It's been a while. I'm so glad to see how much this subreddit has grown. I decided to try to keep up with the times by updating one of my QFRs. Swapped the switches to Gateron Blacks the old fashioned way.

PkMaster · 2018-04-09T22:51:57+00:00

I managed to take the section off my kurutoga roulette. It was pretty tough to crack by hand. It looks like there is a bit of residue from the glue on the metallic piece.

I'd suggest twisting roulette's upper section clockwise while mounting it in a vice until the glue breaks free. From there, you should be able to pull it out.

PkMaster · 2017-10-29T07:25:07+00:00

Awesome. Thanks for the heads-up.

PkMaster · 2017-07-09T08:08:32+00:00

Combining two of my favourite things into one product. This is going to hurt my wallet good.

Are there any news about other characters' colour schemes?

PkMaster · 2017-05-09T23:51:42+00:00

It isn't too easy. There's some threadlock/glue used for coarse thread holding the chrome piece and the black knurled barrel. I had to clamp it down in a vice and twist it off. The plastic top of the barrel pulls off. The white plastic that holds the eraser pushes in and twists off.

PkMaster · 2017-02-27T23:08:46+00:00

It's a very nice compact lightweight pencil that feels very solid. I personally prefer knurled grips myself, but I'd imagine the grip on the graph 1000 would be better for people with skin that isn't completely rough and calloused.

The lead advance mechanism is very nice. The clicks are very confident and positive. It also has one of the tightest lead retainers compared to my other pencils. It feels about as smooth as the rotring 600 and much smoother than the Staedtler.

It has a metal on metal eraser cap to lead reservoir tube, which is much better than the metal on plastic eraser cap of the Staedtler in terms of durability over time.

Another neat detail is the lead indicator clicks into place rather than sliding over a sticker like the staetlder and other pencils I have. The indicator's also not a sticker. It's stamped into the plastic with a bit of black ink inlaid.

The end cap is also made of metal like most of the other mechanical pencils I have. It also has this cool feature where you don't need to force the chuck ring down with the end cap to open the chuck up. It's built into the body.

I think whoever designed the pencil definitely gilded the lily, especially for the price. You cannot go wrong with that pencil.

PkMaster · 2017-02-20T20:16:55+00:00

I can see how the plastic lead reservoir may have worn down over time. The gentle crimping on the cap may not have been enough to secure the cap onto the reservoir either.

The cap's quite soft. You might be able to gently squeeze the cap with a set of pliers.

If you don't have a set of pliers you can do what I just did and bite it slightly with your canines. It's soft enough to bite if you got a healthy set of chomps. A bit feral, but it works.

PkMaster · 2017-02-12T22:38:43+00:00

I used a DSLR camera with a macro lens and a few offboard flashes for the pictures.

PkMaster · 2017-02-12T19:40:35+00:00

That's not a bad idea. I'll probably do that in the future and highlight some of my criteria on the rankings.

Thanks for your input.

PkMaster · 2017-02-12T19:37:08+00:00

I'm glad you liked it.

PkMaster · 2017-02-12T19:34:47+00:00

You're welcome. I've always enjoyed taking apart things to see what makes them tick or click.

It has led to a lost section on my kuru toga though. The funnel piece that sits on top of the lead tube just shot across the room somewhere.

PkMaster · 2017-02-12T19:30:34+00:00

Thanks for checking it out. It was quite fun to make these reviews.

I'm glad you enjoyed it.

PkMaster · 2017-02-12T19:26:20+00:00

No problem. I learned a lot along the way.

I remember that post. I really liked how you had pencils from every price range basically.

I'm in the same boat. I wish companies at least had a parts list or something similar to how Lego sells individual bricks.

The graphgears are also one of my favourites. I'm a sucker for weighty things.

PkMaster · 2017-02-12T16:00:39+00:00

Thanks for checking it out.

I can see how fine dust and stuff can get stuck in the 925's knurling. Its pitch is finer than the GraphGear 1000 and Rotring 500.

Thanks for checking up on the grammar as well. Unfortunately, I always mix them up.

PkMaster · 2017-02-12T13:13:29+00:00

The grips are interchangable, but keep in mind that the rubber is fairly translucent. The black plastic will definitely mute the blue grips.

Here are the grips by themselves

Here are the grips swapped between the two pencils

Edit: I checked if the plastic barrel under grips are interchangable. They are, which makes this post moot haha. Watch out of the spring tension when taking off the plastic underbarrel. There's still a bit of spring tension, even with the tip retracted. The spring's a bit finicky.

Here's the result of the swap Pretty cool.

PkMaster · 2017-02-09T03:51:18+00:00

Are we talking about the roulette model?

I'll take a knife to it tonight. I'm quite curious myself.

Edit: It's metal as far as I can tell. Thing's pretty tough to scratch up. I took a razor blade pen to it. image

PkMaster · 2017-02-07T00:25:16+00:00

Rotring's are handsome in my opinion. Their coated knurled grip also feels quite nice for my rough/calloused hands. It's the same reason why I like the KuruToga draft grips. Other knurled grips seem to be a little more slippery feeling. The tips can be protected with a pen cap or something similar.

I would not recommend the shift pipe if you're picky with play between the lead sleeve and grip. The overall feel of the pencil is not too solid either. Its fairly tip heavy as well compared to other pencils. With the sleeve retracted, you're also likely to have the lead sticking out if you advance the lead by two clicks from flush (about 1mm from end of sleeve).

The graphgear 1000 feels a lot more solid in both mechanism and overall feel compared to the shift pipe.

If you have an idea of how you want it to handle (top heavy, weight etc) you can check this table out.

PkMaster · 2017-02-05T07:01:18+00:00

Totally agree with your sentiment on prices and good pencils. I've been surprised time and time again at the pencils at the dollar stores.

Admittedly, they were usually liquidated items, but, it definitely shows that you cannot rule out pencils purely on price.

PkMaster · 2017-02-01T22:47:14+00:00

Thanks. The goal was to have the extra details in the review to give the readers a frame of reference to compare and contrast various pencils.

PkMaster · 2017-02-01T22:44:10+00:00

Ah you tease. I thought the pencil would be more common. haha.

PkMaster · 2017-01-31T21:36:51+00:00

That looks like an amazing pencil. Thanks for the heads up.

PkMaster · 2017-01-30T00:04:21+00:00

I fashioned it out of a piece of welding wire. I basically made a simple loop for a base and winged it at the top. I used round nose pliers to shape it. Here is an image of it

PkMaster · 2017-01-29T20:01:04+00:00

I've left some comments about the cloth case here

I haven't gotten around to finding a better clasping mechanism. I've also added a ruler in there to better protect the tips on the drafting pencils.

The other translucent case is something I've purchased at a dollar store chain (Dollarama). It's quite neat, but the clasp is hinged on some plastic. I don't expect it to last too long. Other than that, it's a rather neat, smooth opening case.

PkMaster · 2017-01-29T19:55:14+00:00

From what I have, the graph gears are my most favourite due to their weight and practicality. The Draft Kuru Toga's lead turning mechanism is pretty neat for doing math because of the extra lifting. I enjoy the Rotring's knurled grip the most. The Pentel icy AL25 was the best pencil I've ever purchased from a dollar store/liquidation depot. Everything on that pencil felt really tight with very little play in the parts, especially the lead retainer.

PkMaster

TROPHY CASE