Zebra DelGuard - The Other End

The Zebra DelGuard range of mechanical pencils has been around for a while, but hasn’t been mentioned on this blog before, so it’s time to put an end to that. The DelGuard system is a very effective anti-“lead breakage” invention. Sure, you can still break the lead if you advance it out a stupidly long way, but for all reasonable intents and purposes, leads in a DelGuard mechanical pencil are virtually immune to breaking from writing pressure. It really is impressive. If you don’t have a DelGuard then I really do think you need to add one to your collection. It would be like not having a Kuru Toga. It’s sort of compulsory, whether you like it or not. My only negative is that I don’t like the aesthetics of the current crop of DelGuard tips.

Zebra DelGuard - full strength for strong leads

The Japanese pencil brands still seem to produce a lot of advertising material, and some of it is a constant reminder of just how different the Japanese market is to the western market. This DelGuard video sort of sums it up. I can’t imagine a western brand producing such pencilporn. Softcore hard lead?

Anyway, as I said, I’m not a fan of the DelGuard tip, so let’s turn that around and focus on the other end.

Focus on the blunt end, not the sharp point.

Top to bottom = DelGuard standard, Type-ER and Type-Lx

Firstly, take a look at my three DelGuards. Two have pocket clips but the third one does not. The Type-ER model has a small anti-roll finial rather than a pocket clip. At first I didn't really like it, but it has grown on me. The Type-Lx (luxury?) has a smooth metal grip section and a metal pocket clip as opposed to the standard models plastic grip and clip. I much prefer the eraser cap on the Lx to the standard.

Now, taking a further look at those erasers.

The DelGuard Type-ER has one of those magic erasers. The type that automatically extends out when you turn the pencil upside down to use it, and it locks in place whilst the pencil is upside down, but then it automatically retracts back when you turn the pencil up ready to write. Magic 😁 I am a bit of a sucker for magic erasers.

DelGuard tips - no thanks.

DelGuard Type-ER

All Black colour scheme and magic eraser - hooked - addictive and habit forming.

One Factory To Make Them All, One Factory To...

Somewhere in China I figure a factory is doing quite well out of this mechanical pencil.

Here’s three branded versions of it. All have slight variations in colour scheme, branding and packaging. I have previously mentioned one of them, the MGM mechanical pencil.

A cursory look indicates they are all the same mechanical pencil, and closer examination confirms it, e.g. these moulding marks.

MGM of Malaysia call it the A-200 Plus mechanical pencil, Zebra of Japan call it the MLP2 mechanical pencil, and Urban and Recipe of South Korea call it the Sketch mechanical pencil. All label it as “Made in China”. All label it as being filled with 2B lead. Zebra incorrectly state it is 0.9mm square lead. Others not depicted here call it 1.85mm lead. There seems to be a bit of variation but basically the lead is rectangular about 1.8 to 1.9mm x 0.95 to 0.98mm.

Not surprisingly you can see the Zebra and MGM lead refill containers clearly originated in the same factory too.

MGM and Zebra advertise it as, amongst other uses, an examination or test taking pencil, with Zebra going so far as to categorically state ‘Use on Scantron and other OCR Scan Forms’. Yea, just what we need, lets fire up that old nonsense  ‘Must use number 2 wooden pencil’ drama. Hmmm, 2B, that should be a number 4 pencil? And it’s not wooden either. How dare they claim it's good for Scantron! Oh, hey wait, 2B has a got 2 in it so it must be a number 2 pencil too. Phew, that's OK then!

If I had to choose one for myself, then I like the styling of Urban and Recipe from South Korea. A pencil fit for the modern urban warrior, fighting his way through the megacity of Seoul?

Zebra Tect 2way Mechanical Pencil Review

Zebra Tect 2way Mechanical Pencil Review

There are several sub-variants of the Zebra Tect 2way with cosmetic differences from each other. Mine is a “Tect 2way light” which appears to mean it has a transparent plastic body and grip section. Other variants have solid colours, and others have metalized grip sections. Pricing varies significantly amongst these options.

