Helix Metal Desktop Sharpener for Standard and Jumbo Pencils (Assorted Colours)

Price: £12.99
(as of Jul 15,2024 14:07:11 UTC – SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN AGED OVER 3 YEARS
Sharpens both standard and maxi/jumbo pencils (up to a maximum diameter 10.5mm).
Durable sharpening mechanism with 5 settings for various lead sharpness.
Easy to operate using the crank handle and a quick release push button for broken leads.
Anti-slip base with desk clamp included.
Assorted colours: blue, red and black. Random colour selection, colour cannot be specified.
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Reviewer: Kelley
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Works like a dream.
Review: This is just perfect. It is very easy to use and shaves very little off the pencil so will make them last longer. It will sharpen to a very fine point which is excellent for detail work. Even my pastel pencils sharpen to a good point with this.I’ve only had lead jams twice and it is very easy to unblock which isn’t always the case.Good value for money. Sturdy and does the job well.

Reviewer: mark62
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Sturdy sharpener, producing nice fine and sharp points
Review: I purchased this recently whilst on a limited time offer, of £10.50For some odd reason, there is no way to select a colour option at the point of purchase?? – I ended up getting one in Red – I’m guessing this isn’t a major issue for most, but I’d still be good to have the choice!The unit seems well made (being a metal body) and includes a handy table clamp which fastens securely, preventing the unit from sliding around during one-handed use. The shavings cup is a reasonable size and, in any case, easy enough to empty mid-sharpening if you’re doing lots of pencils at any one time.I bought this to sharpen different diameter pencils (watercolour/water-soluble, sketching pencils and thicker Conte pencils) and it copes well with the different sizes I have.One word of warning though (and this has already been mentioned in earlier review) – which is: not to open the clamp/carriage assembly to its widest extent (as the instructions tell you to do). I did this and ended up with one of my Conte pencils been chewed away excessively, as I was expecting the auto stop function to kick in – which it obviously didn’t. Never mind, a lesson learnt and I found afterwards, that if you just open the carriage about a centimetre or so before inserting the pencil, that the sharpener worked fine and the auto stop did then function ok.Now down the sharpening quality. The unit has a 5 position sharpness adjuster function which, I found produced excellent, shorter leads with a a very fine and sharp point (set at the far left sharpest setting of course!) After this, as you turn the dial further to the right, the point produced is progressively more blunt – this is great, as you have the control to sharpen for whatever your particular usage of the pencil is.As I say, the points are shorter generally, so if you’re looking for a much more extended and slender lead, this isn’t going to be the sharpener for you – I have another mechanical sharpener which does this and can also be found here on Amazon.Overall, a great unit which operates smoothly and produces excellent results. Time will tell as to the robustness of it, but for the price you can’t complain really! – recommended

Reviewer: overcast
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Beautifully sharp points and fewer broken tips
Review: I purchased this for a bulk sharpening job and overall I am very pleased with it. The sharpest setting gives a ridiculously fine tip which is probably more for art/technical drawing. For everyday use (writing and kids colouring pencils) I found the bluntest setting more than enough and gives a tip similar to how most pencils have fresh out of the factory. The shavings tray has plenty of capacity to sharpen multiple pencils. You can always slide the drawer open and tamp with your finger if needed. There are a couple of reasons I’ve knocked a star off. The handle will not stand up to rough use (as seen on a colleagues model) so I’d be wary of letting younger children use it for fear of it breaking. I’d happily pay a bit more for a metal handle. Also the selection knob, for how fine a point you want to sharpen to, is very stiff. I thought mine was broken until I finally got it to turn. Overall, it’s a great sharpener which should last a very long time as long as you back off if you hit any unusual resistance when sharpening (to avoid breaking the handle).

Reviewer: Raregoblin
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Standard/Jumbo – a guide to use
Review: Excellent product. Best sharpener I have used, much better than the little hand sharpeners that butcher pencils. Easy to use by children. Comes with table clamp (see photo) that holds it nice and steady.There are 2 sharpeners available (standard and standard/jumbo pencil size) the standard comes with a lever to adjust the sharpness (1-5 settings) the larger one doesn’t, it has a small red button that you turn to select the sharpness (again, 1-5 settings – see photo) Should the lead break whilst sharpening and jam the sharpener you push the same button to push the broken lead out and then continue sharpening.The clamp is easy to use, just push it into one of the holes at bottom of sharpener and then place at bottom of table (see photo).Now in regards to how much you sharpen the pencils, it really depends on if the point just needs a quick sharpen or if the pencil has lost the point altogether. To adjust how much you want to sharpen pencil you need to push the 2 levers at the front and then bring out the front. It will extend to a few inches, not recommended unless you have a 6″ pencil you want to make into a 2″ one! The front winds back in as you sharpen, so you can lose a lot of pencil if you aren’t careful. For a quick sharpen you only need to bring it out a centimeter or so and then, still pushing on levers, insert pencil as far as it will go and then release the levers to clamp the pencil. For very broken pencils, you can bring it out an inch maybe. That seems to be enough trust me. Once pencil is clamped turn the handle clockwise, the front winds in and then you will feel the handle turns with no resistance. Push the 2 levers at front again to release pencil and check it. If it still needs a little more, just repeat the above steps.In regards to emptying the sharpenings tray, just push it out from handle side (see photo) it can be quite tight with clamp in place and you may need to release the table-clamp slightly to push it out. Just empty and reinsert.Should the sharpener jam with broken lead and the red button not release it then you need to get at it. Where the handle joins the sharpener is a black plastic wheel, turn that anti-clockwise and you can pull out handle with grinder (see photo) pick out the broken lead with a paper clip or similar and then reinsert grinder, turn the black wheel clockwise and handle is then locked in place.

Reviewer: Amazon Customer
Rating: 1.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: This will not stay put when I try to sharpen my pencils. I have tried several times, but it comes loose.

Reviewer: Horst Neumann
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Alles ok, schnelle LIEFERUNG

Reviewer: Pavlo Muntianu
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: We bought it today and already sharpened all pencils, it is very easy to use and pencils are sharpened very well

Reviewer: Jonna Voutilainen
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: I remember this sharpener from school when I was a child in the 90:s, so it was nostalgic when I saw it! It works perfect with both my polychromos and my prismas. It doesn’t harm the shaft of the pencils which is lovely when you have an expensive set! The shavings container is kind of small but it doesn’t matter because the shavings are so tiny so it swallows a lot. You can mount it to a table which is nice. A great pencil sharpener! Nothing bad to say!

Reviewer: Corizi
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: So overall great, but the container for shavings is top tight a fit, well I suppose its slightly off. The squeak.. (holds ears and tries to ignore the nails on chalkboard type of noise)

SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN AGED OVER 3 YEARS
Sharpens both standard and maxi/jumbo pencils (up to a maximum diameter 10.5mm).
Durable sharpening mechanism with 5 settings for various lead sharpness.
Easy to operate using the crank handle and a quick release push button for broken leads.
Anti-slip base with desk clamp included.
Assorted colours: blue, red and black. Random colour selection, colour cannot be specified.