I recently got the M+R 0981″crank-style sharpener” from Lexikaliker.
The 0981 is one of the Möbius und Ruppert sharpeners that is not manufactured by M+R – according to their website it is produced by premium partners in Asia. I’m not sure whether this means that M+R designed this sharpener or whether they just put their name on an existing sharpener. In any case, it does look very similar to the Dahle 133, as discussed by Lexikaliker.
Overall this is a really nice sharpener.
No bite marks
It doesn’t leave bite marks on the pencil, that’s a big advantage – or in my case even a necessary requirement. I don’t think I’d use a pencil sharpener regularly if it leaves bite marks – however good the sharpening mechanism might be.
The point
The point it creates is quite nice and concave. Concave points look good, but I find measuring the angle more difficult. When I try to measure the 0981’s angle using my traditional method I get an angle of 20°. When I measure the angle on a computer I get an angle of slightly more than 21°. In any case the point produced suitable for most purposes, you can compare this angle to other angles on my sharpener page.
Other features
The crank features a dial, not uncommon for this kind of sharpener. If you dial all the way to the left you get a ‘full’ point, but you can also create a ‘flat’ point, more suitable for coloured pencils if you set the dial to the right. Any setting in-between both extremes is also possible (the difference between both settings is about 3.5 full turn of the dial (1260°)).
The drawer is of course removable, for emptying the waste created during sharpening. The cutting mechanism is removable as well.
I tried to sharpen a Wopex in the 0981, but the auto stop doesn’t work with the harder material encasing the Wopex lead – this is common for crank sharpeners.
Price and availability
When you search for this sharpener on the internet most pages you can find seem to be from Japan. I assume this means that this sharpener is more commonly available in Japan. You can however find some sellers in the West. In Germany you can get this sharpener for €10 – €15 (~$11 – $22: £7.50 – £15), which seems good value for money.
Price and exchange rates: October 2015
Please open the pictures in a new tab for a high-res view.
You can read more about the red Viking pencil in this blog post.
Hi! What is the paper upon which the sharpener is resting? Thanks.
I’m happy to hear that you like this sharpener!
Thank you for your comments.
Rick, this is the Paperways Desk Notepad, a notepad to be used as a weekly planer. It is nice but unsuitable for fountain pens.
Gunther, thank you for this sharpener. It is very nice. The Deli 0635 is my favourite, but I love the 0981’s concave point that is not too long – suitable for many occasions. I am sure I will use it often!