Erasers for Vintage Pencils

[bunnspecial]

This question is prompted by a recently acquired MB 172 that came with a celluloid 146, but I figure it's a good enough general question to stick it here.

I don't seek out pencils specifically, but often get them in sets with pens and I find that I really enjoy the older pencils with 1.1mm or larger lead(the 172, for example, is 1.18mm).

I have several Vacumatic pencils(twist), one or two Parker 51s, some Sheaffers to go with Balances/touchdowns/Snorkels, and of course a couple of MBs.

One issue I seem to have is finding erasers for them, and if I don't have an eraser I might as well use a pen. I've found a few NOS and okay(but not great) Vacumatic erasers, but of course there's a finite supply of them and erasers don't exactly last forever. I have other pencils that either don't have an eraser or have a rock-hard one.

The 172 mentioned is my latest target, and a trip to Office Depot yesterday didn't turn up any Pentel or other brand erasers that looked close to fitting.

Does anyone know a source for this eraser specifically, or more generally where to source erasers for all manner of vintage pencils?

[arrow]

If you could find or make a sort of cookie cutter that gives the right diameter for your model, in other words, any metal tube with sharp edge and right diameter that cuts through the piece of rubber, you can make your own replacement. Personally, I hesitate to use those tiny rubber bits under the pen cap for the longest time, and just keep an eraser on the side. If you cut out with a knife, it might have some rougher edges, but at least it might work. Some pens have tiny and finicky parts. I don`t have any easy solution for the hard to find replacement parts, my approach has been a more of trying and testing. Like you I sometimes find NOS parts anywhere on the web. I have used this (https://www.jetpens.com/Pencil-Pen-Eraser-Refills/ct/358) page as a reference in my search, mostly for the accurate diameter measures they list and they have quite a good selection of erasers. With a bit of luck, it is just the right size.

[FredRydr]

https://www.legendaryleadcompany.com

[Jon Szanto]

2nding Fred's recommendation of Joh Velley's operation. Epicenter of vintage mech pencil knowledge and stuffs.

[bunnspecial]

Thanks guys.

I had thought of making my own using a cork borer, of which I have several. Maybe I'll try that. I should probably get one of the white block erasers to try on, as the red ones seem awfully tough to try and cut a hole in.

Also, at least on a lot of these I do at least have an original ferrule even if it has a rock hard eraser in it. That at least means if I can find "close enough" I can recycle the hold ferrule and not have to worry about finding a new one.

I also appreciate the link to the above site, especially for the lead availability. I didn't see anything other than NOS erasers, though. I will be putting in an order for some of the oddball sizes. I do have a couple of tubes of genuine Autopoint 1.1mm around, but what I have is short and I like that they have longer pieces in larger diameters.

And yes I realize that a separate eraser is ultimately the universal choice, but that kind of ruins the point of having a nice mechanical pencil in my pocket. Of course I do have at least one modern-ish pencil-a Sonnet-that has a good eraser in it and presumably one I could find, but it's also .5mm.

[Chip]

In grommet kits, there's a tubular cutter that works a treat for cutting erasers. You just need the right diameter.

Another method is to buy thin metal tubing at a hardware or hobby shop and sharpen the outer rim.

[top pen]

From my experience I would leave vintage erasers alone and forget they even exist. I can only comment on Parker pencils there are about 3 models where by accessing the eraser can break the mechanism. These are Parker 45, 61 and some 51's. As the friction fit caps become tight with time you end up having to put a lot of stress on the mechanism which can cause irreversible damage. I have had to scrap about 5 pencils from learning this the hard way.

[Chuck Naill]

I've bought several Autopoint erasers of varying size off eBay. I have also made my own from a Pink Pearl Eraser.

[Andreaa23]

Where can I buy watermelon game (https://wordhurdle.co/watermelon-game) it?