What do you get when you mix awesome with awesome? You get an EPIC WIN!!! And that's what the Uni-Ball Alpha Gel Kuru Toga Mechanical Pencil is! (Try saying that five times fast...) This pencil is the
First things first, the design of this pencil is a hybrid of the Kuru Toga, Alpha Gel, and the Dr. Grip (despite the fact Dr. Grip is made by Pilot). This pencil is entirely made of plastic, which was probably a trait carried over from the Kuru Toga line. Then we move down to the grip, which isn't as squishy as the Alpha Gel models (probably lacking a chromosome?). The grip feels nearly like a Dr. Grip...grip but squishier. In fact, the upper body seems like a trait carried over by the Dr. Grip as well! You could unscrew the top to reveal an outer barrel and an inner body (the colored part). The clip eerily looks like the Dr. Grip's clip too. The only thing missing to strengthen the similarities is the shaker... Then again, it could all be a coincidence.
Moving back to the Kuru Toga, like in the high-grade series, shows the symbol that displays the Kuru Toga engine in action. As you write, the engine moves to keep the pencil tip sharp, and when the symbol shows orange, it indicates the full rotation of the engine. The eraser cap has the same symbol as the cap on the KT pencils. The tip is not retractable. It extends outward when you press the top, but it does not affect writing or gripping it, as far as I'm concerned.
As far as writing goes, the KT engine keeps the tip sharp and produces a fine line compared to regular pencils. When compared to a regular pencil, the regular pencil shows thicker lines than the KT pencils as shown above. The pencil is relatively lightweight and weighs similar to the original KT pencils than most of the Alpha Gel pencils. One concern was if you didn't screw the silver top tight enough, the transparent barrel could be left spinning around as you write.
So to recap...
Pros: Two great concepts rolled into one
Cons:
Costs: $12.75 at Jetpens
Overall, I give this a 10/10!
