Inner City Survival Pencil Review

This is a really nifty little tool. I did not seek out a product like this. I ran across an advertisement for it in the publication Shot Gun News and was intrigued.

I called to order one on a Friday afternoon and it was in my mail box Monday. I live in GA and it shipped from WA so I consider this excellent turn-around.

It's got a really solid construction and is completely inconspicuous. I carry it in a pen pocket of my uniform and never know it's there.

The cost was $40 including shipping. I recommend it for the price for it's cool factor if nothing else. However, I imagine you'll find some nifty uses for it.

If you are familiar at all with how these type of pencils work (I'm speaking of its function as a writing tool) you will understand the limitations of this design as a survival tool. There are four claws that clamp down around the graphite/steel insert once it's extended. This works well for a writing tool as there is not a lot of pressure put on the tip of the graphite.

With the steel insert it cannot encounter too much resistance while penetrating something or the insert will collapse back into the pencil body. For an informal test I tried penetrating a cardboard box that canned/bottled soda comes in. It penetrated one layer of the box fine; then two layers. Penetration was more difficult with three layers. At four layers the friction of the clutch was overcome and the insert was forced back into the pencil body,

On the inside surface area of the claws there are notches cut to increase friction on the insert/graphite when it's extended. However, the surface area of the steel insert is smooth. I think that the tool could have been made even better if mating grooves were machined into the insert to mate with the grooves in the claws when fully extended. This would create a bolt-in-nut type of construction when extended. This may or may not be feasible.

In conclusion I think this is a neat item but it would not be my first choice as a defense item. It would be nice if you needed something really inconspicuous. Otherwise this would be like a tertiary backup tool (behind a backup gun and knife).

This page was last modified on 07 Jun 2008 21:08

Push the metal cap (the end towards the right in the photo above) at the top of the pencil while pointing the other end toward the ground. Hold the button down fully until the inner piece is fully extended. A spring will start the inner piece going but in needs gravity to fully extend. The insert pops out quickly and stops when fully extended.

The unit fully extended. It's got a really solid construction but cannot withstand too much resistance when trying to penetrate an object. Otherwise the friction of the claws on the insert is overcome and the insert will be forced back into the pencil body.

The tip is sharp. I would compare the insert to a long nail. The body is that of an actual drafting pencil that uses a clutch mechanism to hold the lead. This means the steel insert can be less that fully extended and still hold securely in place as in the picture above.

Documentation included with the tool.