Comments and Questions

A page for comments, queries, and questions that aren’t in response to a particular post.

309 Replies to “Comments and Questions”

  1. I’m holding an EF Mongol 482 #2
    and it has blind stamped lettering beyond the gold embossed.
    I can’t quite read it.

    “woodcunched” “made in…” ?

    any idea what is says?
    seriously is says woodcunched, i don’t see the ‘C’ as being the remnants of another letter.

    thanks
    joyce

  2. Hi Joyce, thanks for noticing this new page!

    The stamping may have merged the “L I” to look like “U”.

    The vintage U.S. Mongols were stamped:

    “Woodclinched Complastic Lead”

    The newer Amspec Mongols say:

    “Woodclinched Made in Phil”

    That’s the Phillipines, home of Amspec, not Philadelphia. ;)

    There is a previous post with photos of the new and old boxes. Both clearly show the word “Woodclinched”.

  3. Hi, nice site, very interesting. I wondering what is the exact composition of the magnesium-alloy you referred in the article and if it’s true that they reinforced the carbon steel blade with polished magnesium fitting. Hope a response.

  4. Hi Katty, thanks for writing.

    After some searching, I realize that you are referring to a comment at the Kum Automatic Longpoint Sharpener post.

    This page is for questions not related to specific posts – a question like yours should go in the comments section of the corresponding post. It would also be more likely to find an answer there.

    And … sorry, alloy compositions are probably proprietary information, and in any case, well beyond my knowledge.

  5. In some old (better: very old) movies people can be seen licking the tip of the pencil before writing. Which kind of pencils did they use and why did licking improve writing?

  7. Ah, I see – thank you. This is especially remarkable in view of the fact that the dye of the copying pencils is considered to be harmful, if not poisonous.

  8. Here’s the text from a current auction of a mixed lot of old pencils.

    “Three indelibile pencils in this lot – one red (at the top) and a couple of grey ones. I can remember my mother licking her fingers to make the pencil write and stay written – you couldnt rub it out!”

  9. Hi, I have a question about the Caran d’Ache Technograph 777 pencils. I would like to buy a 12 pack for writing: should I purchase the HB or the B grade?

    At the moment I have the following pencils:
    – Staedtler Mars Lumograph
    – Castell 9000
    – Grip 2001

    I’m really satisfied with the HB grade of Staedtler Mars Lumograph pencils: it is black enough and very smooth and clean on the page.

    Instead the pencils from Faber-Castell have, in my experience, a HB grade light gray, a bit hard and rough on the sheet (in fact very close to the F grade of Staedtler Mars Lumograph pencils). As a consequence, I use Faber-Castell’s pencils only in the B grade.

    Is the Caran d’Ache Technograph 777 HB more similar to Staedtler Mars Lumograph HB (dark enough and smooth) or to the Faber-Castell HB (light gray, hard and rough)?

    Many thanks

  10. I just bought a bow of pencils that were a half a gross(72) in number that were Staples brand which usually cost $3.99 but were on sale for $3.50 probably due to the starting of school being around the corner. I used a kum sharpener that I bought from a art supply store. It’s a kum that is what appears to a Magnesium-alloy Metal Sharpener, wedge shape, Dynamic Torsion Action® tempered steel blade. It sharpened the Staples #2 HB pencil nicely. The wood smelled like an aromatic cedar. This first pencil that I have used writes well in my Rhodia notebook. I like pencils that are yellow in colour but I like the orange-yellow of the staples pencil better than the more straight yellow of the Dixon Ticonderoga. I have not used the eraser on the Staples pencil but usually never use pink erasers(which it is) because I find that they smear pink on the types of paper that I use. I prefer to use vinyl or artgum erasers. The Dixon Ticoneroga looks beautiful to me and more so than the Staples pencil but The Dixon is almost like the purest form that a pencil could take as for as aesthetics. The Staples pencil looks more like a work-horse half breed but is still pleasing after writing with it and it only costs $0.05, after tax, where as the Dixon Ticonderoga costs almost $0.18 after tax. What could be better than a good writing general purpose pencil that cheap? I got to say that the KUM pencil sharpener mentioned above sharpens magnificently.

