Tombow Mono Zero Stick Eraser Review

Tombow Mono Zero Stick Eraser Review

Insanely useful.
The End.

The shortest review ever on DMP? Well, I could just leave it there, and I have found the Tombow Mono Zero 2.3mm diameter stick eraser so useful I am very tempted to do just that for maximum impact, but that would make me a plagiarist, and not really provide some information that folks might find useful.

Firstly then, the plagiarism. When first using the Mono Zero the "Eraser Queens comment" (03-2018 broken link removed) that it was “insanely useful” immediately came to mind, and I can’t think of anything better to say about it. So, now I’ve acknowledged the source I think I’m cleared of the accusation of plagiarism.

Right then, a little more information about this eraser. Actually there are two versions of the Tombow Mono Zero stick eraser. The one I have primarily been using is the EH-KUR “Ultra Fine 2.3mm” version. So, its eraser is a 2.3mm diameter round core.

Tombow Mono Zero round core

There is also the EH-KUS “Ultra Fine 2.5 x 5mm” version, which is a rectangular eraser core.

Tombow Mono Zero rectangular core

I personally prefer the blue/white/black striped colour scheme to the solid silver grey scheme.

Tombow Mono Zero alternative colour scheme

The Tombow Mono Zero stick eraser functions like an ordinary push top ratchet pencil. You push the top pocket clip section down to advance an increment of eraser. Ten clicks will get you about 9mm of eraser. The amount advanced has to be kept fairly short because the thin eraser cores do not have a lot of strength and will bend, tear and break if you advance too much out of the tip. The erasers are actually stuck onto the end of a plastic rod, and it is the rod that is held and advanced by the clutch mechanism. There is about 45mm of usable eraser length on each refill. You feed a new eraser core in through the tip rather than in through the top end like a mechanical pencil.

Comparison of Tombow Mono Zero eraser sizes

Tombow Mono Zero eraser refills

The elastomer eraser core erases quite well, but there are better. I would describe its erasing power as adequate or good rather than top notch. Let’s be fair though, the Mono Zero is not made to compete with block erasers, rather it is all about precision erasing of very small areas. I have been playing a certain online city building game and in my notebook have ruled up a grid of buildings and cities to record the level of advancement of each building in each city. As they are upgraded I erase the existing score and write in the new score. The Mono Zero is fantastic for this sort of thing. I can’t recommend it highly enough.

I said above that the Mono Zero was not meant to compete with block erasers. ..well that is of course unless you toss an eraser shield into the mix.

I wonder how many younger folk even know of these? Staedtler and others still offer them. For those not familiar, an eraser shield is a very thin piece of metal (usually stainless steel) with a range of holes and shapes cut out of it so you use an appropriate opening to reveal only the area you want to erase and then rub away with your normal big fat block eraser.

Some might moan about the Mono Zero eraser core not being suitable for erasing large areas, the core breaking if you advance too much, the eraser residue not twisting up nicely like a good block eraser, the price, the refills not being big enough, blah blah, blah. Get over it! It’s an eraser for small precision work. Use it for what it is intended for and I stick by the opening statement, “ insanely useful”. If it was a pencil I’d add it to My Top 5 Pencils list, but it’s not, so I can’t.

The three Tombow Mono Zero stick erasers pictured in this review were tossed into a parcel sent to me ages ago by Cult Pens. Thanks Cult Pens – excellent freebies.

Faber-Castell Eraser Pen Review

Faber-Castell Eraser Pen Review

I was recently browsing the pen aisle at a local office supplies store and noticed something new - the Faber-Castell Eraser Pen, article 183998 in its blister pack form.

Look at the pocket clip, the grip…it’s classic Faber-Castell styling. Since it was on special, and I have a bit of an interest in stick erasers I decided to hand over the necessary coins and become the owner of one.

As noted above, the visual styling is classic Faber-Castell and I find it quite appealing. The grip is hard plastic and despite the grooved rings is somewhat slippery, but you usually only hold a stick eraser for a few seconds at a time so that’s not a major concern.

