I never knew there were non-refillable mechanical pencils

[kranky]

Had to go to OfficeMax to pick up notebooks, pencils and highlighters for a seminar, enough for seven people. I didn't want people worrying about having to sharpen pencils so I looked to see if there were any cheap mechanical pencils.

Ah! Found a box of 12 for $3! That works for me. I'll even have a few spares if someone loses theirs from one week to the next.

So I pass out the materials and at a break one of the attendees asks me why I bothered to buy non-refillable mechanical pencils. "What do you mean, non-refillable?", I asked. "All mechanical pencils are refillable."

Oops. In about 6-point type, on the back of the box down in the corner, it says "non-refillable."

Only a quarter each, but still... I never imagined anyone would bother to make a mechanical pencil you can't refill. They keep finding new things to make disposable.

 

[irwincur]

You can still fill them. Hold down the trigger and insert the lead into the tip. Works great.

 

[iwantanewcomputer]

Originally posted by: irwincur
You can still fill them. Hold down the trigger and insert the lead into the tip. Works great.

That's genius. You must be a mechanical engineer.

 

[dullard]

I knew a buisness owner once who kept throwing mechanical pencils away. The employees could never find a pencil for their work. One day, they saw a bunch in the trash and confronted the owner. She said that they were out of lead and she would buy more mechanical pencils the next day. Ha. She never knew you could refill them (and no they weren't the non-refillable kind).

Back to the story on hand. Why else do you think they sell a dozen of them? If they are refillable, the vast majority of customers would only buy one at a time.

And mechanical pencils suck. I can't use them. I write with a heavy hand (dark writing) and they break with just about every word I write. I just can't use them. I am not the usual person. But there are others like me. If you do this again for another seminar, please have at least one real pencil available in case you meet someone else who writes dark.

 

[Kelemvor]

Originally posted by: irwincur
You can still fill them. Hold down the trigger and insert the lead into the tip. Works great.

Was going to suggest the same thing...

 

[Tab]

I don't see I could ever go back to non-mechanical pencils... They're so much easier to use than normal ones...

 

[40Hands]

I know I used to use some in high school that were "non-refillable" but you could insert it into the tip or you could pull out the eraser and put it in there.

 

[cerebusPu]

Originally posted by: FrankyJunior

Originally posted by: irwincur
You can still fill them. Hold down the trigger and insert the lead into the tip. Works great.

Was going to suggest the same thing...

qft.

reminds me..i havent used a mechanical pencil in like 5 years.