electric pencil sharpener on the fritz. How to fix?

If the motor is running, then you have a slipped or stripped gears somewhere. You will have to figure out how to take it apart!!!

I use the bench grinder to sharpen pencils.

High pitch motor likely indicates less load --- stripped gear, or something broken. Look for 4 or so phillips screws on the bottom, and take it apart. What is there to lose?

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

Usual mechanism: three spiral-grooved cutting cylinders, the whole mechanism rotating (planetary gears?) when sharpening.

Well, last night the thing stopped. I slip the pencil into the hold, motor starts (somewhat higher pitched than usual) but mechanism does not rotate. When pencil tip reaches far end, it hits something spinning, and maybe sharpens (that is what it sounds like) that tiny 1/8th or 1/16th of the pencil. MAYBE. Or maybe I'm just imagining it.

Anyway, I hit the thing (the sharpener) with the heel of my hand, and it started working -- for two seconds, then returned to the motor-going but no planetary rotation.

QUESTION: No, I do not want to throw it away. Especially if it's just a broken pencil-lead stuck in the gears somewhere.

Any ideas?

THANKS!

David

I do too, but only for carpenter's pencils. There's less waste and breakage than with a knife. I use a crank operated pencil sharpener for regular round or hexagon wooden pencils.

OK, will do. As someone said, what's there to lose?

Also, thanks for the shop-tricks for sharpening pencils, esp carpenter's pencils.

David