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Let’s talk About Workshop Pencil Sharpeners

72 Comments

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If you use pencils in the workshop, what kind of pencil sharpener do you use?

And if you’re looking for a new one, here are a couple of ideas and recommendations you might find interesting.

X-Acto Ranger 1031 Pencil Sharpener

X-Acto Wall Mount Pencil Sharpener

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I had noticed that quite a few people were ordering the X-Acto Ranger bench and wall-mounted pencil sharpener on Prime Day, and added it to the list of deals.

At the time of this posting, it’s still priced at $6.99 (on sale??). Other online dealers have this for ~$10 and up.

The X-Acto Ranger 1031 pencil sharpener is said to be a commercial grade sharpener for high volume environments, featuring metal construction, dual helical cutters, and a diameter adjustment wheel for sharpening 8 different sizes of pencils.

I can’t tell if this is a deal price on the pencil sharpener, but $6.99 still seems to be a great price for a “commercial grade” manual sharpener.

Price: $6.99

Buy Now via Amazon

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Uni KH-20 Pencil Sharpener

Uni KH-20 Pencil Sharpener

If you don’t mind a free-standing sharpener that cannot be wall-mounted, I really like the Uni KH-20. It can be adjusted to fit slightly different sizes of standard-shaped pencils – such as colored pencils – and leaves a clean and sharp point. There’s a point depth toggle button in the back that can set the sharpener to produce a finer point or broader tip.

This is overdoing it for basic marking pencils, but shines when sharpening trickier pencils.

If you buy whatever wood pencils are on sale, skip this one. If you are picky about the exact pencils you use, and are okay spending a premium on writing utensils, you’ll love how much better this is than conventional sharpeners such as inexpensive handheld sharpeners or general purpose sharpeners such as the one above.

Price: ~$22-25

Buy Now via Amazon

Bostitch Personal Electric Pencil Sharpener

Bostitch Pencil Sharpener

I’m not a fan of electric pencil sharpeners, but will likely buy this Bostitch model when my kids’ use of pencils outpaces my willingness to sharpen them.

Price: $12.73

Buy Now via Amazon

Staedtler Compact Pencil Sharpener

Staedtler Pencil Sharpener

I’ve tried all kinds of small manual pencil sharpeners, and the Staedler delivers a good experience.

I can’t say it’s the best there is, but at under $4, it’s satisfactory and reliable. If you’re the type to easily misplace things in your workshop, maybe stick to a larger or mounted option.

Price: $3.79

Buy Now via Amazon

See Also:

Mobius & Ruppert Brass Pencil Sharpener

Milwaukee FastBack 6-in-1 Utility Knife

Milwaukee FastBack 6-in-1 Folding Utility Knife 48-22-1505

Here’s one for the person that says “all I need is a knife and some elbow grease.”

Has anyone found a better alternative for sharpening rectangular carpenter-style pencils? I tried two sharpeners, and they’re not that good, which is why I tend to resort to using a utility knife, or a knife plus some coarse sandpaper for fine-shaping the tip.

Price: $19.97

Buy Now via Home Depot – free shipping

ESEE Knives EXPAT Libertariat Machete

Esee EXPAT Libertariat Machete

“No, no, a BIG knife and some elbow grease.”

I don’t recommend this as a safe or practical pencil sharpener option, but to each their own.

Buy Now via Amazon

“I Also Need Some New Pencils!”

Try these HB (#2) graphite options:

Staedtler Norica 36-Pack: ~$14 via Amazon
Staedtler HB Pencil 12-Pack: ~$12 via Amazon – (on sale for $9.20 right now)
Tombow Mono Drawing Pencil 12-Pack: ~$12 via Amazon
Ticonderoga Black 12-Pack: $2-3 via Amazon
Faber-Castell 9000 12-Pack: $10 via Amazon

Do you have a favorite?

Read More – My Favorite Wood Pencil: Staedtler Norica

“I’m a Mechanical Pencils-Only Type of Person”

That’s fantastic! Which is your favorite?

Here are some of mine:

Pentel GraphGear 1000
Staedtler Silver Body
Staedtler Blue Body
Uni Shift w/ Pipe Lock
rOtring 600 (I’d wait for a sale)

I prefer 0.5mm for most uses, and 0.7mm or thicker for marking purposes.