(Above picture is clickable for higher res view)

Some readers may recall an earlier rant about a particularly blue pencil. Well, my Zebra Tect2way is blue, and it looks pretty good. Not good enough for another rant, but it’s getting close.

So then, nice blue transparent body, some nice crisp lettering in white, shiny chrome trims…overall a good looking package.

The grip section has three rubber rings around its lower part and a couple of concentric depressions above that. The rubber rings are a little bit too low down towards the tip for me, I would prefer a fourth one. They stand reasonably proud off the surface and so do give you some extra grip. Their feel under finger is a little unusual and may not be to everyone’s taste.

The lead sleeve is a 4 mm pipe suitable for drafting, but not so suitable for your pocket. The pocket clip is a simple piece of bent steel, rather strong so it won’t be sliding off whatever you have clipped it to.

Up at the top of the pencil the push top button freely rotates and spins around which is a little unusual. It has the lead size “07” (no decimal point) printed on the top of it, in a font that I like. You pull the top button off to reveal a small eraser and that comes out to access the lead chamber.You can use the top button as an ordinary push top ratchet mechanism – 10 clicks will get you about 7mm of lead. However the lead advance mechanism is a shaker system, so alternatively you can of course just shake the pencil to advance the lead. The shaker strength seems about right to me. It doesn’t seem to activate inadvertently, but you don’t have to risk whiplash of the wrist to get it to operate. The internal shaker system weight is spring cushioned at the top end of its travel which produces a rather interesting bouncy effect when you are shaking.

The main feature of this pencil, the feature that the sales advertising seems to focus in on as a point of difference from other mechanical pencils, is that the shaker system can be turned on or off. At the top of the grip section just above the chrome band is a short rotatable ring section. You turn the ring section one way and the shaker system is active. You turn it the other way and the shaker weight is held fixed in place so it won’t activate the lead advance mechanism. I guess this one/off feature is the origin of the 2way bit in the name of the pencil. I suppose you could also use the ‘off’ feature to lock the shaker weight in a specific place and thus customise the balance point of the pencil. But then of course you would not be able to use the shaker to advance the lead.

Whether the ability to turn the shaker system on or off is of any value to you is obviously an entirely personal thing. It seems to me that in general people either like shakers or they don’t, thus the ability to convert the pencil from one to the other is somewhat gimmicky. I’m sure the feature has marketing value as something unusual and a differentiator from the competition, but whether it has any practical value…well that’s an entirely different matter. Just for the record, for me personally it has little value.

At the end of the day I quite like this pencil, but I’m not sure I would make much use of the shaker on/off facility. I’d probably just leave it on as I quickly developed a habit of flicking the pencil around to make the shaker weight bounce on its sprung top end-stop.

• Best Points – The spring bounce of the shaker.
• Not So Good Points – Not much really. Not pocket safe, and could do with an extra grip ring or two.
• Price Range – Low.
• Does this pencil make it into the Top 5? – It’s a good pencil, but No.

Dimensions – Length 150mm, diameter 11mm at widest part of grip. Balance point about 70mm up from the tip, with the shaker weight at the front (tip end) of its travel.

Zebra M-301 Mechanical Pencil Review

Zebra M-301 Mechanical Pencil Review

The M-301 is a rather dinky looking smallish polished steel and black plastic pencil. As you might expect it is also rather lightweight. These factors combine to make me think of it as a notebook or compendium pencil, rather than a fulltime everyday office pencil.

The plastic grip section has horizontal and vertical grooves which cut the surface into tiny squares and actually make quite a good grip. I commend them for not sticking a rubber grip on instead! The lead sleeve is a fixed 3mm thin pipe. I’m a little surprised by this. A retractable sleeve would fit better with my idea that this pencil is aimed at the pocket, purse, notebook, compendium segment of the market. The lead advance mechanism is a push top ratchet – 10 clicks will get you 6mm of lead. My pencil is 0.5mm lead. “Japan”, “Zebra M-301” and “.5” are clearly printed in black on the main barrel of the pencil. The “0.5” is particularly prominent, which is good. Underneath the top cap is a small eraser and you remove that to access the lead refill chamber.

