Spoke Design Mechanical Pencil Review

Well it has certainly been a long time between drinks, but here I am, just in time to post one last thing before the year end. I thank Spoke Design for the inspiration to burst into e-print once again.

Spoke Design Mechanical Pencil Review

I was alerted to the Spoke Design mechanical pencil project back in July this year, and a little while ago they very kindly sent me a freebie pencil. I really like the pencil, so here's a few pictures and words on it. I will not go into the detail of the mechanism etc as it is a Pentel Sharp P205 series mechanism fitted into a new aluminium body.

As you can see they sent me a mechanical pencil, notepad and a sticker.

The mechanical pencil is packaged in a printed clear hard plastic tube which also secures the lead sleeve in place so the pencil is held very securely in position.



Lead sleeve inserted into centre hole of tube stopper

The Spoke Pencils self-adhesive label, pictured with the pencil stand or dock, and pencil.

I chose the black pencil because that's a standard colour for me, but frankly it was a mistake. The spoke cut-outs in the body allow you to see the internal lead reservoir tube of the pencil, but it too is black, and so with black on black you loose a great visual effect. Check out the gallery at Spoke Pencils to see what I mean.

Having said that, black is always in fashion, and the Spoke Pencil is a class act.

Note the cut-outs in the body, running down to the flared grip section. Like the body, the grip is hexagonal and smooth, however the flare at the tip of the body helps secure your fingers in place.

Note the single dot at the top of the body. That indicates this is from the first manufacturing run.

The pencil stand or dock is a very nice addition. It has an adhesive pad underneath should you wish to stick it in place, but it holds the pencil upright without difficulty on any flat level surface.

The original Kickstarter project saw nearly 800 pencils manufactured and shipped out. It was a stand alone project and production run so there may or may not be future production runs. I hope they will make more, because it is a good pencil and an interesting design. If Spoke carry on like they have started, then the guys at Porsche Design should keep an eye on their rear-view mirror as one day they might just see a Spoke cruising up behind them.

With that in mind I offer some comments for possible modification of future pencils.

• This is a great pencil, be proud, put your brand name on it. I would also love to see "USA" on it too.
• The pencil stand is a great idea and works really well. I wonder though that over time the metal on metal contact with the pencil tip section may lead to some wear on both. Perhaps a plastic insert in the stand is worth considering.
• The edges of the hexagonal body are just a little sharp for me. Some more rumbling or perhaps some deliberate rounding in the finger grip zone would be in order.
• In the right light, at the right angle, with good eyesight... boy, I'm being very picky here... you can see some very minor tool marks. A little more rumbling might help.

If Spoke make more pencils, and you don't already have one, then I suggest it is a worthy addition to any collection.

The Spoke Mechanical Pencil - definitely one to help the thought process.