The MLP Arena
Creativity => Arts & Crafts Corral => Topic started by: ZeldaTheSwordsman on November 02, 2020, 11:33:10 PM
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I'm primarily a traditional artist - I draw with pencil, ink with a felt-tip pen, and color with colored pencils (previously I favored crayons, but colored pencils blend better and at their best have better control).
However, a frequent frustration of mine is inconsistent results when sharpening. Sometimes they'll sharpen fine with no hassle, but at other times problems like the pencil randomly snagging on the blade and/or the pencil being sharpened but the forces involved breaking the newly-sharpened tip loose from the core. Even when I'm being gentle...
It's annoying, especially with the inconsistency, and it artificially shortens the working life of the pencils.
I suspect the sharpener is the main culprit - it's just a basic 2-bore sharpener, and a plastic-bodied one at that.
So can anyone please recommend a good sharpener to me?
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I buy my calligraphy supplies from this site, and everything is really nice quality.
I would trust the ratings from getting something from here, plus they a very detailed review page..
https://www.jetpens.com/blog/the-best-pencil-sharpeners/pt/710
ETA: I'm not saying you need to buy from that site. :) It's just a really good resource.
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this is going to sound weird but I love my wall-mount heavy duty sharpener - maybe you had one in school?
https://www.amazon.ca/X-Acto-Table-Wall-Mount-Sharpener-EPI1031/dp/B00006IEDY
mine is an antique but this is a good example
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It could just be that your sharpener is now getting a bit dull. I'd look at the places where you buy your art supplies and see what they have on offer. Different pencils too sharpem differently, so you might need a few. I have a sharpener that has a little switch so I can choose if I want to make the point blunt or sharp which is pretty handy. Also some kinds of oencils are more prone to breakages, so there's a bunch of things to consider. Apparently some kinds you are even better of hand sharpening with a blade!
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I just use the most basic Staedtler single hole metal sharpener that exists (the 510) and sometimes have similar issues issues. Apparently for colored pencils you want a larger sharpening angle so you should get something like one of those double-hole sharpeners - they have a hole for regular pencils and a hole with a larger angle for colored pencils. My aunt swears by the Prismacolor premier sharpener for her colored pencils, but Staedtler makes them as well, and probably other companies.
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what sunpony says!
staedler and farber castell worked out great for me, but they are available everywhere in germany. ^^
https://www.amazon.ca/Faber-Castell-Grip-Trio-Pencil-Sharpener/dp/B001P3LKPK/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=faber+castell+pencil+sharpener&qid=1604485431&s=office&sr=1-3
i had this one for years - until it broke at the joint. ;) but it is quite nice , you can sharpen your pen to different lenghts!
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Yes to all these mentioned, my art teacher from school used to shave his pencils with a craft knife :blink: he insisted it was the best way to reduce waste.. I've never fancied trying in case I slice my finger off ! I find a sharpener designed for kohl eyeliner works well on waxy pencils (e.g crayola )
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I've tried that sharpen-with-knife method and never been able to nail it right. I will look into the products people have suggested.
However, I have to point something put:
sunpony, I am using a double-hole sharpener. I explicitly said as much. It's just not a very good one.
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I have had terrible luck trying to find a good colored pencil sharpener too. I've tired Xacto but those end up devouring the pencil when I try to sharpen it.
Ponyfan
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I am pretty sure you can buy replacement blades for staedler handheld sharpeners :)
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I've tried that sharpen-with-knife method and never been able to nail it right. I will look into the products people have suggested.
However, I have to point something put:
sunpony, I am using a double-hole sharpener. I explicitly said as much. It's just not a very good one.
Ah I think I forgot the meaning of the word "bore" :P In that case I'm wondering if you just got a bad blade or if it's gotten dull. I had one sharpener that just had problems from day one, all I could do was throw it out and replace it.
I am pretty sure you can buy replacement blades for staedler handheld sharpeners :)
Cool!
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Yes to all these mentioned, my art teacher from school used to shave his pencils with a craft knife :blink: he insisted it was the best way to reduce waste.. I've never fancied trying in case I slice my finger off !
Yes!
I have been using craft knives, Stanley knives and scalpels for many years now to sharpen my pencils, both graphite ones and coloured ones.
Hold the pencil and cut-away from yourself to avoid injury; also, cutting with a sharp knife is more safe than cutting with a blunt one!
It's true, in my experience, cutting with a knife seems to cause fewer lead breakages compared to when using a sharpener.
Of course, there may be instances where you are not allowed to have knives in public. I have a special long-point sharpener (for my Blackwings) that I bought from London Graphics (Covent Garden) for under 7 GB Pounds, but I cannot see it on their website; they do sell the Palomino Blackwing sharpeners, but they are rather expensive, here is a link to the results page:
https://www.londongraphics.co.uk/catalogsearch/result/index/?dir=asc&order=price&q=sharpener