Does anyone collect Mechanical Pencils?

[Lady Onogaro]

Hi, Denizz,

I really like mine and use it nearly every day. I have rather a heavy hand, and I used to always break the lead in most mechanical pencils, but not with the Kuru Toga for some reason. The only downside for me is that I am always misplacing the cap for the eraser. It's so tiny and it's clear, so it is easy to lose.

My other favorite pencil is the Zebra Tect 2way light. It's a cool pencil--a demonstrator in blue with silver metal furniture. The lead isn't as hard as the Kuru Toga, which is nice, too.

I have a soft spot for the Techniclick G, too.

[amk]

My regular use MPs are Lamy 2000, Lamy Accent brilliant, and Kaweco Sketchup. But I have ended up with quite a collection of vintage pencils, since they turn up in mugs along with fountain pens at many flea markets and junk shops, and if they're selling for 50p or a quid I tend to pick them up, particularly if they're in a nice celluloid.

[Denizzz]

My regular use MPs are Lamy 2000, Lamy Accent brilliant, and Kaweco Sketchup. But I have ended up with quite a collection of vintage pencils, since they turn up in mugs along with fountain pens at many flea markets and junk shops, and if they're selling for 50p or a quid I tend to pick them up, particularly if they're in a nice celluloid.

Amk, i have never tried a Lamy 2000 mp or the Accent Brilliant, but i am sure these ones have to be really comfortable. I have Lamy Scribble 0.7 and i am very very happy with it.

Also i always liked visiting flea markets here in Lithuania, i find a fountain pen or a vintage pencil time to time, however, really rarely. I have been to a car booth sale on Saturday when i visitied London last time and there were definitely more Fps or MPs to choose from.

Lady Onogaro, thank you very much for your review and sharing your experience. I will add the zebra and the Kuru toga to my want list. I have 2 (black and violet) Pentel Technoclick myseld and i find it really good pencil as well.

[Lady Onogaro]

Denizz,

This is the Zebra Tect 2way (on Jetpens): http://www.jetpens.com/Zebra-Tect-2w...d/1604/related
I have the blue one, but as you can see, it also comes in white, black, and green.

[Bisquitlips]

I have a genuine affection for pencils even to the extent of purchasing a Faber-Castell Perfect Pencil.

I remember one time as a kid we were rummaging around in an old abandoned house and found a bunch of letters up in the attic, most written in pencil. I was amazed that they were so well preserved as they were about 80 years old. I also remember thinking that pencils are under rated when it comes to permanence.

I have about 30 pencils including the ones I have in some of my vintage sets and have gone out of my way to purchase pencils that I wanted.

I have a couple of Montblanc pencils including a 165 and a 232 Pix that were purchased singularly as well as a Rouge Boheme and others. Yard-O-Led makes a nice pencil in hex that I have had for years and also a couple of Whals, one in sterling and one in Rosewood.




The Perfect Pencil is quite cool! Sterling and Pernambuco wood.

[Lady Onogaro]

I have two Perfect Pencils, but not the Silver cap ones! (Mine are a red plastic and a green plastic.) Those are beautiful!

[Bisquitlips]

I have been thinking about getting the plastic one as they are not nearly as heavy as the sterling and are likely more practical for everyday use.

Gotta love Faber as a company that puts some thoughts in to how to use a pencil differently! They Rock!

[Lady Onogaro]

I have been thinking about getting the plastic one as they are not nearly as heavy as the sterling and are likely more practical for everyday use.

Gotta love Faber as a company that puts some thoughts in to how to use a pencil differently! They Rock!

That's one of the ones I have. I also have the red one (I think it is the next notch down). Anyway, they are both fun.

[Bisquitlips]

I have been thinking about getting the plastic one as they are not nearly as heavy as the sterling and are likely more practical for everyday use.

Gotta love Faber as a company that puts some thoughts in to how to use a pencil differently! They Rock!

That's one of the ones I have. I also have the red one (I think it is the next notch down). Anyway, they are both fun.

That is nice! For $12.00 on Amazon, you can't go wrong.

[brunico]

No, I don't collect them, but I seem to have accumulated more than I have fountain pens. Partly because I'm starting to draw again and have 0.5mm, 2mm and 5.6mm, partly because mechanical pencils are relatively inexpensive.

Some comments.

Tombow Mono Graph. Much better design and looks than an inexpensive plastic pencil has any right to be, and with a useful eraser. At £6/$9 I probably wouldn't have bought more than one, but at £2/$3 from j-subculture.com, well, why not? It's what you'd pay for a really poor-quality, ugly own-brand pencil from an office supplies catalogue. You know the ones, sub-Bic plastic, sharp edges, no cap on the eraser, an off-centre plastic cone to sleeve the lead and a foam rubber grip that disintegrates after a couple of weeks.

