Staples 356332 Power Extreme Electric Pencil Sharpener Heavy-Duty Black (21834)

As a new teacher, my first pencil sharpener didn’t survive the whole year. This one was recommended by a friend and is amazing!!! It is durable and strong for lots of use.

What a relief to FINALLY find a pencil sharpener that is not a cheap piece of junk! I ordered one of the small, dinky pencil sharpeners that are so pervasive these days and ended up throwing it in the trash. It wouldn't put anything sharper than a rounded tip on pencils and had a receptacle for shavings that was so tiny it would fill up after just a few uses. The Staples Power Extreme, on the other hand, is slightly larger but much sturdier and sharpens pencils to a nice, sharp point. It also has a very large receptacle for shavings and was very reasonably priced. I highly recommend it. And I soon discovered the secret to getting a sharp point: Insert the pencil until the blades (gears) engage and start to sharpen; then STOP inserting and twist the pencil 360 degrees!!! If you keep pushing and inserting, it will keep chewing the pencil until you stop!

I bought this pencil sharpener in August of 2015. Almost 4 years of daily use, and it is STILL sharpening pencils like it was new. I teach 3rd grade, and the students use it multiple times per day. To get the most use out of the sharpener, do not sharpen any pencils with a plastic layer around them (I stick with the plain, yellow #2 pencils) and empty the shavings anytime it gets half full. I absolutely love this sharpener, as it not only is long lasting, but also sharpens quickly and accurately. I plan on getting the same kind when mine finally breaks.

This pencil sharpener is super powerful and sharpens quickly. It does sharpen a bit unevenly, so one side has wood down to the tip, but twisting the pencil while sharpening seems to take care of it.

Wood shop didn't like that it took 2 or 3 attempts to get a good point but better than the twist sharpners

With no auto-stop function, this unit quickly eats pencils. It's super heavy. Within 6 months, the sensor that detects if a pencil is inserted broke, and it stays on always. So now I have to plug and unplug it for each use.

A lot larger than I expected!

Wife teaches 3rd grade and we have had a hard time finding an Electric Pencil Sharpener which will hold up to the "daily grind" they get put through. Last several years we have gone through 2/year of other units. This unit has been in use 3/4 of the year now with no issues. Tray is big enough for the shavings. Pencil leads don't get broken off and jammed in the sharpener, heavy enough it does not scoot all around, shavings stay in the tray, and motor is at an acceptable noise level.