  11. i’m looking for several castell xf 0.3 9763 to buy. i had a couple for years and just lost one. no response to a
    finder’s reward, either. these are a mechanical pencil with
    a yellow barrel, 0.3mm lead, adjustable clip, and lead pin
    under the eraser. i cannot seem to find any via the internet or local stores- they may have been discontinued,
    as i bought mine some 20 years ago. they are identical to
    the currently-made? faber castell colormatic except for
    color and lead size. i’ve also tried to find substitutes, but
    had no luck with the pentel p203 or the pentel 120 a3 dx
    a313, or the alvin draftline xa03. they all had something
    that prevented me from using them, like a clip that was
    not adjustable or a body diameter that was too thick, or
    not being available in 0.3mm. can anyone help?

    thanks,

    m ades

  12. Hi!
    I’m collecting pencils and also big fan of your blog. I just want to send you some Chinese pencils I recently got from my trip to China.
    They are produeced by “China first pencil CO.LTD”. From my conclusion, almost every Chinese people seem to use two kinds of standards pencils I’m sending. It would be great you leave me your adress through e-mail.
    Here’s my blog
    http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=26313&l=58d62&id=810933078

    From South Korea

  13. Has anyone ever heard of Rainproof pencils from Dixon? I saw a couple of photos on the following web site that featured them, but I can’t find any information on them on the Ticonderoga web site or anywhere else for that matter.

    http://laviegraphite.blogspot.com/

    Scroll down a little ways to see the photo’s I’m talking about.

  14. Wow, I love those photos. That transit notebook (used by surveyors), with lined paper on the left and a rectangular grid on the right, looks extremely interesting. From the font on the pencils, they appear to be a few years old.

    Abraham is quite a writing supplies connoisseur.

  15. Yes, indeed. I love the little umbrellas on the pencils. I left a comment on his blog asking where he got them, so maybe he’ll respond.

    I also dig those Rite in the Rain books. I think that’s going to be my next journal/notebook splurge (like I need any more).

  16. I have an Electro-Test Scorer pencil made by Richard Best in the USA. I wondered what it was and on checking, it appears to have been made for answering multi choice questions. The answers were circled by the student. The sheets were all then stacked and holes made through where the correct answers should be. The marker could then quickly find the correct answers as they had a hole with a pencil mark round it. It must be fairly old as Richard Best was taken over some time ago.
    I hope that this may be of some interest to some of the pencil addicts out there.

  17. I have been searching all over the internet trying to find a pencil (a No. 2 or 7mm/9mm) that has a cord or lanyard so it can be hung around the neck. I can’t understand why a corded pen is so easy to find yet it seem a corded pencil hasn’t even been invented. Can anyone help me with this?
    Even a clip of some sort that would fit a pencil & I could attach a lanyard would be fine. Mitsubishi makes some sort of pencil (I Think??) but it is a 5mm and that mm size will not work. This is for my son that has ADHD and I am spending a fortune in pencils because he looses so many a day.

    Help Please….. Thank You

  19. Hi!
    You have a very informative website. i wanted to know, if you don’t mind, can you please tell me what brand this mechanical pencil is and what might be its cost? i’m including a link to the image but if doesnt work or you cant have a look at it for any reason, i’ll describe it to you. it is completely black in colour except that its top where the eraser is placed, it is red, and the clip is also red though now its broken.
    here’s the link,
    thanks a lot
    Romana

  20. Hi Romana, thanks for your comment. Unfortunately I don’t see any included link. That description is a bit generic, but maybe it will be familiar to someone?

  21. Vintage?

    I have an old “Hardtmuth” pencil sharpener that just wont work any more & I can’t seem to find a new one that I like. The Hardtmuth sharpens like the Kum long point but does not have the “stop” in it so you can make the point as long as you like. I cant seem to find a modern version of this design so I was wondering if you all might know if there are a set of blades that will fit? It’s a “Hardtmuth Tutir Juwel” # 3724

  22. im happy to see youre holding down the integrity fort at pencil talk. your comments are also at times hilarious. ill have to go through your previous posts to get more of your humor.

    im glad to find another cozy corner! very nice job on the site.

  23. I am just rediscovering pencils after most of a life removed from drawing. I’m starting with a rather basic book and two sets of pencils, one Derwent and a Palomino set. My question: Has any supplier of drawing pencils ever included a simple, easy to spot way to grab a particular hardness, beyond the small 2H, B, etc. marking? For example, one ring at the top for H, 2 rings for 2H, etc. Perhaps dashed rings for the B cycle?

  24. Hi Len, thanks for your question.

    Some manufacturers do vary the pencil finish to denote grade.

    The new Caran d’Ache Grafwood line has a broad spectrum of greyscale finishes that correspond to the pencil grade.

    Bruynzeel’s High Grade line uses red caps for the B line, blue for the H line, and black for HB.

    Other lines such as the Herlitz Scolair have each pencil grade finished in a different colour.

    I do like your idea for rings or other visual cues on the pencils, and am kind of surprised that this hasn’t been done (as far as I know). Has anyone seen something like this implemented?

  25. Hi, really nice blog! I was just wondering if there’s an address at which I might send you a couple of novelty pencils I have lying about which I think you might enjoy?

