![]() I really do love these things, but it’s not an unconditional love. I have now written nearly 700 words on my favorite pencil. The lead holder is retractable, as mentioned above. I don’t have any particular preference for either thickness. The ClearPoint Elite comes in 0.7 mm and 0.5 mm varieties. The thing around the lead holder is metal, no doubt because the plastic version on the original ClearPoint tended to break. It tapers inward and is comfortable enough for me. Again, PaperMate improved the feel here on the Elite vs the original ClearPoint. This is made from some sort of rubbery substance and is molded into the barrel, which tapers slightly inward. In my experience, this makes erasing more difficult, so the side button makes this pencil far more useful.Īgain the button mold was changed from the original ClearPoint to smooth out some of the corners. Most mechanical pencils extend their leads by pressing down on the eraser. When you press the button, it advances the lead a little bit, or if you hold it down and push the tip against the paper, the lead holder retracts. You don’t have to change your grip very much to hit the button to give yourself a little more lead. This button is located on the side of the barrel. It holds the pencil in place effectively on thin cardstock or inside a spiral bound notebook. Not much to say here, other than I haven’t had one break yet, unlike the clips on the original ClearPoint. The eraser itself seems to do a good job at erasing, not falling apart or smearing the written lead. The surface of the ring is smoother on the ClearPoint Elite than on the original ClearPoint, which had sharper features. I have read some complaints about the mechanism not holding the eraser firmly in place, but this hasn’t been a problem for me. So you’ve got plenty of extra eraser in reserve once you’ve worn out what’s already there. The eraser is the diameter of a wooden pencil eraser and can be extended from the barrel by means of a rotating ring. Let’s take a look at this pencil top to bottom. The mold was much smoother and more refined in the hard plastic parts and on the rubbery parts, making it nicer to hold. The other piece which broke (I’m sure there’s a technical name for it) was also now metal.ģ. The piece at the bottom of the barrel around the lead holder was also brittle plastic and would break.Įventually PaperMate introduced an upgraded version, the ClearPoint Elite which eliminated these problems while adding a couple other nice features:Ģ. The clip, made of brittle plastic, would break off.Ģ. I owned several of these and was quite happy with them, but they tended to have a couple problems:ġ. ![]() There was really only one solid choice I found on the market: the original PaperMate ClearPoint. Replaceable leads so you can keep using it after the factory load is gone. For those of us who need to erase, a button on the side to extend the lead is much more practical.Ĥ. Again, if you don’t really need to use the eraser, this isn’t a problem. A mechanism for extending the lead that doesn’t rely on pressing down on the eraser. Many mechanical pencils are apparently made for people who don’t need to erase, and have erasers like a grain of rice. I make big mistakes and frequently need to remove them. This problem could also be ameliorated by the use of a removable cap, but this tends to get in the way of requirement #2.Ģ. Pockets are a special problem, as it means you could get poked in the leg as well. Without a retractable tip, the tip tends to snag if it’s tossed into a soft container like your pocket or backpack. This is about more than just having a retractable lead. I had a hard time finding a mechanical pencil with the following characteristics:ġ. The quest for a great mechanical pencil started a number of years back. I want to introduce to you my favorite writing instrument: the PaperMate ClearPoint Elite.
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