Xacto KS
As I have explained
in Part I of this set of posts, my vintage Panasonic Panapoint
electric sharpener gave up its ghost (may she rest in peace). This
was really hard on me because, no lie, it was part of the family
before I was! Built back in the early 70's, this was a powerhouse
machine made to last, and last she did for more than forty years. I
have located other vintage Panapoints on the webs, but they all cost
more than 100 bucks, which I cannot spend right now even though it
would be worth every penny. As an artist, I sharpen pencils all day,
almost every day- big ones, small ones, triangular, colored,
graphite, woodless, all kinds imaginable, and I do not believe that
any electric made today can come close to the vintage Panapoint. The
$60 Bostitch lying at my foot is a good example. It works when it
wants to, but slowly, and it sounds as if it is in pain.
Get to the point, Lady! Hurrhurr “point”
The Xacto KS got my
attention because it is literally "old school", made of
heavy metal, and does not have a motor that will die or have
unpredictable fainting spells. Basically, this sharpener works on the
same premise as the Panapoint (dual helical blades) just without the
motor. Even better, I can sharpen pretty much any size pencil in it
as well (Panapoint accommodated only standard or slightly smaller).
I bought mine at Office Depot, but you can get one at Amazon and a plethora of brick and mortar stores.
Get to the point, Lady! Hurrhurr “point”
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pic from Amazon.com listing |
I bought mine at Office Depot, but you can get one at Amazon and a plethora of brick and mortar stores.
Let me tell you,
once I got this little dandy mounted on the wall, I tried every type
of pencil I own. I sharpened soft and hard colored pencils including
Derwent Artist, Studio, and Drawing pencils, Prismacolor soft core,
Verithin, and Scholar pencils, FaberCastle Polychromos, and
Koh-i-Noor Woodless types. I also tried it out with woodless graphite
pencils from Prismacolor and Koh-I-Noor, Staetdler, Derwent,
Ticonderosa (the biggie and triangular versions), and Prismacolor
wood graphite pencils in varying degrees, and 5.6 mm leads that go in
the Koh-I-Noor metal lead holder. (I told you I had a lot of
pencils!) All of these pencils came out with gorgeous sharp points.
Where applicable, the wood was smooth as marble. My beloved Panapoint
use to do that, so I had high expectations, and Xacto KS seems to
meet them. happy with it!
A couple of caveats
You have to mount this particular model on a rigid surface like a wall or table to use it. I mean, it will not work if you try to hold it in your lap, squeeze it between your knees, or duct tape it to a flat surface (yeah I tried all three things- I hate using the drill). It has to be screwed into stable wood or other equally dense material.
Depending on the brand, pastel pencils may break off in the mechanism. I was able to get excellent points on a few of my Conte pastel pencils, but not all of them. However, I have found this to be the case if I use them in any sharpener, even the little blade ones. Koh-I-Noor and Generals pastel/ charcoal pencils fared better, but I still had some breaks. I think I'll stick to the craft knife for some of those.
The KS is great for making really sharp little wooden stakes out of cake pop sticks. This may or may not be useful to you, but there you are. You're welcome.
A couple of caveats
You have to mount this particular model on a rigid surface like a wall or table to use it. I mean, it will not work if you try to hold it in your lap, squeeze it between your knees, or duct tape it to a flat surface (yeah I tried all three things- I hate using the drill). It has to be screwed into stable wood or other equally dense material.
Depending on the brand, pastel pencils may break off in the mechanism. I was able to get excellent points on a few of my Conte pastel pencils, but not all of them. However, I have found this to be the case if I use them in any sharpener, even the little blade ones. Koh-I-Noor and Generals pastel/ charcoal pencils fared better, but I still had some breaks. I think I'll stick to the craft knife for some of those.
The KS is great for making really sharp little wooden stakes out of cake pop sticks. This may or may not be useful to you, but there you are. You're welcome.
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