To Choose The Best Pen For You (The Gentleman Stationer)

— Ink Review #208: Diamine Eau de Nil (Fountain Pen Pharmacist)

— Hardy Pen Wrights Pink Scale Juma Custom Fountain Pen (Gourmet Pens)

— An overdue look at the Sheaffer 300 fountain pen (Fountain pen blog)

— Platinum Curidas – a Surprising Cracking Good Pen (dapprman)

— My Ten Favorite Fountain Pens (The Well-Appointed Desk)

— Black Lives Matter (Writing at Large)

— What’s The Story? – Punk Song Narratives (Punk Girl Diaries)

— An Introductory Guide to Black Paris (Messy Messy Chic)

— Preparing for a Sabbatical (MacSparky)

— Van Gogh and the Books He Loved (Hyperallergic)

— Endless Work Endless Recorder & Brooch (Penquisition)

— The Study: Issue #32 — Keeping a Commonplace Book (The Cramped)

— Watercolors in use (José Naranja)

— L’Artisan Pastellier Callifolio Swatch Tests – the Ochres (Nick Stewart)

— Black Lives Matter: A Statement (The Pelikan's Perch)

— Aerial Views of the Protests from Around the World (Kottke)

— Black Industrial Designers Talk About Race and Design, Part 1 (Core77)

— An Exactly Drawn Dawn: How Factory Revolutionised Record Design (The Quietus)

— Creative Resources + Initiatives in Support of Black Lives Matter (Booooooom)

— MUJI’s virtual bullet journal workshop demonstrates that journalling doesn’t need to be perfect (The Peak)

Want to catch the rest, plus extra articles, reviews, commentary, discounts, and more? Try out a Pen Addict Membership for only $5 per month!