The pocket clip is a plain but strong and functional steel strip.

• Best Points – Small solid pencil, good for a compendium, etc. The price is probably a good point too.
• Not So Good Points – Lead sleeve not retractable.
• Price Range – Low.

Dimensions – Length 133mm, diameter 9mm. Balance point about 75mm up from the tip.

Now that was a pretty short review by my standards. I’ve got to admit that overall Zebra is one of those brands that tend to leave me a little flat. I’m not really sure why. Their pencils are perfectly good products, I guess it’s just that somehow I don’t associate them with innovation or cutting edge design or outstanding quality or…, they tend to be just more of the same. Am I being unfair here?

Footnote – It was a long time ago, but my M-301 was a freebie from Cult Pens.

Zebra T3 and Pilot Birdie Mechanical Pencil Reviews

Zebra T3 and Pilot Birdie Mechanical Pencil Reviews

Its bonus time - two reviews for the price of one! Well, I’ve just recently been on holiday in Australia and it seemed a good time to put a few mini-pencils through their paces. First up we have two somewhat similar pencils, the Zebra T3 and the Pilot Birdie.

Photo: Pilot Birdie (top) and Zebra T3.


Zebra T3 Pocket Pencil Mechanical Pencil Review The Zebra T3 Pocket Pencil is very small – at 100mm (4in) long and a very slender 5mm (< ¼ in) in diameter, you’ve got to look pretty hard to find something smaller. The T3 is an all-metal (lightly brushed steel body, polished end-pieces) push top ratchet 0.5mm pencil. It has a short little 1.5mm lead sleeve at the tip so it’s not really (trouser) pocket safe, despite it being called “Pocket Pencil” on the Zebra website. Being so slim and a reasonably smooth steel body, it’s never going to win the “good grip” award. In fact I imagine those of you who wear size X-Large gloves would possibly rate the T3 as unusable. For someone like me who is in the medium hand size range, you wouldn’t want to be writing any long novels with the T3, but clearly this is not what the T3 was intended for. Obviously it is a short slim pencil to fit unobtrusively in a notebook or compendium, so that you can jot down a few short notes here and there. At this, it is quite good, but I do have one significant reservation - the pocket clip.

The pocket clip is part of the push top button and it doesn’t really fill me with confidence. As normal, you pull the push top button off to reveal a very small eraser, and then remove the eraser to refill the lead chamber. The problem is, it doesn’t seem too much of a leap of imagination to see the push top button coming off at an inappropriate time and therefore the main body of the pencil will just fall free. Lost. Gone.

• Best Points – extra small and slim to fit in your compendium.
• Not So Good Points – extra small means a bit hard to hold for longer periods of time, and I’m uneasy about its security when clipped to a pad or folder compendium. Despite its small size, I wouldn’t really put the T3 in a trouser pocket.
• Price Range – Low.

Dimensions – Length 100mm, diameter 5mm. Balance point – irrelevant.

Note: I’m not sure of the T3’s proper designation – some sites call it T3, others TS-3, but they appear to be the same pencil.

Pilot Birdie Mechanical Pencil Review
The Pilot Birdie is reasonably similar to the Zebra T3. It’s a little bit longer, but still very slender. I wouldn’t be surprised to find that the main bodies of both the Birdie and the T3 are made from the same standard size seamless tube. The Birdie is a push top ratchet 0.5mm pencil, but not quite “all-metal” as there is a thin black plastic washer visible where the tip section screws into the main body. Like the T3, the Birdie has a short 1.5mm long lead sleeve at the tip so it’s not really pocket safe. I’m not quite sure why the designers of both of these pencils went for this short sleeve – why not make it retractable or do away with it entirely? As expected, you pull the top cap off to reveal a very small eraser, and remove the eraser to refill the lead magazine. Now for an important difference – unlike the T3, the Birdie’s pocket clip is welded direct to the main body, like “normal”. Gone are my worries about the pencil detaching and not being where I clipped it. Just for the record, the Birdie clip might be small, but it’s a good strong clip.

