X-ACTO Powerhouse 1799 Electric Pencil Sharpener Black

Comments about Elmers X-ACTO Powerhouse 1799 Electric Pencil Sharpener Black:

I have two of these units. Both failed and one in two seconds. Why?

The X-acto website reads this unit can be used with composite pencils (plastic). Many children get composite pencils at parties so they are quite common at home and in school. Its hard to tell a composite pencil from a wooden one until it's sharpened. Hence the problem.

A composite pencil will strip the plastic gears inside this sharpener in just a few seconds. It works quite well with wooden pencils but composites are the kiss of death. One unit stripped in just two seconds on a composite pencil!!!

I disassembled both units. The gears inside are cheap plastic vs metal. For the engineers reading along, the fitment of the gears is quite loose. The worm gear on the motor and the opposing ring gear only engage half the gears' depth. That over stresses the tips of the cheap plastic teeth and the worm gear strips the ring gear rendering the unit inoperable.

The unit comes with a two year warranty if you manage to keep up with the receipt. That's reasonable but we all know many of us don't manage receipts well. If you don't, you're screwed since you can't buy parts and there's no for fee service center.

This is a VERY simple unit to repair and plastic gears only cost a few cents to make. The problem is X-acto doesn't offer any repair parts for these units. You can fix it in 10-20 minutes but you can't get parts. Consequently , you have to throw it away.

Beyond the gears, how bad is the lack of replacement parts support? The dump tray has a little post on the back that goes through a small hole to trip a safety switch. This prevents the unit from operating when someone could get injured. The tray is brittle plastic so if a child drops it on the ground in a classroom or when dumping the shavings from the dump tray, the probability is high that this post will break off. The unit is repaired by simply replacing the plastic dump tray with a new one. However, you guessed it, you can't get the part. So once again you throw the unit away.

I don't know how a teacher would police the unit well enough to keep it operational given the constraints (no composite pencils; fragile dump tray). I'd recommend buying a heavy duty crank unit over this one. If you're sure only wooden pencils will be used, this unit will serve you well.

Hope it helps somebody.

Comments about Elmers X-ACTO Powerhouse 1799 Electric Pencil Sharpener Black:

I bought this for my classroom two years ago, and it is still working strong. It is by far the best pencil sharpener for school that I have come across. For the price, you can't go wrong. The pencils come out nice and sharp every time. It doesn't take forever, either.

I have found that the key to it lasting is making sure you tell the kids how to use it. If the kids twist their pencil while it's sharpening, you will eventually kill the motor. Also, like anything you buy for your classroom, if you don't keep an eye on it, it will probably be broken by a student!

Comments about Elmers X-ACTO Powerhouse 1799 Electric Pencil Sharpener Black:

i bought this for my classroom and it did not last from firts day of school till winter break. It only spins occasionally and does not seem to be adjustable. I would not recommend this for any teacher as it is over rated and under-performs.

Comments about Elmers X-ACTO Powerhouse 1799 Electric Pencil Sharpener Black:

I am a teacher of 26 active 3rd graders. Every pencil sharpener I have bought in the past has lasted a month max. This pencil sharpener really holds up to the constant sharpening of my students and it sharpens pencils very quickly. I highly recommend!

Comments about Elmers X-ACTO Powerhouse 1799 Electric Pencil Sharpener Black:

As a teacher, I had been looking for a sharpener that would stand up under the daily use by students. I have found it. The sharpener is fairly quiet and quick, causing less distraction in the classroom. So far I have been very pleased.

Comments about Elmers X-ACTO Powerhouse 1799 Electric Pencil Sharpener Black:

Great for the classroom first sharpner that has lasted a month!