PRISMACOLORPremier Colored Pencil Sharpener-Black

I held off buying this pencil sharpener, despite buying the 150 tin of Prismacolor pencils, because I already had numerous pencil sharpeners. Plus, forking out another £7 or so for something I didn’t entirely need couldn’t be justified at that time.I soon discovered that Prismacolor pencils, as well as being absolutely awesome for colouring, are an absolute pain in the butt for sharpening. Shortly afterwards I moved and they were stuffed in the back of a cupboard and forgotten about for 4 years.I recently rediscovered my pencils - and how difficult they are to sharpen without breakage. I figured that surely the same brand of sharpener would sharpen them properly and, you know what? It does!Those of you who own Prismacolor pencils have probably already discovered for yourselves that some pigments are more delicate than others (We’re looking at you, reds and oranges) so tend to break every time they’re sharpened. This pencil sharpener remedied that for me - since buying it, all of my Prismacolor pencils have sharpened without breakages.This pencil sharpener has two holes for sharpening. One of these gives you a traditional, long, sharp point & the other: a short, blunter point like the type the pencils come with. Using the second of the two holes should resolve all your Prismacolor sharpening breakages - it has for me.In short, if you’re going to be investing in a set of Prismacolor Premier pencils buying this sharpener is a no brainier. Not if you’re wanting to enjoy using them rather than sharpening a large proportion of them into the bin! I wish I’d realised this years ago - I would have saved myself a lot of frustration!

This sharpener actually works, don’t know how many sharpeners I own that have promised but never delivered on performance. Tried it on different makes of pencils before plucking up the courage to try it on the few prismsacolour I own and the dreaded Derwent pastels pencils which are almost impossible to sharpen without breaking. But not anymore, not one pencil broken in the sharpener… I’m most impressed, would definitely recommend this sharpener especially for the two difficult delinquent brands to sharpen. Only one small gripe, the top is awkward to get off and on again when it needs emptying. I’m going to put a line on it is it make it easier to line up when the top is put back on.

I bought this sharpener after reading loads of reviews on Amazon and elsewhere, to ensure that I did not damage my more expensive colouring pencils (i.e. Prismacolor, Faber Castell Polychromos etc.) Being new to the world of colouring and using good quality pencils, I wanted to make sure I had a good quality product.This is a good product. I do find myself being a little cautious when sharpening and checking every now and again to ensure I don't over sharpen the pencils. I also find some of the pencils (Prismacolour brand only) seem to "catch" as you turn them while sharpening, so you have to do it gently.I like the ergonomic shape and how it fits comfortably in your hand. It's also handy that it collects the shavings, which you can empty out. A word of caution - be careful when removing the lid (try to ease it off as opposed to pulling it out quickly) as you could end up with shavings everywhere!I find it an expensive sharpener, and I'm still undecided whether it's actually worth the high price tag. I've heard that the Mobius & Ruppert brass grenade pencil sharpener is excellent, and it certainly comes with a cheaper price tag. So that may be a better option for anyone starting out with colouring and not sure if they want to spend a lot of money on it.

Like many others, I suspect, I've tried a number of sharpeners with my Prismacolor pencils. After all, a sharpener is a sharpener, right?Well no, not when it comes to Prismacolors. The core is too soft for the battery/mains operated sharpener I use with my polychromos and Caran D'Ache pencils, so I've built up quite a collection of manual sharpeners in search of 'The Best" for the Prismas. Most of them can give a good point but there's a fair bit of effort involved as the wood casing catches easily on the blades.I really didn't expect this sharpener to be any different, even though it's marketed as being the one to use with Prismacolors, so I held out against buying it until a few days ago. All I can say is, using it with these pencils has been a revelation. The blades cut through the casings cleanly, with little catching, and nowhere near as many turns (of pencil or sharpener, depending on how you sharpen your pencils) are needed as with the other manual sharpeners I've tried.I won't be using this with my polychromos or Caran D'Ache pencils because I've got other sharpeners - especially the battery/mains operated one - which do an excellent job on them. This sharpener will be used exclusively with the pencils for which it was designed - Prismacolors - because in the long run I can see it saving money since it sharpens the Prismas so smoothly and cleanly.