The Pentel Hi-Polymer Eraser

Having mentioned this eraser in an earlier post (2006 July 3, “The Dixon Ticonderoga Pencil”), I thought it necessary to give it a home of its own. I actually bought this eraser because of how awesome it looks. It’s so ‘80’s Japan. But then I used it. Honestly, I didn’t know an eraser like this existed. Even having used a Dixon to make my test marks, the Pentel Hi-Polymer eraser totally deleted the lines. I thought, “Surely that’s not possible; I’ve never seen that happen before.” So I tested it with an old Sanford American No. 2, and it erased the line even easier! I was hooked. This was without question the best eraser I’d ever used.

The Pentel Hi-Polymer eraser is a pure-white, plastic eraser. It comes encased in a thin, cardboard sleeve. At first I thought this was purely aesthetic, but I realized later that the purpose of the sleeve is to prevent the eraser from breaking in half. The plastic is extremely soft, which is the characteristic that gives it such great erasing ability. This same characteristic keeps it relatively clean, too. Most pencil erasers turn nearly solid black after three or four uses. But the Hi-Poly cleans itself off after each use; you slough off the old, black plastic and reveal a fresh layer that’s ready to go.

I honestly don’t think I’ll find an eraser that’s better than the Pentel Hi-Polymer. I’ve yet to run across an instance where I couldn’t completely rid the paper of markings. Even old marks come off quickly and easily. Please note, though, that the softness of this eraser causes it to grab the paper pretty well, so a firm hand on the page is necessary to keep from ripping it. However, a single use is all that’s required to master the technique. And that single use will leave you all-smiles, as you too will have concluded your search for the perfect eraser.

~Jonathan

Bibliography:

1. The Pentel Hi-Polymer Eraser
2. Article on “The Writing Utensil Geek”: The Dixon Ticonderoga Pencil (Posted 2006 July 3).
3. Paper Mate American No. 2 pencil, the replacement of the Sanford American No. 2 and the reason I switched to the Dixon Ticonderoga; I’ll have to test the Paper Mate to see if this switch was necessary.

Back to School

You can’t mistake the air of freshness that rolls in this time of year. There’s a new coolness in every breeze that seems to be increasingly winning against the baking heat of summer. It won’t be long before the leaves turn bright gold and red, and the sound of children playing in the school yard will echo throughout the neighborhood.

I was a strange child: I actually enjoyed school. Every August meant fresh supplies. Ah! The sight of freshly-stocked aisles of school supplies! There are few things in life as sweet as that. New folders, new binders, new paper; it was all so great! Strolling over to the backpacks I decide which of these will be the sole descriptor of me for the next nine months. Which vinyl relief is the perfect badge? Spider Man? G. I. Joe? It usually ended up being either Optimus Prime or something Nintendo (you know, Mario squashing a Goomba, Link slicing a Tektike…that sort of thing.)

But few things in life are that way, nowadays. Today we’ve got reports and faxes and anal-retentive coworkers. Man, sometimes I really miss being in school. I miss that simplicity. The only thing I had to worry about back then was whether or not Julie had a crush on me and if I’d studied sufficiently for the spelling test. It’s strange to imagine that school was supposed to prepare me for this.

The Zebra Zeb-Roller 2000 Rollerball Pen

I’ve got various writing utensils for various purposes. I never have fewer than four different flavors on my desk at one time. There’s no way to explain this kind of behavior to the non-writing-utensil-geek humanoid. Most people simply assume a pen is a pen, and that is that. However, this is so not the case. Every pen and every pencil has a specific purpose; there’s a void that only it can fill. Enter the Zeb-Roller.

For all points and purposes, the Zeb-Roller 2000 is a great pen. But it’s not the pen I carry in my pocket. The Zeb-Roller shouldn’t be lowered to the status of “pocket pen,” performing mundane, everyday tasks. And, dare I say, it would perform poorly in that environment. The Zeb-Roller is a liquid ink roller, with a 0.7mm ball. And the ink is thick and velvety rich, starting off black as oil, and drying to a deep, charcoal grey (this is, of course, if you’re using the black one.)

The mixture of this ink with this ball means the Zeb-Roller leaves a thick, beautiful line. And the ball almost feels like it’s scraping the page. You can sometimes hear the sound of the metal against the paper. The end result is one imagines he must be writing with a fountain pen or a quill. Yet there are no ink blotches on the paper, no re-filling the well every two or three paragraphs, and it comes in handy three-packs. This is like the Babe Ruth of pens.

Not only is this a swell writing pen, it looks good, too. The paint job is the ever-elegant Champaign, and the barrel is just the right width. The only thing I don’t like aesthetically is the “arrow head” tip. Yet, it is this very “flaw,” if you will, that gives you the generous amount of real-estate to grab hold of. My hand never gets tired while writing with this pen. I sometimes feel like I could go on for hours writing with my Zeb-Roller.

So, you must be asking, “Why don’t you write with it more often?” Well, I’m writing with it right now. And with every stroke and every line, I fall more deeply in love with this wonderful pen. It is like that crystal vase that looks perfect on your mantel. Nothing else would work in that spot. I refer to this pen as my “check-writing pen,” as the signature it produces is nothing short of flawless. So, for signing autographs or roughing out your blog posts, the Zebra Zeb-Roller 2000 is it.

~Jonathan

Bibliography:

• Zebra Zeb-Roller 2000 Rollerball Pen