Koh-I-Noor Rapidomatic 5633 0.3mm Automatic Pencil

Hello Pen And Pencils Blog Fans... and other assorted strangers!  Welcome to my humble blog and another riveting review!... OK, so maybe not so riveting, but a review none the less!  I did this one for Associated Content a couple of years ago.  It's in a style I no longer use, but, hey, it's a valid review no matter what Tommy Turquoise says!  I've altered it here for my blog.  Enjoy!


Technical Data:
Length: 142.1mm
Diameter (Body) 9.1mm
Diameter (Grip): 8.1mm
Balance Point (From Bush Button): 74.6mm
Weight: 17 grams
Lead Sleeve: 4mm, fixed
Lead Size: 0.3mm

Major Components: End cap/lead sleeve/grip, body with lead grade indicator, pocket clip, clutch assembly/lead reservoir, push button and eraser with clean out rod.

Construction Type: Independent body and clutch/lead reservoir.

Construction Materials: Plastic body, metal end cap/lead sleeve/grip, pocket clip, push button, clutch assembly and lead reservoir.

Colors: Red, body, bright chrome pocket clip, lead grade indicator, push button, end cap/lead sleeve/grip, lead reservoir.

Mode Of Operation: Ratcheting push button lead advance, 3-jawed brass clutch with brass over-sleeve.

Appearance: The bright red color of the hexagonal body with its white lettering makes a striking contrast against the bright chrome of the other components. The chrome lead grade indicator rests at the top of the body and is finely knurled. The silver lead grade characters are set against a gloss black background and include the grades H, 2H, 4H, 2B, B, HB and F. The chrome pocket clip sets just below the lead grade indicator and is embossed with the brand name and country of origin, Japan. The chrome push button is the full over-sleeve type completely covering the lead reservoir and has the lead size nicely embossed on the top. The chrome grip is nicely knurled in a diamond pattern and steps down twice to form the integral end cap, squaring off before becoming the lead sleeve.

Disassembly: To completely disassemble the 5633 first remove the grip. The clutch assembly and lead reservoir will probably come along with it. Remove the clutch assembly from the end cap. Remove the pushbutton to expose the eraser. Remove the eraser to access the clean out rod. This completes the disassembly of the 5633. Reassembly is the opposite of disassembly.

Clearing A Lead Jam: Refer to this article, "All Jammed Up?", should clearing a lead jam be necessary.

My Opinion: The Koh-I-Noor was designed as a professionals tool but it's equally at home on the desk of the average homeowner. It is a well designed and built, being a highly sought after pencil brand for years. The lead is rock solid in the lead sleeve with very little if any wobble. Three clicks of the push button produce 1 mm of lead, quite enough lead to write with. Any more and there is a risk of breakage. The chrome lead reservoir is cavernous enough to hold several tubes of lead and still have room to spare. This is a feature that I like as I like to fill the lead reservoir with as much lead as possible. The balance point of the pencil is almost at the midpoint so the pencil is only slightly bottom heavy but it doesn't feel like it. The finely knurled diamond pattern on the grip makes a good surface to hold onto and helps guide the pencil across the paper. The only thing I don't like is the lead grade indicator. I'm not fond of the top of the body type of lead grade indicators. The one on the Koh-I-Noor started out tight but after years of use it has loosened up. Also the silver characters are set against a gloss black background making them hard to read due to glare. However the 5633 is a great pencil to write with being finely crafted and well built. I like the Koh-I-Noor, it feels good in my hand and is an easily guided across the paper despite its 17 gram weight, or maybe because of it. Either way I like this German designed pencil and wish that I had more.

Last Words: The above review was of a pencil that I've had for years. It was made in Japan and is a very well built pencil, possibly as well built as the original Koh-I-Noors made in Germany. Unfortunately the line is now made in China. The Chinese version of the pencils are not quite up to the standard of the Japanese or German versions. It's for this reason that I can not recommend buying a Koh-I-Noor 5633 unless you can find one in new or good condition that was made in Japan or Germany.

Picture courtesy of... wait!  I took that one!  Nice pic, huh?

February Giveaway

Hello blog readers, Web surfers, and passers by!  Welcome to my humble blog!  Take your shoes off, set a spell... on second thought, leave your shoes on!... This month I'm giving away a Pilot 2020 Super Grip 0.5mm shaker mechanical pencil in Aqua.  Apparently the solid colored versions are becoming hard to find, at least a search of the Web only turned up one place that showed the solid color pencil in Aqua, and they are no longer selling them!  The version that I'm giving away differs from the photo only in that the eraser cap is totally clear, there is no color at the top of the cap.

This is a cute (yes, I did say "cute") mechanical pencil and from my observation a sturdy one as compared to some other mechanical pencils.  It is made mostly of plastic and rubber with a few metal parts, namely the 3 jawed lead clutch system, the lead sleeve and the shaker weight, which appears to be a tightly wound spring!  The 2mm lead sleeve is of the retractable type with the lead retainer being plastic, but internal, as it should be!  It is integrated with the lead sleeve.  This little gem has a 3 jawed brass clutch, not a plastic 2 jawed clutch as so many mechanical pencils in it's price range have!  This speaks of quality.  In fact, I'm impressed with many of the features of the Pilot 2020.  It has a soft rubber grip, not the squishy silicone grip the other versions have!  But I personally am not a fan of rubber grips.  However over all the pencil, for what it is, is a nice pencil!  It has features found on much more expensive pencils!

The Pilot 2020 is 148mm long, 11mm wide at the grip, weighs a scant 11 grams.  The balance point is approximately 74mm from the tip of the pencil making it almost perfectly balanced!  It feels nice in the hand and is easy to use. The grip affords plenty of gripping power, but gets dirty easily!  There is a usable (almost) eraser under the clear cap that serves as a push button.  It does not come with a clean out rod, but I've provided one under the eraser.  The lead reservoir is small, holding about a 1/2 dozen leads max!  It comes with 2 leads, but I made it an even 1/2 dozen.

To operate the pencil one can use the push button, or just shake the pencil a couple of times in order to advance the lead.  But be careful when shaking the pencil to advance the lead as it is easy to advance too much lead!

Well, there you have it.  An impromptu review of the Pilot 2020 Super Grip Shaker mechanical pencil.  So if I have whet your appetite for the Pilot 2020 and you would like a chance to win this one then just drop me an email (theoldgeezer@live.com) with the words, Pilot 2020 Giveaway, in the subject line.  That's all there is to it!  Please just one email per person!  The giveaway will remain open until sometime Saturday the 26th of this month.  At that time I'll pick a winner using the RIG at the bottom of this blog.  So get your emails in!  Times a wastin'!

The photo is courtesy of our friends at Jetpens.

Stop the presses!  We have a winner!