Splitcoaststampers.com - the world's #1 papercrafting community
You're currently viewing Splitcoaststampers as a GUEST. We pride ourselves on being great hosts, but guests have limited access to some of our incredible artwork, our lively forums and other super cool features of the site! You can join our incredible papercrafting community at NO COST. So what are you waiting for?
I have had my set of 72 Prismas for maybe 1 year. I have only sharpened a few (I sharpen each color as I need it).
Yesterday, while making a card, I sharpened about 5 new colors. The reds and oranges I was needing kept breaking off! As soon as I would sharpen it, pull it out of the sharpener, the whole tip would break off up into the pencil (leaving no tip to use). I tried sharpening from the other end, same thing happened.
Anyone else have this problem? This hasn't happened with any of my colors in this set before...
This won't help the breakage, but you can superglue the tip back into the pencil and it will work fine. Just a dab and press the tip back in. At some point later on down the road, you'll have to sharpen past the glue, but you won't be throwing away chunks of lead in the mean time.
Try using a manual pencil sharpener and see if that helps. Some electrics seem to eat Primsacolors.
Thanks for the suggestions!
I was using a manual sharpener. It's the one that came with the pencils...the same kind my DH used in Art school. Sadly, it just chewed up my pencils. Maybe I am not meant to color with reds or oranges? :(
Yes, I read about the microwave tip a while back. Try searching the threads for Prisma and microwave. I believe it was something like 15 to 30 seconds just to get the lead to melt a tad, but I could be wrong.
I found the manual sharpeners didn't work as well for me. If you have access to an electric sharpener, it might be worth giving that a try. I just don't grind the heck out of it and use light pressure. I don't like my pencils super-sharp, anyhow!
also..when buying the pencils you want to look at the ends. the color should be right in the middle. if the color shaft is even slightly off center it makes them unstable when you sharpen them and they will break off all the time.
Hi, I work in colored pencils as an art form and have just begun to use them for making cards so I go through a lot of pencils. It is your manual sharpener that is breaking your lead. If you go to a GOOD electric sharpener with an autostop, you will most likely find that your problem disappears. With all the pencils I go through, I have never had broken leads down the pencil shaft but it is true that you can microwave them to melt the wax back together. Do it only for about 10 seconds. But I don't think that is your problem. Electric good, manual bad!
This is why I switched to Lyra pencils and Faber Castell's. I tried the microwave trick, although it worked to melt the lead, it also bubbled up the paint on the barrel of the pencil, not comfortable to hold anymore...
To avoid breakage you could just sand the lead of your pencils with sandpaper to get a fine point. You'll still have to sharpen it eventually, when the lead wears down, but it prolongs it for quite a while!
I had the same problems with the color breaking after sharpening them. I was sooo disgusted, I went to a local art supply store & told the owner the problem & he said that since the Sanford company bought them they are using less expensive materials to make the pencils & that is way they are breaking! If I remember correctly, it had something to do with tha amount/quality of the wax or something in the colors. I have actually had great luck with of all things, Crayola pencils....go figure!
I've had my prismacolor pencils for a long time and generally don't have a problem with breakage. At first I sharpened them too hard/rough and to a long point and that's when they broke. If the pencils are dropped on a hard surface it can break the inside color 'lead' in several places and they will break when sharpened. Never heard of microwaving them. I'll have to try that the next time I have a problem. thanks
but I'm going to try some of the tips in here to fix it.
What would a "good" electric sharpener be brandwise and $$? anyone know?
I bought an Exacto sharpener at Wal-Mart to sharpen my 120ct set recently. It was the more expensive one in the office supply section (aprox 19.99) and although it was not auto shut off I did have very good luck with it. I did have some minor breakage- but nothing too serious especially since I was sharpening 120 pencils.
I have also had trouble with manually sharpening pencils- I think I was using too much pressure. The wax is somewhat soft, so maybe using a lighter hand to sharpen will help.
I've had good luck with my old Panasonic KP-4a pencil sharpener. It's battery operated. I originally bought it in 1990 for my office that was in a former storage room with only two electrical outlets!
This model is still for sale. It takes 4 AA batteries.
I've had my Prisma pencils for about 10 years and I don't recall whether I originally sharpened them by hand or using my Panasonic. I have a German pencil sharpener (manual) that came with a colored pencil accessory kit that I bought when I got my Prismas (this was before I was into stamping).
Have also heard of the drop and break the lead,keep them in a kids supply box under the desk also that it is best to use a mechanical not hand sharpener,even tho prisma dose make there own,I have used a hand sharpener and find I use too much pressure and waste a lot. Again just my 2 cents!
A few years back, I offered to purchase some Prismacolor pencils for the art teacher at our kids Elementary school (I found a great sale....). She declined stating that the lead is really soft in Art Pencils, and kids drop them alot, causing the lead to break inside the pencil-so when they are sharpened, you get lead that just breaks off.......So, she told me if the carton they are shipped in is thrown around when the pencils are shipped, or the pkg is tossed around, the lead can be fractured in the casing, and when you go to sharpen them the lead just breaks right off.....even if they look OK from the outside. If you have many from the same color lot breaking off, can you return them??? Art stores should be aware of this issue.
I have had good luck with my set of 120 prismacolor pencils- I keep them away from the kids...even though they are older now, to prevent them from getting dropped or damaged.
I use the T'Gaal sharpener, which is a sharp manual sharpener, that has five choices for sharpening angle. I have never had a lead break because of that sharpener. https://www.amazon.com/Kutsuwa-Adjus...006CQW342?th=1
I found my Prisma pencils also break a lot and I have tried both manual and electric sharpeners. The other name brand pencils don't seem to break as much, but I do like the results of the Prisma better. I might look into the Lyra pencils and Faber Castell's. Thanks for the suggestions and for this thread !
ARGH! My Prisma pencils keep breaking!
