Helix Metal Desktop Sharpener for Standard and Jumbo Pencils (Assorted Colours)

Product Information

This Jakar pencil sharpener has a single hole and a stylish ergonomic design. It has a reasonably small chamber for pencil shavings, but is otherwise very well designed. The body of this sharpener is made from magnesium while the blades are high-carbon steel. It is a two-step sharpener – the first hole removes the wood, and the second shapes the lead to create a long, precise tip. This single hole sharpener has a lightweight magnesium blade and a sturdy glass jar to catch the pencil shavings. The compact design features a shaker mechanism that automatically advances the pencil for sharpening and is suitable for graphite and coloured pencils.

This sharpener is designed for use with Stabilo Carbothello Pastel Pencils, which have softer leads than regular graphite pencils and cannot hold as fine a point. They therefore have to be sharpened to a slightly wider angle (i.e. a stubbier point). Personal pencil sharpeners vastly range in quality and functionality, so we’ve included a few Teach Starter teaching community recommendations to help you decide. Staedtler Desktop 1 Hole SharpenerThis double-hole sharpener is suitable for use with 7 mm and 9 mm pencils. It is light and very economical. The OfficeGoods Electric and Battery Operated pencil sharpener is a nicely designed product, and it handled all the pencil types that we threw at it — namely graphite, colored, and charcoal. The machine sharpens fairly fast (7 seconds for an 8 mm graphite pencil) and, perhaps best of all, you can set the tip angle to blunt, medium, or sharp to match your intended use or preference.

We used the same selection of pencils to test our reservoir pencil sharpeners: a Koh-I-Noor Jumbo Graphite Pencil, a Faber Castell Series 9000 Jumbo Pencil, a Conte a Paris Charcoal Pencil, a Stabilo Carbothello Pastel Pencil, a Cretacolor Karmina Coloured Pencil and a Staedtler Tradition Sketching Pencil.You'll also want to consider whether or not you want a simple portable tool to keep in your bag or something more sophisticated to display on your desk or attach to the wall of your office. And if buying pencil sharpeners for a shared work space, you may want to pay attention to noise considerations from electric pencil sharpeners, which can be grating on the ears of those who aren’t using them. This sharpener also features an efficient slide-out reservoir to simplify emptying shavings and help control messes. This Faber Castell Easy Grip Trio Sharpening Box is made from strong yet lightweight plastic. It features three holes: one for sharpening coloured pencils, one for regular-sized graphite pencils and one for jumbo pencils. It did well in our tests and is very portable. This Faber-Castell pencil sharpener is made of steel and will keep its point. It is a double hole sharpener which can sharpen standard diameter graphite and colour pencils.