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1. Martini Auctions It is nice to know that there are alternatives to eBay. What’s amazing to me is that Martini Auctions consistently has some of the absolutely rarest and most collectible pencil items around: A Sterling Silver Faber-Castell TK 9400 Leadholder. Mentioned at leadholder.com, examples of this limited edition of 1948 are rarely seen. The asking price? €500. Ouch! Eberhard Faber Cartograph pencils. These seem to be a variant of Landkartenstifte. Though incomplete and mismatched, it is still a fascinating historical item. Lyra 190th anniversary pencil extender. Did you know that an established pencil manufacturer issued a luxury pencil extender some years before Faber-Castell? These are just a few highlights. Alas, all somewhat expensive. 2. World Cup pencils Faber-Castell has announced a special pencil for the 2010 World Cup! It looks like it might be triangular in shape. I’m wondering if this will be part of a set of 24? That would be super-collectible, I would guess. 3. A pencil made from finger-joined slats, with two species of wood! Woodchuck has mentioned the existence of these pencils before, but this is the first photo I’ve seen. Remarkable! Two wood finger joined pencil. Seen at On the desk, at any time.
Apart from being a multiplication table pencil from a famous manufacturer, this pencil was interesting to me as a Faber-Castell product labelled as being from Brazil.
For sale via an eBay seller in Cyprus (I’ve corresponded with others who’ve purchased the same pencil set), it seems to have taken an interesting path before arriving at my door.
See also: Multiplication table pencils and Eberhard Faber geometry pencil.
A couple of years ago, I found some Grip 2001 pencils in red and blue finishes. There were two comments about a black version also existing. I guess the black version is even more unusual, as I’d not even seen it online, let alone in person. That recently changed, as I saw a package of these pencils with some accessories offered by an eBay seller.
The accessories are themselves interesting – a container sharpener, a sleeved eraser, and an eraser/sharpener combination. They look like they would make a great inexpensive gift for a young person.
Beautiful and simple stationery items. Alas, just one problem – none of the the sharpener blades can be replaced, the sleeve eraser can’t be refilled, and the eraser core in the combination sharpener/eraser has no refill for sale that I’m aware of. These accessories seem too nice to be disposable.
If you’re going to have a ruler on your desk, why not a simple and beautiful Designphil Design Project Glass Ruler?
I learned about this item from the fine folks at Bundoki, and have been very pleased in my decision to order one.
Tempered glass creates interesting effects. The ruler is quite heavy, yet also has an airy translucency. It also looks great on a desk!
The closure of Sanford’s US pencil factory last year was perhaps the final chapter in the story of US pencil manufacturing’s demise. Starting with the move of incense cedar pencil slat maker CalCedar’s manufacturing to China, and followed by Dixon’s departure to Mexico and China, Sanford’s exit was perhaps expected. Of course, the names and brands carry on.
Papermate’s current website gives no indication of woodcase pencils being part of the product line. A weekend visit to a large office supply store revealed a hint of the future. The most expensive pencils in the large store, the box of 12 No. 2 Mirado pencils appears as they have for years, except for the statement “Made in Mexico”. Appearance The packaging still claims “The World’s Smoothest Writing Pencil – Guaranteed!” The cardbord box of twelve seems basically unaltered. The back of the box states: The pencils themselves are yellow, just like their predecessors, except missing the “USA” lettering.
The manufacturing details appear slightly improved – they’ve reverted to an unsharpened format. Some paint spills over the end, but the problem of imprecise clamping of the ferrule appears much better. The varnish seems okay, not the best, yet certainly better than the “no name” pencils that supermarkets sell.
Sharpening I had no trouble sharpening the pencil in a manual sharpener, a desktop Carl, or a battery-operated Panasonic sharpener. Writing A real surprise. I’ve never been a huge fan of this pencil, possibly because of the bland, generic appearance. But it writes quite well. Perhaps not as smoothly as pencils costing five times more, but still quite nicely. It certainly seems as good as the US made predecessor, and I’m wondering if it may even be better?
Erasure The erasers seem exactly like those of the predecessor, pink with powdery (latex?) coating. At least while new, they work reasonably well, especially compared with other “pink” erasers.
Overall I am leaning towards a conclusion opposite to the one I thought I was going to make. Whether it is new equipment or some other factor, the new Mirados seem to be manufactured to a standard at least as high as their immediate predecessors. Have you tried them yet?
The 2010 Academy Awards are just a couple of weeks away. Last year, we noticed that Japanese Animator Kunio Kato won the Oscar for Best Animated Short. A notable acceptance speech included giving thanks to his pencil.
It looks like Kato has not gone unappreciated by legendary pencil manufacturer Staedtler. To honour the 80th anniversary of the Mars Lumograph, Staedtler has issued a special set of pencils in a tin that features an illustration by the animator. As well as Staedtler, ROBOT (Kato’s firm) has a copyright notice on the package.
These Lumograph 100s are also special for pencil users because they are unsharpened versions!
The core widths vary considerably with the pencil’s degree.
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