See More Mechanical Pencil Recommendations

“But I Miss the Feel of a Wood Pencil”

Ohto Sharp Pencil, a Wood-Bodied Mechanical Pencil for Under $6

Related posts:

Staedtler Norica PencilMy Favorite Wood Pencil: Staedtler Norica Rockler HB Shop PencilNew Rockler Shop Pencil

72 Comments

  1. Honorary mention: the Hovel pencil plane from the folks at Maker’s Cabinet. Got one as a gift and it is the most ridiculous luxury I own, but now I am a pencil sharpening god amongst mortals.

    Reply

    • Maybe a “neither money nor time is any object” category recommendation? 😄

      Actually that looks like fun. Would be good for carpenter pencils too!

      Reply

    • I was also gifted a Hovel. It’s absurd, but man is it beautiful. The giver of the gift was very aware that it was a silly extravagance, and included some really nice pencils as well.

      In the shop, I’m a mechanical pencil user, but the old school “bolted to the wall sharpener” is hard to pass up.

      Reply

    • The Høvel is lovely, but I dislike the flat sides it leaves. The Caran d’Ache is my dream sharpener, but I recently acquired a Dahle 166 and couldn’t be happier. The mechanism is fully self-centering, and about the only thing I can say against it is that I have absolutely no clue how the hell the mounting bracket it came with is supposed to work. I ended up just milling my own bracket out of some aluminum I had hanging around.

      Reply

  2. I have that xacto sharpener and don’t use it. It’s too sloppy to bear the cutters evenly around the pencil and biases toward the crank position. This invariably leaves a patch of lead unexposed.

    Indoors we have a cheap chinese-manufacture electric affair that runs rings around the xacto.

    In the woodshop I use one of these. It can’t be beat if a certain tip profile is desired. I often make mine flat on one side to strike a line against a straight edge.

    Reply

  5. I was thinking “In the workshop? I use use a knife” but I see you got to that too. That’s exactly how I do my carpenters pencils – though I often use my pocket knife (but that’s because I also get joy from sharpening it again).

    I wouldn’t drop $85 on a pencil plane like mentioned above – but I do kind of want one now. I’m going to try one of my palm planes and see how that works.

    Reply

  6. I primarily use 0.9mm sized mechanical pencils so I don’t think I even own a pencil sharpener.

    The few times in the last decade that I have needed to sharpen a wooden pencil round or otherwise I have found that my stationary belt/disk sander works quite well.

    Reply

  7. I have several sharpeners scattered around our places.

    The most ancient one is a “Giant” that looks like your X-Acto.

    I have 2 other similar ones – a bit more modern Sanford Berol #51131

    For drafting pencils – I still have a Keuffel & Esser #1099 (they were also the makers of my slide rules and drafting set – now about 60 years old)

    My carpenter pencil sharpeners are CH Hanson #00101

    I have a CH Hanson 00202 sharpener that also does lumber crayons:

    https://www.toolup.com/CH-Hanson-00202-Carpenter-Pencil-Sharpener

    I have a MÖBIUS + RUPPERT 0604-0000 that they call a “grenade” pencil sharpener – thanks to Stuart posting about it in 2014

    I also bought 3 of these Afmat electric sharpeners last year and the recipients like them:

    https://www.amazon.com/AFMAT-Electric-Sharpener-Classroom-Professional/dp/B07PBT2K43

    but my records show that I paid $22 each for them.

    Reply

    • Geez. That makes the “pencil plane” look downright reasonable. Beautiful though.

      Reply

    • I have one of these pencil sharpeners. It is absolutely ridiculous. It can sharpen a handful of different pencil tip profiles. My friend got it for me after I discovered it online and ranted and raved. luckily the one he found was used on ebay and sub $100. it is one of my prized possessions. Maybe I should make a youtube video about it.

      Reply

  9. If only Dewalt would make a jobsite 12v sharpener! Obviously a Makita 40V one would be way better and sell way more units!

    Reply

  10. I have three of those x-acto sharpeners in the shop and house and love them; never an issue with them.

    That said, I’ve been using mechanical pencils more and more lately. As nice as the graphgear 1000 is, I can’t see myself spending $10 per pencil, when multiple are needed in a shop setting. I do have a few; I grabbed the 4 piece set when it was $36. They’re excellent quality.

