Let’s talk About Workshop Pencil Sharpeners

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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

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

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

We will be happy to hear your thoughts

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