  26. Came across some pencils whose make I don’t recognize. They are “H” s with a dark green coat and have the words “CREATIVE PRODUCTS FOR THE CREATIVE ENGINEER” on them – they also have the following enigmatic mark:

    K+E-58 0401

    What I typed as an “E” is a symbol that looks kind of like a sigma- but to be more precise it looks like a sideways M?

    thanks

    Jack

  27. To Jackie from Oct 2nd- have you considered a DIY project? Maybe a dremel with a really small drill bit and then thread some cord through? Or you could modify one of the pencil caps to take the lanyard (although it will be tempting to remove the pencil to use it- and well then you’re back to lost pencils…)

  29. Say, is it too early to publish my pencil wishlist for Christmas?

    I want the world’s biggest Pez Dispenser filled with pristine Blackwing 602’s.

  30. To Len and Penciladmin, October 29th:
    Staedtler has with the “Noris” also five pencils with different colored caps responding to the pencil grade:
    2B = orange
    B = black
    HB = red
    H = blue
    2H = green

    Regarding the quality I would compare the Noris with the Faber-Castell Grip 2001, but the Noris is one grade smoother (Noris HB = Grip B etc.)

  31. Frank, thank you as always. Staedtler Canada’s website seems to omit the B grade of the Noris! I don’t think I’ve ever seen a hexagonal version for sale here, though the “triplus” variant is common.

  32. What a weath of information in this blog – absolutely fantastic!

    I would like to add the Faber-Castell Dessin 2000 as another pencil which hardness grade is indicated by a coloured end (five grades as well, although coded in a different way and scheme than the Noris).

  33. Gunther, thank you for the praise. One of the upcoming tasks is to find a way of making the accumulated content here better classified and more accessible.

  34. I am making the move from pen to mechanical pencil. When using a pencil, I typically like it well and freshly sharpened. I am wondering what size lead in a mechanical you would Rx…

  35. Hi Liz, your blog is making me hungry!

    I think many would agree that this is a matter of personal preference – how thin/thick do you want the line to be? Do you write with a “light” hand or a “heavy” hand? What type of paper do you use?

    I would mention that some pencils don’t ship with the best quality lead, and replacing the default lead with a Pentel refill is usually a rewarding and quick upgrade.

  36. I have a Kaweco Classic Sport Mechanical Pencil (in white). For whatever reason it will not let me refill the lead. Do you know why this could be? I’m certain that I’m using the right size lead…suggestions?
    BTW- I absolutely LOVE your blog, you have me hooked!

  39. repeat-

    i’m looking for several castell xf 0.3 9763 to buy. i had a couple for years and just lost one. no response to a
    finder’s reward, either. these are a mechanical pencil with
    a yellow barrel, 0.3mm lead, adjustable clip, and lead pin
    under the eraser. i cannot seem to find any via the internet or local stores- they may have been discontinued,
    as i bought mine some 20 years ago. they are identical to
    the currently-made? faber castell colormatic except for
    color and lead size. i’ve also tried to find substitutes, but
    had no luck with the pentel p203 or the pentel 120 a3 dx
    a313, or the alvin draftline xa03. they all had something
    that prevented me from using them, like a clip that was
    not adjustable or a body diameter that was too thick, or
    not being available in 0.3mm. can anyone help?

    thanks,

    m ades

  41. I just wanted to let you know that the link to your RSS feed at the bottom of each page is incorrectly linked.

    You have the link as “feed://http//www.penciltalk.org/feed”

    The correct link should be just “https://www.penciltalk.org/feed”

    Hope that helps people out who are trying to add your wonderful blog to their RSS feeds!

  42. Thank you, you are correct, yet every browser/reader I have tried seems able to cope with this format.

    I have just updated the footer code. Hope it looks okay now.

  45. Hi!

    I wanted to suggest a post naming your favorite brick and mortar establishments and so that your readers can post theirs as well (and for the record I am a humble public servant, and do not, in fact, own or have a fiduciary interest in such an establishment).

    Thanks!!!

  47. hi I have some vintage Mun Hwa pencils, probably early ’80s . they are a kids item, brightly coloured with metallic highlights (socceerballs and rings at the cap.) colour combinations include orange with teal metallic, fluuoresccent pink with gold highlight, and flluorescent yellow with purpple higllight. Anyone interested?

  48. Hi there,

    congratulations for your blog!! I wonder if you have wooden pencils to sale or trade. I am a pencil collector looking for other collectors to share alikes :). If so, please write me an e-mail: mtat75@hotmail.com

    Have a nice day!!

    Tatiana Aguero

  49. Hello – I’d like to ask you a question. Is there any truth to the myth according to which if you write something on a piece of paper with a pencil, then after 15/20 years the contact with the air almost completely erases the sheet, so that it is virtually impossible to read it? Thanks.
    Armando – Milan, Italy (EU)

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