The Faber-Castell Eraser Pen has two uncommon features. First, you extend and retract the eraser core by twisting the tip. No push top button or slider mechanism like many other stick erasers. This does have an advantage in that unlike some stick erasers the core doesn’t push back inside the body under heavy hand pressure. The second unusual feature is that the eraser core is only short, about 29mm (1 and 1/8th inches) long, and three spare eraser cores are stored inside the body. You unscrew the body to get to the replacement cores, and then feed them in through the front of the tip.

Well, that’s the first negative point in my book. You can twist out about 20 mm of the eraser core, the last 9mm being gripped inside the mechanism. So, that’s about 30% wastage of your eraser. The 9mm wastage might be similar to many other stick erasers, but they usually have cores that extend their full length, not a measly 29mm. Still, I imagine this wastage is good for replacement eraser core sales, if you can find them for sale anywhere.

The eraser core is about 6.5mm (1/4”) diameter. The packaging does not say anything about the composition of the eraser core, but it appears to be a plastic rather than a natural rubber compound. The packaging does state “Made in China”.

Right then, let’s put the Faber-Castell Eraser Pen up against my test bench standard, the Staedtler Mars Plastic. The first thing I noticed is that the Faber-Castell eraser is hard and abrasive. It feels it, and it sounds it - completely different to Mars Plastic, and not in a good way. The eraser waste is somewhat crumbly compared to Mars Plastic – it doesn’t twist up easily into long strands.

Here is a test card of the two erasers attempting to erase various woodcase and mechanical pencil leads. For wooden coloured pencil and wooden pencil HB lead Staedtler Mars Plastic was slightly but clearly better. For wooden pencil 6B and mechanical pencil HB lead Mars Plastic was significantly better.

So then, no matter what the price, in my opinion this eraser pen detracts from the Counts considerable reputation and I don't understand why Faber-Castell would apply their brand and signature styling to a product like this.

Expectation and outcome?

Pentel Tri Eraser ZE15 Stick Eraser Review

Pentel Tri Eraser ZE15 Stick Eraser Review

Sleek, shiny, black and white. My countries national sporting colours, how could I not like that? Putting my obvious bias aside, I do think it is a fairly good looking item.

The Tri Eraser has a triangular-ish body, and a triangular eraser core. The core sides are about 8mm in length, and the total length of the eraser core is about 122mm, of which about the last 15mm is effectively unusable as its held in the mechanism.

The triangular body is quite comfortable to hold, and it certainly isn’t prone to rolling around on your desk. There is an integrally moulded pocket clip on the top section. The core is advanced mechanical pencil push top ratchet style by pushing down the white end section. The mechanism feeds fairly well, but not as precisely as a mechanical pencil. Replacement eraser cores are just fed in through the triangular hole in the top of the end section.

By holding the eraser at about a 45 - 60 degree angle and rotating which side of the triangle you use you can keep some sharpish edges and small sections available to do some detailed erasing.The core is held fairly tightly by the mechanism but if you push down strongly the core will slide back up into the body. This is a bit of a problem if you press down hard whilst erasing as the core can slide back up into the body. Obviously this is most pronounced when holding the eraser vertically, but even when held at about a 45 degree angle to the paper it can slide back up under heavy hand pressure and vigorous erasing. I don’t want to make more of this matter than is necessary. If you are doing a small to medium amount of erasing, erasing a precise area, etc then you should not have any problems. It is really only if you are erasing a large area with heavy hand pressure that you may run into problems with the core pushing back up into the body.The Pentel website makes no mention of what the eraser core is or isn’t made from, but I found some shopping websites that claim it is latex-free and others that claim PVC-free. It’s clearly not latex but other than that, who knows? I have recently been doing a little Googling on non-latex eraser compounds and from plastics raw materials manufacturer’s sites, research sites, patent websites, etc its clear there are a lot of different non-PVC materials used. EP/PP (ethylene/polypropylene copolymer), styrene-ethylene/butylene-styrene block copolymers, SBS/PS (poly(styrene-butadiene-styrene) blended with polystyrene), and SBR (styrene butadiene rubber) are just some the fancy names you will find mentioned as eraser compounds. It’s also now clear to me that a few of the erasers I have looked at and thought were vinyl probably weren’t.

