Why do most (read: all) mechanical pencils come with some sort of clip? Is this to attach the pencil to a sheet of paper? To clip the pencil to a shirt pocket? To keep the pencil from rolling off a desk?
The clip on a pencil is an irritant. It rubs against my hand while writing and causes chafing. Irritation and chafing are not qualities that I enjoy in a pencil.
I recently received the pictured Koh-I-Noor Rapidomatic 0.9mm pencil after a glowing recommendation from an acquaintance who delightfully was in to pencils. The first step to preparing the pencil for use was removing that nasty clip. I must confess that it was really hard to get the clip off. I needed to use a pair of vice grips, a flat-head screw driver and needle-nose pliers to pry the clip off, and I damaged the pencil (see below).
Maybe there is a better way to get clips off of pencils. If you know a better way, please leave a comment.
In the meantime ...
Dear pencil designers and manufacturers,
I lovingly request that you consider making pencils without clips. I do not use a pencil as a paperclip. I do not keep my pencil in my shirt pocket. The worry of a pencil rolling off the top of a table is not nearly as problematic as the chafing that comes from longhand writing with a clip rubbing against my hand.
Thank you!
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