Rotring. My 2mm Rapid Pro came this morning, just waiting for a 0.5mm 600. Very solid, good balance, exactly what you'd expect. It's a mechanical pencil, not a clutch pencil, so I felt I could justify it in addition to my 2mm clutch pencils.

Fixpencil 22. 2mm clutch pencil. A design classic going back to 1929, very Swiss-looking and won't look out of place next to anything in the International Typographic Style. 120mm leads stick out about 1cm when you first put them in, but the longer Fixpencil 77 is almost impossible to find. Not really a problem, especially for drawing. Had to resist buying a neon green Fixpencil from pencils.jp.

Pentel Graphgear 1000. Good, solid, not Rotring solid but excellent value for the price. Very funky looking, but in a good way.

Ohto Super Promecha 1500. I wanted one of these for the longest time and nearly splurged because they're 20% off at cultpens.com. But I think I only want one for the novelty of the adjustments, so I've resisted it so far... and the Uni Pipe Lock and the Kuru Toga Roulette... I think my Rotring will get most of the use for 0.5mm.

I don't like pencils that look like the kind of ballpoint pen that's made alongside a fountain pen. They just look wrong to me. But drafting pencils fascinate me.

Andrey's Pencils on Ebay is interesting to browse through and check out old-school drafting pencils.

[Bisquitlips]

Here is another sleeper and a wonderful Whal Dama Sized pencil with a military style clip.

This pencil is just perfect and makes me wonder why other makers do not try to duplicate its beauty and quality. But then again... that's just me.

[jbb]

Here's one of my favorites....with some old rainbow lead in it that I haven't been able to find a current source for.

[fountainpagan]

Some beautiful pencils you all have!!
I didn't know the Fine Poynt, and find them very elegant. Thank you, Cob for the discovery.

I don't collect mechanical pencils but have several because I enjoy using them to sketck, and so. I have modern and vintage.

Conway Stweart


Yard-o-Led


Majestic


Jif


Unknown, galalith


Sheaffer Prelude


Graf Von Faber Castel - classic - guilloche

[Lady Onogaro]

I really like that Jif, fountainpagan.

[fountainpagan]

You have good taste, Lady Onogaro

It is a very agreable writer.

[mgmmaze]

About a year about I decided since I am in college for Electrical Engineering might as well get some decent pencils. Since then I have gotten 2 of the sheaffer stripped celluloid ones that were around in the 30s and 40s. One I gave to my now ex gf daughter who loved using it when I would help her with math. I also have 2 watermans from the 40s. And 1 or 2 other off brand ones. I have come to love the 0.9 and 1.1 mm leads. They dont break which was a huge annoyance for me with 0.5 and 0.7 also they seem to last much longer. Some of the ones I want to get in the future is to finish the colors of the stripped Sheaffer celluloid so I need another green one since I gifted mine and a red one. I think the Vaccumatic pencils looks so awesome but of course they run for high prices.

[KBeezie]

In the past I would say no, But then if I go and actually count how many mechanical pencils I have, I'd have to say yes.

My favorite currently is this Eversharp Rosewood pencil that takes 1.1 lead (which I currently have filled with some Worther 1.15):



And to just list the rest off modern and vintage :

- Parker 45 in a deep green (0.9)
- Autopoint 152G Executive Director (0.9)
- Uni Kuru Toga Roulette (0.5) and Kuru Toga (the cheapie plastic one, 0.7)
- Lamy 2000 (0.7)
- E+M Workman Long (Clutch, 5.5mm)

Would like to find myself a stainless steel one that's a little on the longer side, perhaps with a clip similar to my Eversharp above, or the old 'pencil clip' like my Wahl #2.



And maybe something of the old 3.2mm (0.12") size, called checking pencils?

[Trustydanyell]

I really like that Graf Von Faber Castel, very nice.

[top pen]

I got a rotring rapid pro in the post today and to be honest I mixed views it doesn't feel like a drafting more a pencil styled to look like one it just doesn't have that pin point precision that the 500 or 600 have, it feels as though it has been made a higher standard then the Staedtler 925 which I've had for a few years. I'll have to see as I found 500 took a while to grow on me.

[crod]

I have a couple of mechanical pencils from the Montblanc Writers Edition. Specifically I want to share a picture of the Dickens pencil. In this case, I have compared the fountain pen with the pencil and I like a lot more the looks of the pencil. The design is very elegant, the combination of the sterling cap with the green/gray barrel is beautiful. The Montblanc star at the top looks amazing. Somebody told me that it is a pencil that doesn't allow mistakes because it doesn't have an eraser, but I don't have a problem with that, I would probably still use a different eraser.

I hope you like it.