During my review time I felt that the erasing power of the Tri Eraser was reasonable but not exemplary. Certainly I felt that it did not erase as well as my benchmark, the Staedtler Mars Plastic. Being a relatively small core eraser the waste of the Tri Eraser did not tend to twist up into long strands, so I always had a bit of eraser dust to clear up afterwards. On then to the official test, Tri Eraser versus Mars Plastic, with 0.5mm HB grade mechanical pencil lead and 4B grade Staedtler Mars Lumograph woodcase pencil lead.

From my preceding comment, I expected Mars to perform better than Tri Eraser on the official test. I was wrong, so I’m not sure where that leaves my original gut-feeling that it wasn’t as good as Mars Plastic. Basically the official test was a draw, both doing an equal job of erasing the HB and 4B lead. There was one difference though, which you can see in the photos. Note how Mars tended to smear the lead more than Tri Eraser. Some might claim this means Tri Eraser actually won the official test! I’m tempted to think this smearing is partly to do with the size of the eraser. The compound of the smaller Tri Eraser rubbing off the main body quicker, thus leading to less smearing?So, I’d suggest you consider the Tri Eraser next time you need something erased.

• Best Points – Triangular core shape keeps a fine edge.
• Not So Good Points – The core sometimes sliding back up into the body.
• Price Range – Economy.

Dimensions – Length 125mm, triangle side length 13mm.

Sanford Tuff Stuff Eraser Stick

Last year I was contacted by a reader, Mark from California, who suggested I might be interested in trying his favourite eraser, the Sanford Tuff Stuff Eraser Stick, and he offered to send me a couple as “they only cost peanuts”. Well I am interested in finding the ultimate eraser, so I accepted his offer and duly received a package in the post. So, thanks Mark.Well first off the Tuff Stuff seems a fairly typical mechanical stick eraser. Just like many a mechanical pencil, you push the top to advance the lead, oops, sorry, the eraser core, and you can push the core back inside the tip if necessary. I think this eraser stick counts as “pocket-safe”. The pocket clip top section pulls off to allow refilling with another eraser core. I’m not completely convinced by the security of the top section to the main body and I could imagine it coming loose after much use, but then this is not an expensive item , so just get another one if that ever happens.

The Tuff Stuff comes in a rather nice selection of colours, and the concentric rings on the grip section look nice, and add some security to the grip for large erasing jobs. The body has a slightly unusual feel, almost a hint of rubber, a hint of sponginess – I actually quite like it.Now, the main event, the eraser core. Well it’s fairly narrow for a stick eraser, just under 4mm diameter (a bit over 1/8 inch). Mark pointed out to me that this diameter fits several mechanical pencil eraser cartridges (e.g. Faber-Castell). The compound appears to be a fairly hard vinyl, but don’t take the “vinyl” bit as gospel. I have noticed a bit of a general trend for eraser compounds to get harder as their diameter decreases, which does have some logic to it. Being a fairly narrow diameter the Tuff Stuff is well suited to smaller more precise erasing jobs, e.g. rubbing out an individual letter as opposed to whole lines of wording. The waste doesn’t readily twist up into strands so it’s a little messy, particularly on larger jobs. The eraser core often ends up with a dirty half-rubbed off stringy-blobby bit stuck on its tip (yes, that’s a technical term), which rather irritates me. (Dreadlocks for erasers?)

