Uni Alpha-Gel Shaker Mechanical Pencil with Slightly Firm Grip 0.5mm, Chrome Pink (M5618GG1PC.13)

I mainly bought this pencil for it's 'shake to extend lead' function, and that part works perfectly!My only real complaint is that the grip is really really soft and kind of almost ill-fitting. It feels like besides being really squishy it also feels like there is a gap between the inside of the grip and the shaft of the pencil, which i kind of get, it makes sense if you want the grip to be extra squishy, but it also makes your grasp on the pencil feel kind of tenious and unresponsive. I also feel like this problem meritted a 4/5 star review because the description was pretty specific about this model being the "extra hard" grip version, and I'm not exagerating I really can't imagine a version of this grip that's somehow softer than this one is. It's really that soft. I've seen soft and extra soft models as well, but I'm not curious enough to give them a try, this one is just a little too soft for my taste. I am getting used to it though and now kind of enjoy it for my loose rough sketching in blue line, which I wanted the pencil for in the first place.Other than that the pencil functions really great. It feels super cool and slick whipping the pencil around for lead while you're drawing something quickly. I bought this pencil after watching an episode of Manben where Fujita Kazuhiro used one to draw his roughs (which in his case are realllly rough and loose) which totally suited his workflow and style of drawing. I've been using it specifically for my blue pencil roughs (which are a uniform HB type hardness), but if you plan on using regular black lead I recomend maybe using a suuuper soft lead with this guy, like at least a 4B. A softer lead is easier to make marks with without pushing too hard on the point and those marks are generally darker but easier to erase. One notable problem however is the lead runs out really quickly because it's just so soft, which is where your shaking mechanism comes in handy and you get to feel like a pencil knight or something just swashbuckling around!Sometimes I forget which setting of the top button needs to be set at to in order to draw, but I've only been using it for like two days so I'm sure it'll eventually become second nature. The way the setting works is by pressing the top button (such that now the button is loose, like a ball point pen button when the point is extended) now the lead is locked in place and will extend if you shake it beyond a certain threshold. Little shakes won't do anything which is nice, no accidental extensions. When you press the button again (such that now the button is under a spring pressure extended instead of being loose, like a ballpoint pen that doesn't have the point extended) now the lead becomes loose in it's pencil tip. You can now slide it in and out of the pencil freely, the same way you can with a regular mechanical pencil if you hold the button down. It's impossible to draw in this setting, which isn't a big deal at all I'm only mentioning it because it's totally different from standard mechanical pencils and makes this one a little more like a pen.Would definitely recomend to someone who feels like they eat through a lot of lead or want to experiment with a fat and soft comfortable pencil for expressive and loose sketching. Maybe look elsewhere for finer finishing pencil work or handwriting, just a little unresponsive compared to a hard gripped pencil. Personally I found this to be a cool new toy that injected some excitement into my drawing.

I love mechanical pencils, .5 and .3 I definitely love to use the most. Though, back then teachers would need to ask me to write bigger... This one though has been comfortable to use and is solid. Japanese and Korean pencils and pens just tend to be really good in general.

A personal favorite of mine ever since I was in elementary school (I'm now a college student)! I love big grips because it gives me more control of the pencil! I hold my pencil very firmly when writing so I often get calluses from pencils so this squishy grip solves that problem! I love the shake mechanism as it makes it easier to extend the lead when I am rushing to jot down notes during lecture. The lock mechanism is super nice when I finish my work and want to push the lead back in and have it not stabbing black holes into my pencil case. I dont use pencil erasers (as most stationery enthusiasts don't) so the tiny eraser is not a problem for me. I feel like the eraser is there just because it's supposed to be there and not to be used. I'm currently on my second one as my first one died on me. Because I grip so hard, the gel kinda got dented, started turning green, and leaked an oily substance! But it lived a long life so I would say it's worth the money!

No replacement erasers, the one they give you will be gone within an hr if you are drawing. Once the eraser is completely gone the pencil is absolutely annoying to use when I do not have a spare eraser.The shaker pencil is a neat idea, but the cap was missing when I got my package so putting the graphite back in breaks more than it works.I have no idea why I bought a second one of these pencils, the first one I got didn't work right and this one is just as annoyingly bad. I wish I could get a refund for both.

Definitely worth the buy and it’s different from some mechanical pencils I’ve own.

I love the pencil itself. Only complaints are the eraser doesn’t last at all, and the lead is so soft it doesn’t last either. I have tons of lead pencils and I don’t think I would by this again because I would have to keep buying replacement parts frequently.

Currently, I use this pencil as a utility for drawing, and overall school use as well. The grip is very soft and "squishy", permitting me to be able to use it for long periods of time. The nib at the end of the pencil is good, as it doesn't break the lead, allowing for no waste of lead. I LOVE the feature allowing you to shake the pencil which extracts lead from the pencil, it is just very convenient in my opinion. Another nice feature of this pencil is where you press on the button entirely, which stops lead from coming out accidentally. This is great for storage, where lead won't be taken out through accidentally "shakage". Overall, its very strong and great for everyday use.

Pros:-Gigantic Grip-Thin lead (0.5 is my favorite lead size)-Able to write things with thin lead without it breaking everytime-Shaking mechanism makes it convenient and easyCons:-Not Pocket safe becasue of shaking mechanism (not that that matters, I don't really keep things in my pocket.)- Tiny eraser (Get a backup, you'll need it.)- Cap might be easy to lose- Grip is too squishy and soft for meUPDATE: As of 2/4/2019, I am sad to say that after 3 years of constant usage, this pencil broke. The Grip tore apart in half, and the lead got jammed. The final straw was when the body snapped in half. I am having mixed feelings right now. I guess I'll have to buy another one. But it's just something for the buyer to beware for.

What can I say? All the combination of my favourite features. Shaker, Alpha grip, Uni and a chunky design. All the good things combined into one good mechanical pencil. The grip is super squishy, I'm sure anyone who tries it will love it. All my friends would try using the pen and love this grip as well. On top of that, they added the shaker as well which is a very useful feature for mechanical pencil able to advance the lead by just shaking. Great all-rounder.

not good quality pen

Grandson loved it he was the envy of his friends at school and as he loves drawing it gets used a lot.

Fantastic pencil, just don't be like me and inhale the lid.

Great pencil.