Uni Kurutoga Advance Upgrade Model 0.5mm Mechanical Pencil, White Body (M510301P.1)

TL: DRA freaking great high-quality mechanical pencil with many quality of life features that set it apart from everyone else. It has very minor drawbacks with the eraser. Purchase of separate eraser recommended.I have used this for a few months now, and I have to say that this is hands down! The best mechanical pencil I have ever used. I'm going to be honest with you all I've tried using other mechanical pencils after buying this to compare, and nothing besides this feels right anymore. The look fits any environment from professionalism to studying with friends. The weight and is perfect, and the material is top quality. Because of its ingenious lead shield, my lead has never been broken or wasted. The engine mechanism that sharpens the pencil lead as you write has actually improved my handwriting. Kuru toga is absolutely a quality brand that confidently boasts their craftsmanship in their work and is worth every well-spent cent.Now I know I have said nothing but positive things, but there is one drawback. Unfortunately, the high-quality eraser is super tiny and is hard to replace if you get to that point. The next flaw is also eraser-related, so the only way to refill the lead is from the top... yeah, that means no bottom-feeding the pencil lead, or you could damage the mechanism according to the box. The workaround I figured out is relatively easy all you need is to remove the current eraser and just leave the cap on then buy a separate eraser. Now, this other potential "issue" is dependant on your preference; the pencil lead size is 0.5mm, which is not bad, but I know others like 0.7mm pencil lead. Other than that, I have had no further problems with it.If you are looking for something that is high quality from top to bottom and feels great to write with for hours on end stop here and make this the final mechanical pencil you will ever buy.

I would give four and a half stars if I could, but given the choice between 4 and 5 stars, I'll stand by a 5-star rating. The pencil is well balanced, with a good fit and finish to the parts. Nothing is loose or rattling here. The automatic lead advancement works well too, but it doesn't quite keep up after a couple of pages of writing, needing a quick manual advancement. This is a minor thing, of course, but my impression was that the design of the pencil completely removed the need for advancing the lead whilst writing, rather than simply reducing the frequency. Otherwise, there is little to criticize here. It is comfortable, balanced, easy to use, attractive, and is neither too light nor too heavy.

Just received my Kuru Toga Advance Upgrade 0.5 mm mechanical pencil.TL;DR = What an Excellent Pencil! And the W-speed engine makes a big difference.Prior to owning this, my "go to" pencils were: (1) the Pentel GraphGear 1000 0.5mm (limited edition black), (2) the Pentel GraphGear 1000 0.7 mm, and (3) a standard Uni Kuru Toga 0.7mm (black barrel).My standard Uni Kuru Toga *works*, but is a distant 3rd place because of two issues. First, the lead sleeve doesn't retract, leaving it to poke holes in my pockets, digging into me if I move wrongly, and/or accidentally getting broken off on a hard surface. Second, while the Kuru Toga engine *works* (and is awesome), it was designed for writing Kanji, Hiragana, and Katakana. Those use MUCH shorter strokes than the Western (Latin) alphabet, so the lead is turned more gradually than I would like.Enter the Kuru Toga Advance Upgrade.PROSIt has the new W-speed engine. (I assume the "W" stands for "Western Scripts.") This rotates the lead roughly TWICE as fast as the standard Kuru Toga engine so that it stays sharper when writing in English. I can confirm this works, and works well.The lead sleeve is retractable. I could wish that it had the niftier mechanism found in the Pentel GraphGear 1000, but it certainly works well enough that I can carry it in a pocket without breaking it or having it stab me.The lead sleeve "rides" up with the lead as you write. This little trick reduces the number of times you have to click to feed the lead, and is a welcome feature. (If you want a true auto-feeding pencil, Uni makes the Kuru Toga "Dive" which advances the lead every time you lift it from the page. It even has a feed speed adjustment!)The color is vivid. Mine is a deep vibrant red and the metal and plastic parts all match without color variation. It is a beautiful, professional looking writing instrument.CONSThe Kuru Toga Advance Upgrade is both shorter and lighter than my GraphGear 1000. This may be a "PRO" to you if you prefer a less-weighty pencil, but I would spend an extra few dollars in a heartbeat if they made a heavier, all-metal version.The sleeve requires pressing on a hard surface to make it retract. This is just a MINOR nit! But I prefer how the GraphGear auto-retracts when I squeeze the top of the pocket clip.Coolness Factor?My standard Kuru Toga has the window that shows the engine. When I pull this out in front of any fellow pen/pencil afficionado, they ALWAYS immediately ask about it! Of course, my "Advance Upgrade" pencil looks a WHOLE lot more professional... but I'd certainly buy a version that had the clear window around the engine. Better yet? Sell a version that has swappable lower barrels -- you could then "dress it up" for professional meetings, or "geek it up" when you want the coolness factor. (Are you listening, Uni?).