After reading the reviews of the Sharpie Liquid Pencil, most notably OfficeSupplyGeek, I was ready to pass on trying these out. But every time I went near the office supply section of a store I'd check to see if the Sharpie Liquid Pencil was available, only to spend several weeks without seeing one and wondering if there was a shortage. Finally, at Target I found a two-pack of liquid pencils and spent some time testing them out.
On the whole the Sharpie Liquid Pencil reminds me of the Pilot Frixion, which is interesting as the latter is an erasable ink while this is supposed to be liquid graphite. The feel of the two on paper is exactly the same, at least for me: a kind of skipping and oiliness that reminds me of silicone. Both the ink and the graphite seem fragile, although the Sharpie Liquid Pencil is supposed to become permanent within 24 hours. So the graphite must have some sort of setting component to it, making it more than a mere pencil but less than a ballpen.
I definitely like the idea of a liquid graphite pencil, but I'm not sure version 1.0 of anything is ever reliable or a good purchase. The future versions hopefully will be better, with greater flow and different hardness levels.
It's not the first one they've made - Google "Papermate Ingenuity" - I don't think they have been available for a few years. I still have one; it seems to be pretty much the same as the new one under the Sharpie name.
ReplyDeleteI did Google the Papermate Ingenuity, that seems like a really great liquid pencil. Interesting how this idea pops up again, and Sharpie is taking the lead on it.
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