Sharpen that Pencil!
The most important skill we need to learn as woodworkers is sharpening. So let’s talk about pencil sharpening!
Mar 13, 2017
The most important skill we need to learn as woodworkers is sharpening. Keeping our chisels, planes, bits, and other edge tools sharp is what makes us accurate whether we are crafting a precisely fitting joint or creating a beautifully flat and smooth surface. But there is one more sharp tool in our arsenal that’s nearly as important, and that’s our marking device, in particular, our pencil. Though a marking knife is preferred for very precise joinery, for most general marking the pencil is still king and having the ability to quickly and consistently sharpen a pencil is important. So let’s talk about pencil sharpening!
Go ahead, have a good chuckle—I’m writing a blog about a pencil sharpener. But I figure if we can do a whole article about tape measures we can do at least one blog about a pencil sharpener.
Back in my days of carpentry, I used to sharpen my pencils with a block plane. It’s actually pretty fast with practice but the inconsistency of the point makes this method less than stellar. The faceted pencil end does look pretty cool, though.
Of course many of us have the old wall-mounted, hand-cranked, double-helical sharpener with the phone-dial pencil sizer so you get the right support for any pencil diameter. Guess there must have been a lot of different-diameter pencils available last century. In good condition, the helical cutters do a great job of shearing but the wobbly support, and usually decades of use, render these to the maybe/maybe not category when it comes to getting a good point.
The little plastic sharpeners with the razor-blade-style cutters are great for kindergarten or crafters, but they often fall by the wayside when it comes to making a good point. I have heard legends of superior sharpening. (Ha!) And who among us can resist the siren song of an electric sharpener? I like electricity.
But the real bomb is my Carl Angel-5 sharpener. It’s just too cool. The cutter is the tried and true double helical just like the old-timers, but what makes it work so well is a spring-loaded clamp that extends from the body of the sharpener and holds the pencil as it’s being sharpened. Turning the crank handle releases the clamp from its stop and spring tension and a pair of rods guide the pencil securely until the cutters have finished making a perfect point, every time. Nirvana in an angel-blue package. I know my enthusiasm seems downright nerdy and with April 1 just around the corner you may be wondering … But seriously, it is the best sharpener I’ve ever used and being portable with little rubber feet so it doesn’t slide around, it’s the ticket, and that’s the point.
OK let’s hear what you folks use to get the point. Snarky comments are fine, except from Matt.
Fine Woodworking Recommended Products
Honing Compound
Rockler Silicone Sharpening Stone Tray
Norton Water Stones
Comments
I just bought and Exacto for last century, being new it is an works amazingly. I get long, perfectly sharp points every time. Oh, and by the way, I do have 2 diameter pencils. HD is stocking those big jumbo round guys you just gotta buy when you seem them sitting there on the shelf. Actually, my favorite is the normal diameter, and my pencils must be round.
You can lead a horse to water, but a pencil must be lead.....sorry.
You should be equal parts proud and ashamed of that one!
This is a great article and a worthy topic. For some time now, I've preferred to use a chisel edge on my pencil for doing precise layout work. You simply sand the point from 2 sides on a piece of sandpaper. This makes the edge very sharp with much less of a tendency to break at the point.
I was in full agreement until I got to the part about being blue. Mine is fire engine red and it's much cooler.
I use a mechanical pencil .02 or .05 (I forget) that's sharp all the time. A dozen at a big box store is $5 or something like that. No sharpening is needed.
Well I must say you made me feel old. I have each of the ones you have. In fact I bought a new wall mounted one last year for the shop out in the garage. The shop down stairs has elec one and wall mounted one. I have the Carl Angle one at work. So I am pretty sold on my sharpeners. The mechanical ones are ok but I still prefer the good old wooden ones. They also have to be made in the USA or else they break to easily for me.
Great Article should tell us which brands you prefer to use...
Well Ben, you certainly make a point!
And....I always thought blue was cool and red was hot...😎
I've got a fleet of mechs from .05 to 1.1 but I get nicer lines with a regular pencil, plus I tend to break the lead a lot. And I can't use my cool sharpener on a mechanical pencil, it makes really bad noises when I try.
I prefer to use a "scary sharp" method. I have a jig that holds the pencil at a perfect 22.25 degree angle (I use a tangent function to set this up initially). The pencil passes over successive grades of wet-dry sandpaper, at 60 RPM (easy - one revolution per second), finishing up with 6000 grit. I use an artist's gum eraser to remove the wood and graphite. I am very particular about my pencils and only use those with round shanks and Port Orford cedar, that is becoming harder and harder to find. I usually keep 50 pencils on hand and have a container of sharp and dull pencils. When I reach 17 sharp pencils left (34%), I stop and sharpen all the dull ones, put them in a third container until the 17 have been used. That way, I ensure even wear and tear on each of the pencils in this cohort.
The Carl Angel - 5 offers the best work holding of any available pencil sharpener I have seen. Securely held work meeting a sharp blade, is there any more basic concept in woodworking?
I have an old style double helical sharpener mounted to the wall of my shop. It works great! My only problem is finding decent pencils for goodness sake.
A year ago I bought a KUM Wood Cutter 2-Hole Pencil Sharpener, amazon $ 8 for 3. Unnoticeable in my apron always where I am, produces a sharp point with a couple of twists. Works for me.
Is there any use for blue tape in this?
What about the new plastic razor blade style that you can put into your drill? That one is my new favorite.
I picked up an electric sharpener made for school teachers to use in classrooms (X-Acto TeacherPro). It's meant to stand up to daily use, so I expect it to last a long time. Plus, it has a light that tells me to when the pencil is sharp, so I don't just play with it until the pencil is a nub. :-)
We bought our house from a school teacher, and she left one of those in the basement. I've yet to try it out. I'll plug it in tonight.
I found this series a joy to read, a well sharpened pencil is a great first step for any project. Thanks for posting.
I'm a little slow in commenting, but here goes:
I came to own a beautiful Eagle Turquoise 10 mechanical pencil complete with desktop sharpening machine. A few quick rotations in the sharpener and I have a perfect point. Lots of lead types available at the fine art supply store too. For quick work, I have an old Berol electric sharpener and Dixon #2's that do the job for rough marking.
My old school room sharpener hasn't been working well for a while. After reading this article, I purchased a Carl Angel 5 for my shop. It puts the sharpest point on a pencil that I have seen. Order 2 more, one for my wife, and the other for my office.
I like using a Staedtler Mars 780 leadholder with 4B or 4H lead. A few turns in the lead sharpener (an old Staedtler Mars 500) and its as sharp as a pin. When away from the shop the push button collet release pops off and has a nifty sharpener built in. Also like many of us I have the old wall mounted double helix hand crank, an HD drill powered C.H. Hanson, and of course who hasn't used their utility knife, pocket knife, belt sander or grinding wheel to make a point on a good wooden pencil once in awhile.
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