Again as a small slim pencil the Birdie is never going to be the greatest for grip and feel, but having said that, I must compliment Pilot on somehow making it look and feel surprisingly substantial. By polishing the end-pieces and using a black washer they have done what they can within the very limited confines of a simple metal mini-pencil.

• Best Points – Overall its just a little bit “more” than the T3 – it both looks and feels that little bit more substantial.
• Not So Good Points – Similar to the Zebra T3 - extra small means a bit hard to hold for longer periods of time, and I wouldn’t really put it in a trouser pocket.
• Price Range – Low.

Dimensions – Length 111mm, diameter 5mm. Balance point – who cares?

The Final Verdict – personally it’s not much of a contest. If you want a slim mini-pencil to fit in your notebook, filofax or other such compendium then I’d choose the Pilot Birdie.
Photo: A relatively “normal” size Cross ballpoint pen with Pilot Birdie and Zebra T3 to illustrate just how slim these two pencils really are.

Credit: Both the Pilot Birdie and Zebra T3 were given to me as freebies by Cult Pens in the UK. But no strings were attached – I was free to like or dislike them, review them or not.

Zebra Jimnie KRM-100 Mechanical Pencil Review

Zebra Jimnie KRM-100 Mechanical Pencil Review

To be honest I’ve never really paid much attention to Zebra’s products. In my part of the world only a small number of their pens and other products, including 2 cheaper models of mechanical pencils, are readily available. I had a few packs of their refill leads because their pencils are usually sold as a set including a pack of refill leads, and so I included them in The Lead Cup. To my surprise they performed quite credibly, so I thought I’d better take another look at their mechanical pencils.

The Zebra Jimnie KRM-100 is a fairly standard looking plastic mechanical pencil. It’s a simple colour scheme, basically a black rubber grip and the rest of the body is dark grey tinted transparent plastic. It’s a lightweight pencil, as you would expect with such construction. The pocket clip is an integral moulding and it’s reasonably functional.

The black rubber grip has a definite ‘rubber’ feel to it, and you know how I’m not very keen on that. The compound is a medium hardness so there is a bit of give under normal finger pressure. Putting on my objective reviewer hat, I will admit that this rubber does improve the grip properties versus normal plastic.

There is a small eraser under the somewhat unusual bullet shaped top cap. The cap reminds me of a robot head from those B-grade 1950’s science fiction films. It sort of has ventilation slits in it, and looks like it’s a two-piece construction with a clear base or body and a tinted U-piece insert. The eraser itself is a rubber compound, and as usual I’m a bit disappointed in it. You can’t put the cap back on without activating the lead advance mechanism.

The lead advance mechanism is a standard push-top ratchet. It has a very good solid positive feel to it when you push the top cap. The 4mm metal slightly conical lead sleeve is fully retractable so its pocket safe. Its also a sliding sleeve so will retract whilst writing as the lead wears down. However I wouldn’t recommend that, as it has a terribly scratchy feel across the paper. Push the top cap and advance the lead straight away!

• Best Points – The rubber grip is good, and for some reason I really like the robot head top cap.
• Not So Good Points – Nothing much considering the price range, except for those like me who aren’t really rubber grip people.
• Price Range – Low, but you usually get a pack of Drafix lead refills as well so its quite a good deal.

Dimensions – Length 146mm, diameter 9mm across rubber grip. Balance point about 80mm up from the tip.

Note: I haven’t seen one, but if you search the web for Zebra Jimnie you basically get the Jimnie Clip which appears to be a similar model but with a document or binder clip. Perhaps the Jimnie has been re-designed and mine is an out-dated variant, even though it’s still on sale down-under?