    But for my shop, I use graphgear 500s. They’re cheaper, still built well, and still have the retractable lead, though it’s done differently (you press the back as if you’re exposing more lead, then press the lead on any surface and it’ll retract).

    For wooden pencils, I mainly use two types; mirado black warriors, and for when I need precise lines, ticonderoga #3. I also use the typical carpenter pencils for rough marking on rough lumber, and general white charcoal pencils for dark colored woods.

    Reply

  11. Sort of tangential, but does anyone have a preferred carpenter’s pencil? I’m looking at getting some fresh packs soon, and I’m looking mostly at a Stanley 30 pack or perhaps some more Dixons. Suggestions would be welcome, however!

    Reply

    • Foe some reason I have ones from Johnson (now part of Hultafors) . I’m not sure they are any better or worse than those from those from Home Depot, Lowes CH Hanson et. al.

      Johnson used to make a mechanical carpenter’s pencil – that I found was frustrating to use (leads seemed to snap off quickly):

      https://www.grainger.com/product/JOHNSON-Pencil-2H386

      Reply

    • Dixon Ticonderoga #3’s. The next best thing to a marking knife, and you can erase it.

      Reply

  13. Our local school district was remodeling. I grabbed a sharpener similar to the Xacto listed above but an old (like from the 1950s or older) USA made one. The best manual sharpener I ever used and it still is sharp enough to sharpen to a needle point. I think it is a Boston brand. I wonder if they still make them. If I was looking for a new one I’d try the Xacto for the price mentioned and would hope it would be half as good.

    Reply

    • I think that Boston (as in Boston-Hunt) was folded in under X-Acto by the parent organization (Newell-Rubbermaid). Newell Rubbermaid also owns the Sanford and Berol brands. At one time the Boston brand may have been positioned under Elmers (as in the Glue) Products – which is now also owned by Newell-Rubbermaid

      Reply

    • Same! I keep one of these on the windowsill in my woodshop, right next to the jar of pens and pencils. Also, great link you posted; I love pencils.com! Kinda dorky I guess, but quality pencils are cool.

      Reply

  15. I’ve never been able to get the hang of sharpening carpenter’s pencils, but I appreciate that the shape prevents them from rolling away – the best pencil is one that is within reach when you’re holding the ruler/square against the work. I like triangle shaped pencils (like https://weareticonderoga.com/shop/pencils/graphite-pencils/tri-write-pencils/) – they don’t roll away and you can use a classic ‘schoolroom’ type sharpener like the X-Acto.

    Reply

      • I’m sure I have a carpenter pencil in the back of a draw somewhere. I’ll see how well the HF oscillating spindle sander does sharpening it 🙂

        Reply

    • I grabbed a couple of these on clearance for like $2-$3 a couple years back, and I really like them. Usually I clip it to the collar of my shirt and the cord is long enough it will reach anywhere my arm can. Always in reach, a d it retracts out of the way automatically. The tension is about right to where the pencil stays in place retracted yet it pulls out easily. It seems lime it might be awkward to use but always having a pencil when you need one far outweighs that. Really the only negative is that at the end of a long day the collar of my shirt might be a little stretched out.

      https://www.lowes.com

      https://www.amazon.com

      Reply

      • For some reason my links won’t copy right on my tablet. Click either link and search for ‘pencil tether’ and you’ll see what I was referring to.

        Reply

      • Thanks, Jerry. Definitely better than my default “behind the ear” (which doesn’t work so good when I’m wearing safety glasses or a dust mask).

        Reply

      • Yeah there are a few very similar (hultafors, sola) ones out there. I assume Pica makes them all, but could be wrong.

        Reply

        • I’m not sure if Pica makes them all, since the Hultafors is pretty different in a few significant ways, and I assume the others are as well, based on pictures. It’s possible they were one of the first to develop this dry marker, deep-reach type pencil, but I’m not quite up on the history of them. If someone wants to chime in with some background, that’d be great!

          Reply

          • Thanks Leo, I honestly have only used the Pica, just viewed the others in pictures and not done much research.

