Sun-Star Crosno eraser

Sun-Star Crosno Eraser

A local campus bookstore now stocks an unusual item – the Sun-Star Crosno stick eraser.

Sun-Star Crosno Eraser

The eraser has features that include a cross shaped eraser stick, a rubberized grip, a window to see how much eraser remains, and a clip.

The cap even has – another eraser!
Sun-Star Crosno Eraser

Overall, I find it a bit over-designed, but it is amusing. The eraser is a harder vinyl style that I would say is okay to good.

Tombow Mono block erasers

Tombow Mono block erasers

As a new pocket calculator tribute demonstrates, the Tombow Mono eraser is a design icon. It is also a mighty fine eraser. And similar to other successful products, the Mono has several brand “extensions”.

Looking just at the traditional block format erasers, here are five variants:

PE-04A, the basic Tombow Mono.

EN-MN, the “Non Dust” version.

PE-LT, the “Light” version.

EL-KA and EN-MA, which don’t have English names.

The EL-KA is distinguished by a slight blue tone – the other four erasers are bright white.

Readers of this blog are probably aware that top modern erasers are all first rate. The Pilot Foam, the Mitsubishi Boxy, and many others are great erasers. Differentiating between their performance is often a matter of discerning slight variations.

So I’ll admit to some curiosity about what might make these five PVC erasers from Tombow different from one another.

First observation: all five are excellent, and share much in common.

The name of the Non-Dust confuses me, as it seems to produce the same residue as other erasers. Perhaps there is some specific type of particle that it isn’t emitting? It is denser than the Mono, but the results seem very similar to me.

The EN-MA is spongier and lighter, but it also produced a very similar result. I like the feel.

The Light is the first one that truly feels different. It feels exceptionally smooth on paper – it does feel “light”. You also experience something the photo partially reflects – it excels at attracting and absorbing graphite. I don’t love the design of the sleeve (versus the original), but it is definitely an eraser worth trying.

Finally, the bluish EL-KA seemed to produce a different residue type – finer particles. Yet, the performance was similar to the others.

Are all these variations worthwhile? I imagine that for certain specialty pencil/paper combinations, one of these erasers might just be perfect. But for most general pencil users, I’m not so sure.

Does anyone like one or more of the Tombow Mono variants? If so, what do you like about it?

Two erasers from Korea

Korean Erasers

My thanks to Kent from PenciLog for sending me a MonAmi Gripix eraser and a HwaRang Dust-free eraser.

Korean Erasers

MonAmi is Korea’s largest stationer, and Gripix is one of their brands associated with mechanical pencils, leads, and erasers.

HwaRang is a long established rubber company.

I believe both firms do have some products for sale in North America, though they are not prominent in the stationery market.

Korean Erasers

Both erasers work well, but Kent reminds me that they contain phthalates, so they are probably not the best choice for children.

Faber-Castell 7041-20 Natural Rubber Eraser

Faber-Castell 7041-20 Natural Rubber Eraser

It seems like erasers made of vinyl or other synthetic ingredients are the norm today. Here is a traditional rubber eraser that I was surprised to find.

It seems relatively dense, and with a lot of particulate matter exuding from a new eraser. It does a good job on a Lumograph 100:

Faber-Castell 7041-20 Natural Rubber Eraser

The paper in the photos is loose leaf 17 x 22cm Clairfontaine Séyès, an unusual sighting in Canada.

Faber-Castell 7041-20 Natural Rubber Eraser

Staedtler Mars rasor & Faber-Castell Perfection 7058

Staedtler Mars rasor & Faber-Castell Perfection 7058

In the far corners of pencildom’s taxonomy we have two extremely interesting (and very retro looking!) woodcased ink erasers with brushes.

Both round, they feature ink eraser cores and crimped ferrules that grasp brushes. The blue bristles of the Mars match that pencil’s finish and have an additional appeal.

Staedtler Mars rasor & Faber-Castell Perfection 7058

The crimped ferrules with brushes harken back to typewriter erasers.

Staedtler Mars rasor & Faber-Castell Perfection 7058

The Staedtler pencils are marked:

Obverse: Made in Germany Staedtler Mars erasor

Reverse: [bar code] EAN 40 07817 530948 Art. Nr. 526 61

And the Faber-Castell:

Perfection 7058 Faber-Castell

The font and finish of this pencil suggests it may be one of those marginal offerings where the value of updating to the modern branding wasn’t seen as worthwhile. On the other hand, the Staedtler pencil could fit in (apart from not fitting in at all!) in a modern product lineup.

Staedtler Mars rasor & Faber-Castell Perfection 7058

Though I can’t replace either of them, I decided to try them out, on an Exacompta Bloc Faf (shown) , and also a Rhodia pad.

Staedtler Mars rasor & Faber-Castell Perfection 7058

Lamy ink (fountain pen):

Neither eraser seemed to have any effect!

Pencil (Castell 9000, HB):

The Faber-Castell eraser seemed to have an advantage.

Ballpoint (Bexley labelled, probably from Schmidt – no ordinary ballpoints could be found.)

Here is where these erasers become useful – The Staedtler did a slow but good job of removing the ballpoint ink on the Rhodia paper. On the thinner Exacompta paper, both seemed to spin their wheels.

If you write on thick paper with ballpoint, the Mars rasor seems potentially useful. And if you just want a very unusual stationery accessory, both are high recommended!