Zebra Z-Grip mechanical pencil review

The Zebra Z-Grip is a 0.5mm mechanical pencil that costs just 38p from Cult Pens. (That’s about 60 cents in American money.) It has a clear plastic barrel with either black, blue or red grip and trim.

It does feel and look pretty cheap but I find the clear barrel quite appealing. The tube that holds the lead is visible running down the length of the pen like a vein. It adds interest and makes it easy to see how much lead is left. The grip is grippy and comfortable to hold.

The clip is clippy. It probably wouldn’t take a lot of punishment but with normal use I think it would be fine. The eraser is a reasonable size and actually does rub out pencil. That makes it a better eraser than that found on pencils costing literally a hundred times as much.

Just about any part of the pen that can wobble does wobble: the tip, the eraser and the eraser cap. I don’t like wibbly wobbly bits, not on my pens and pencils anyway, but I can forgive it on a pencil this price. It doesn’t interfere with its use one bit. The tip is actually retractable which is a surprising bonus.

Nothing about this pencil is spectacular (although the eraser is great for a mechanical pencil) but everything works as it should. This makes the Zebra Z-Grip an amazing pencil for the price.

Thank you so much to Cult Pens for sponsoring this review. You can buy this pencil from them here.