          • Lyra, Pica and Hultafors all have competing products, Pica seems to be the ‘original’ but I’m not sure all made in different places, I like the Hultafors (small preference things) most but all 3 are great! And the color ‘leads’ and pencil leads are the same thickness so you can buy fillings from either brand. Funny is the mechanical dry marker or thick mechanical pencil or how you would like to name them from Sola is not made by Hultafors though they make Hultafors levels and Hultafors makes tape measures for Sola. Looking at the photo I think the Sola is a Lyra but I could be wrong.

      • Yeah not cheap, I have one I keep on me my finish apron for when I’m doing trim. Works well, can be put to a super fine point but has fairly hard lead. They make a variety of other marking devices too.

        Reply

  17. For round ish pencils, I have a 50yo seats sharpener that looks like the Xacto and works great. Will never part with it. Was probably made by Bostich or one of the big names for Sears based on the quality.

    For rectangular carpenter pencils, I’ve never found a decent purpose built sharpener. For me it’s normally a utility knife. If I’m in the shop, I use my bench top belt sander with a 120 grit belt. Puts a wicked point on them once you get the hang of it.

    Reply

  18. I have found the newer crank sharpeners to be not that durable. The old Boston ones my parents had and I had for a while were great. I have since switched to a Bostich executive electric and man that makes life with 3 school age kids so much easier.

    Reply

  19. I have the X-Acto sharpener (vacuum mount, not wall, but same sharpener). It’s very good. Only complaint is that it is maybe TOO fast for some pencils. It will continue to chew down even after it is sharp.

    My second choice has to be the plastic sharpener that came with a pack of Hanson pencils from Menards. It fits right in a drill or driver to turn into a “powered” sharpener and also works very well.

    Reply

  20. The Xactos are barely a shadow of the Boston sharpeners of my 1950s elementary school days. The metal is so thin that the can wont stay on tightly. As another poster has observed, they cut unevenly, leaving too much wood on one side and too much graphite on the other. I have one in the shop, and I get by with it, but wish it was as robust as the old Bostons.

    Reply

      • They are the best! I’ve used them for years. I make sure my kids have them for school too. For those who haven’t used them, T’Gaal give you that “golf pencil” short point.

        Reply

    • T’Gaal is easily one of my two favorite handhelds. Changing point size is critical for colored pencils, especially. The only wall-mount I know of that’ll do that trick is the Caran d’Ache, but be prepared to call your accountant before ordering one. 🤣

      Reply

  25. I’ve been drawing for decades. My favorite mechanical pencils are the rOtring 600, hands down. I have 3 of them, all 0.5mm, but each has a different lead…which are not lead at all. I also have a whole set of the GraphGear 1000, from 0.3mm on up. These are also excellent pencils. Another one of my faves is the Uni Kuru Toga. The lead actually rotates as you write or draw, keeping the lead pointy. It’s a light pencil….but it has its place in my collection. For my pencils and charcoals that require a sharpener, I prefer manual sharpeners. Most perform about the same but I tend to reach for the Primacolor brand. For electric, I have the E-Acto School Pro, which is one of the best I’ve used…..reasonably priced too. My two cents.

    Reply

  26. I just pop a pencil in my drill chuck and then let her rip in any basic sharpener. Sharpens in about one second.

    Reply

  27. I recently started using the PICA pencil. This thing is awesome. They also make different colored lead for it, as well as some lead that are water resistant. Those are excellent in marking tiles to be cut on a wet saw.

    Reply

    • I just checked out the Pica. Need one of those! Thanks for the tip

      Reply

  28. I bought an exacto on a whim for nostalgia sake, however, like many people have said, I tend to use the one I can mount in my impact driver from ch hanson that came in a kit with some pencils.

    Reply

  29. I really like the Pentel GraphGear pencil but if you drop it, the next step is to drop it in the trash. The little piece of tubing at the tip is easily bent and impossible to straighten. This otherwise excellent pencil really belongs someplace above a carpet, not near a hard shop floor.

    Reply

  30. I have a hand crank that was given to me when I was 9 years old so over 35 years ago

    I swear it says Eberhard Faber on it but I’m not sure. It’s like that Xacto. Still grinds a mean tip.

    Or I use some AL bodied – razor blade holder.

    But for shop use I use mechanicals for the consistent tip – and themetal guide. Or I’m using some form of marker.

    For my work I only use markers/pens – as you can’t mark AL with a pencil and not worry about corrosion. So I use markers alot in the workshop too.

