Long point pencil sharpeners

KUM long point sharpeners give you exactly that - a longer point for fine detail and a way to reach into your drawing. Most long point sharpeners work by sharpening the pencil in two steps. The first step takes off the pencil wood and then the pencil is placed in a second hole, with a slightly different blade angle, to sharpen the point. The longer you spend sharpening in the first hole, the more wood removed and the longer the point. KUM sharpeners are made by Alvin, in Germany.

This type of sharpener works best with high quality pencils, where the lead core is exactly in the centre of the wood barrel. You can use them with graphite or coloured pencil and if it's the later, just run a graphite pencil through now and then to clean any wax or oil off the blades. As with all pencil sharpeners, you want a continuous coil of shaving. Broken pieces of shaving indicate the blade is too blunt and should be replaced.

The KUM AS2 is the original red model and there is also the blue KUM AS2M (shown below) that incorporates a lead pointer (little red hole) for sharpening 2 and 3.15mm clutch leads. Both work on the 2-step process. Place the blunt wood case pencil in the first hole to remove the wood and then move it across to the second hole to create the fine point. Some artists only use the first hole as a way to get an elongated lead for shading large areas at an angle. There is a "stop" or limit to how much timber you can take off, but this will be adequate for most applications. Both models include spare blades neatly tucked into the design that are easily changed over with a Philips screw driver. Approximate size of the AS2 models is 65 x 32 x 26mm.

The black KUM AS3 works on the same principle as the AS2, using the same blades, but in a more compact housing, with less space for catching the shavings. It also includes the stop and two spare blades. Approximate size is 52 x 30 x 22mm.

The KUM Masterpiece is the premium version, offering two advantages over the plastic models. The magnesium body is more durable and more precisely sets the position of the blades. There is also a removable brake system (the blue part) that allows you to determine how much wood is removed. If you slide the blue part off the sharpener, you can remove wooden indefinitely and expose a very long piece of graphite before adding the point. Two spare carbon blades are stored on the underside of the blue brake. Approximate size of the Masterpiece is 35 x 27 x 12mm. The sharpener comes in a simple perspex case and our current stock also includes a neoprene case for further protection.