In a quick comparison test with the test bench Staedtler Mars Plastic eraser, the Mars did a better job of erasing ordinary woodcase pencil HB lead and mechanical pencil 0.5mm HB lead from ordinary photocopy type paper. Tuff Stuff did a reasonable job, it’s just Mars was better. The difference was slightly more evident with woodcase pencil lead. In the photo below you can see there is some graphite residue left behind on the Tuff Stuff erasings (left half of page), and how the eraser waste is scattered around compared to the two twisted up strands of eraser waste on the Mars (right hand) side of the test page.Overall then, I do like this eraser, but to date, Mars Plastic plus an eraser shield remains virtually unbeatable.

• Best Points – The grip and feel, “pocketability”, and suited to finer erasing.
• Not so good points – The eraser compound is a bit messy for frequent large scale general office work.

Dimensions – Length 126mm, 11mm diameter body. Eraser stick – c4mm diameter x 100mm length, of which about 85mm is usable.

Footnote - I have started to become suspicious that larger erasers like the Mars plastic are better at erasing hard pressed pencil lines that are indented into the paper. Paper is rather flexible and I half suspect the extra pressure from a bigger eraser pulling and stretching at the paper (compared to a narrow eraser) allows for better graphite removal. Something to check out one day in the future. Any thoughts?

Uni Auto Eraser EH-100P

Uni Auto Eraser EH-100P
Erasers come in a huge variety of sizes, shapes, colours, smells, and a few of them, like the Uni Auto Eraser come in “mechanical pencil” or “stick eraser” format.
The Uni Auto Eraser, model EH-100P, is made in Japan by Mitsubishi Pencil Company Ltd. Essentially it is a basic push top ratchet mechanical “pencil” that propels a 5mm diameter eraser rather than a piece of pencil lead. The mechanism really does feel and sound quite like an ordinary mechanical pencil mechanism.

Aesthetically it’s nothing fancy, just a plain simple round black lightweight plastic body. It’s not unattractive, just a no-frills, no-nonsense sort of look. There are some shallow indent dots at the tip to make a grip zone, and the pocket clip is better than many such integrally moulded clips. The end cap comes off to refill the eraser stick, and it only holds one length of eraser at a time, there are no spares stored inside the body. Eraser refills are seemingly easily available.
From my engineering and general office user background, I’ve traditionally mostly used medium and harder grades of lead, in the B to 2H sort of range. With these grades the Uni erasing power is adequate, but not exceptional. It doesn’t smear the pencil marks, but doesn’t quite seem to erase them as completely as some other erasers do, for example my trusty Staedtler Mars Plastic 526 50. It doesn’t state anywhere what the Uni eraser compound is, but I think it’s vinyl. It is a little crumbly when used, so you tend to end up with a bit of eraser waste spread around your page - it doesn’t easily twist up into a few long strands like the Mars Plastic does. On the other hand, being a 5mm core, it is suited to finer erasing work and you can maintain a reasonably sharp edge for more precise erasing. Now, moving onto softer darker leads, like 2B and 5B, things tend to change a bit. The slight crumbling and thinner erasing face do a bit better than the much larger and firmer Staedtler Mars Plastic. There isn’t as much smearing as with the Mars Plastic, and overall Uni ends up erasing more of the graphite from the paper.

• Best Points – The mechanical pencil look and feel, “pocketability”, and suited to finer erasing.
• Not so good points – The eraser compound is a bit messy for general office work.

Dimensions – Length 128mm, 10mm diameter body. Eraser stick – 5mm diameter x 90mm length, of which about 80mm is usable.

Footnote: You might have noticed that this posting is just called “Uni Auto Eraser EH-100P”, not “Uni Auto Eraser EH-100P Review”. I’ve got a bit of an eraser thing going at the moment and I know I’m going to end up doing a few eraser posts, but I’m quickly coming to realise there is a little more to erasers than meets the eye, (like that crumbling can be good), and that really I don’t know much about erasers, so I’ll just post some thoughts, pictures, information, etc and not be all “formal and reviewy”. Actually there’ll also be some pencil posts in this “informal and non-reviewy” manner too.