    Reply

    • I was just going to ask if anyone uses ink. Then I read your post. I like ink in a lot of situations also.

      Reply

    • Eberhard Faber is also a Newell-Rubbermaid brand. Most of these pencil sharpeners have their roots in the design manufactured by Spengler Brothers (Rockford IL) in the 1880’s. At some point around the turn of the 20th century – Charles Spengler -teamed up with one E.C. Loomis – first selling product from – then buying out (1911) the Automatic Pencil Sharpener Company (aka APSCO). APSCO was producing a design based on a patent by Essignton N. Gilfillan. The design was refined into many different models. Their factory was moved from Chicago to a new one in Rockford that opened around 1914. At some point APSCO was acquired by Sanford. Newell-Rubbermaid now owns the Sanford brand

      https://www.madeinchicagomuseum.com/single-post/automatic-pencil-sharpener-co/

      Reply

  31. The X-Acto Ranger 1031 is a common one for schools- I’ve seen it in several different schools/districts, including the school where I work … Works well, kids still find a way to break them though!

    Reply

  32. I’m really surprised the X-Acto Ranger 1031 comes with dual cutters for only $7. That’s a steal. I still use the same version that my parents bought in the early 70s. It’s in my workshop and still makes a perfect point.

    Reply

    • I just wish I would have been prescient enough to have saved my folk’s version.
      My now older line voltage powered Panasonic versions just aren’t the same.
      Dangitall.

      Reply

  33. The Pica-Dry is an example, but for those with discerning taste, a proper “lead holder”-type pencil can’t be beat for durability. The leads are super, super thick (and thus hard to break), and the sharpeners (properly called “pointers”, at least per my drafting instructor) will not bat an eye at producing a Rambo-grade weaponized spearpoint, let alone a mere writing-class tip. As a final bonus, you can get every variety of lead for them, including very hard and very soft grades that produce remarkable results—beautifully dark, or else able to write with ease on material that you’ve always believed was unsuitable as a pencil medium.

    Reply

    • I like the Pica-Dry way over lead holders for what it’s worth. I totally went through a phase buying up everything from Jet pens and whatnot. Settled on the brand they sell at the tool store. 😂

      Reply

    • Pencil pointers, drafting sets with India Ink drafting pens, drafting brushes, pencil shields, Leroy lettering sets – all sort of went out along with slide rules – as computers came in. I still have my K&E stuff – because that’s what the school bookstore recommended. There was a whole industry built around this with companies like Keuffel & Esser, Post, Bruning, and Dietzgen. When you visited a large A&E firm in the 1950’s and ’60’s they would have large drafting rooms – perhaps with hundreds of draftsmen all diligently toiling at their tables. Its not that the old drafting tools are not still useful – it just that we seem to need many fewer of them in the age of CAD

      Reply

      • I have a big old-school drafting tool set I purchased from Texas Art Supply in the 1990’s. It still had the india ink tips for pens, compasses, etc. I’ve never used the ink tools but I still use compasses & accessories for doing layouts on a regular basis.

        Reply

  34. I use the Pica and other mechanical pencils, the Pica, as well as their markers, I find are excellent.

    I use regular pencils also, just because I will put one down somewhere and can’t find it 2 minutes later, so 50 pencils scattered around the shop works for me.

    Much like the Uni KH-20 Pencil Sharpener shown above, my personal favorite sharpener is the Carl CC 2000
    https://www.carlmfg.com/cc-2000-quiet-pencil-sharpener/

    You pull out the pencil holder, insert the pencil and start sharpening. The tray goes in as it is sharpening, but stops when the pencil is sharp. You can keep turning the crank, but you feel it isn’t connected or doing anything, so you never “over sharpen” a pencil and have waste…important when it is a specialty pencil and is $$$. I can’t remember ever breaking a lead tip; it always gives me a perfect, very sharp pencil. The Carl CC 2000 versus the Carl Angel 5, has 5 or 6 adjustments to change the angle of the sharpening. Not something I use much, but still nice to have.

    There may be a better sharpener out there, but the ones like the X-Acto, which are like the ones just about every classroom had when growing up, most electric and others I have tried, work fine but not as well as this Carl. 5 star in my book.

    Reply

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