What's the best pencil eraser?

My vote goes to the Mars Plastic by Staedtler. A latex free, soft non-abrasive white vinyl compound.

Mars plastic, as above. Abrasive erasers tear up the paper surface too much, and unless you have mastered pressing really hard without breaking the lead a mechanical pencil doesn't draw that deep anyway.

The plastic erasers can also be cleaned with a wet thumb or a rub on scrap paper for neat work. I always find the "gritty" or "gummy" erasers get so dirty you spend half your time rubbing out their own mess. The Mars compound is stiff enough that corners can be used for fine work, or large areas erased with the flat end. The dirty, used portions just roll off as you use it and are cleanly blown/swiped away. I like the idea of putty/moldable erasers, but they get filthy, crumbly and horrible if kept in a pocket or bag.

Those white erasers that come in a plastic pencil-shaped case with a pocket clip that pushes the eraser tip down as it wears away. They last forever. The brand I use is a Pentel Rock n' Write eraser. I've also seen them called "Clic" erasers. I like the pencil-shaped form. They're good for precise erasures.

The Mars Plastic erasers can also be carved to make rubber stamps.

I like this one from pencils.com. The triangle design makes it very easy to use.

If you'd like something that is integrated with your mechanical pencil, I love the Pentel Twist-Erase line. Agreed with other answerers that plastic erasers tend to be cleanest, though.

Tiny/capped erasers are just too silly, aren't they?

Pentel's "Twist Erase" pencils are what I've been using for years. There's a much larger (& replaceable) eraser that's operated like a woman's lipstick. Excellent pencils - I bought several boxes of them so I'd never run out and I keep them everywhere, too.

There are several line width version available.

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