Craft Design Technology pencil
It is a great pleasure to be able to write about this new pencil.
Craft Design Technology is a Japanese brand which produces home and office goods with an emphasis on a consistent, clean design aesthetic. They are associated with a number of manufacturers. If my understanding is correct, the brand is oriented towards functional and aesthetic goals, rather than “luxury”. Most of their website is in Japanese, which I am not able to read.
Luckily for pencil aficionados, their products include item 17, which are HB pencils.
The pencils are unsharpened, and richly varnished in a vibrant light green - almost a washed mint or green tea ice cream colour. Very unusual and pleasing. There are no bands or cap markings, and text is thankfully minimal, in black:
Obverse: Craft Design Technology
Reverse: Made in Japan [logo] item 17: Pencil - HB
High end Japanese pencils use gold or silver colour paint for lettering, and the black is a nice alternative on this already attractive pencil.
The pencil sharpened easily, and the lead was exceptionally dark, smooth, and rich, with no crumbling. CDT’s website says the pencil is made by Pentel, and Pentel’s name and logo are on the box. In my opinion, this is the right way to do it. I don’t like mystery pencils, and If I had a pencil made, I would absolutely want the provenance known. I appreciate CDT’s disclosure.
After trying the pencil, the next thing I did was reach for a Pentel Black Polymer 999. I was really astounded - I believe the CDT pencil to be noticeably smoother that the 999. And that is saying something. I next reached for an HB Tombow Mono 100 , and I had the impression that the CDT could keep up. While I haven’t put them through any lengthy paces yet, my sense it that this really is a first rate pencil.
It comes in just HB, so it’s not aimed at artists and designers. But as a general purpose office or writing pencil, it is a remarkable new entry in the market.
If you decide to buy some (I doubt you’ll be disappointed), be aware that they should be a normal price for a quality pencil - I’ve seen them offered online with astounding markups.
February 18th, 2008 at 12:08 pm
Did you buy these online? I’m curious to know how much S&H was and what your unit price per pencil turned out to be. Were they shipped from Japan?
What are the unsharpened ends like? Any lacquer on them or are they cut/polished smooth?
– Boris
February 18th, 2008 at 1:24 pm
Hi Boris, thanks for the comment and questions.
I hope it is clear that the pencils are sold unsharpened - as in the fourth photo. I sharpened the pencil in the first photo. (In a KUM Correc-Tri if that matters.)
Now I’m not sure if this is what you meant - but the lacquer, as with Tombow, Mitsubishi, Kita-Boshi, and Pentel pencils, ends cleanly at the end of the pencil barrel, and does not spill over to the surface of the unsharpened end. This is in contrast with many other pencils, which do have lacquer spilling over.
It’s just one of those little touches that most people will never notice, but which sets the top pencils apart.
The pencil was part of a larger order (stay tuned to the blog for more posts this week!), so the precise arithmetic of the S&H is elusive. Roughly, I believe the unit price was less than I would pay locally for a Lumograph 100, for example.
February 18th, 2008 at 9:21 pm
Stephen, thanks for the wonderful review. Do you happen to know if they will prouce any other leads, aside from HB?
thanks again!
-Olivia
February 18th, 2008 at 9:22 pm
(excuse my spelling…i meant ‘produce’)
February 18th, 2008 at 10:14 pm
Thanks Olivia. Unfortunately, I don’t have any further information about CDT’s product plans.
February 19th, 2008 at 12:37 am
Stephen,
Yes, I was asking about the lacquer. Thanks for the answer. I am far from being an expert on pencils but I do agree with you about the clean look of not having lacquer spill over. The Dixon pencils at Walmart seem to have the lacquer spill over and it looks kind of sloppy. For the intended target audience, I don’t think it really matters after the first sharpening. If Dixon ever got some market info that suggested people chose another brand because of this feature then I’m sure Dixon would change their process. Maybe they would make the pencil longer and snip off 1/8″ from the end. Is that how it is done in high end pencils? This could be considered wasteful in terms of material and expensive in terms of having another step in the manufacturing process.
– Boris
February 19th, 2008 at 7:08 pm
Ouch! $40 for 12 at Design Within Reach. Does that make Palominos the poor man’s CDT?
February 19th, 2008 at 8:32 pm
Boris, thanks for your comment.
Matt, the post’s last paragraph mentions that there are some high mark-ups out there. They go for about $16 a dozen in Japan, so $40 is too much, even with transportation costs.
February 19th, 2008 at 11:00 pm
Outstanding find, sir. And profuse thanks for sharing it with us.
Pentel’s 999 pencil (B) has become my favorite, go-to weapon of choice—and I found out about it (as well as other favorites, Mitsu’s Hi-Uni and Tombow’s Mono 100) simply because of your site, with excellent descriptions and likewise photography. Again—many thanks.
Best possible wishes,
CE
February 21st, 2008 at 2:29 pm
You posted earlier that these were part of a larger order, but you never actually posted *where* you purchased these great pencils from.
Design Within Reach has them for $40, but in my experience you pay a ridiculous premium for anything they sell.
I would love to order some of these but I can’t find anywhere to order them.
Excellent website by the way. A real joy.
February 24th, 2008 at 9:43 pm
I have been using this pencil for the last 4 months, definitaly the best pencil I have used so far (including all other Japaneses pencils - Tombow, mitshubishi, kita-boshi, pentel…). I first seen this pencil on a japanese website (bundoki.com - send them an email, they will be happy to help) tried them and fell in love. Although manufecture by Pentel, it is by far better than their 999 line of pencils (HB and B).
BTW
last time I bought 2 dozens for $40 including shipping….
Hope this helps….
Guy –
February 28th, 2008 at 2:26 pm
If you follow the link to the Craft Design site for HB, the price is 1,680 yen. Current conversion puts this at $15.80 American per dozen. Even with shipping, $40 seems quite the markup . . .
May 13th, 2008 at 4:27 pm
The name on the pencil is “item 17″ but the name on the box is “item 018″ !?!???
July 3rd, 2008 at 5:10 am
Anyone know where there is a stockest in the UK?
Thanks
James
July 9th, 2008 at 4:57 am
Bundoki stocks CDT items, ships overseas and offers an excellent service; see here for details. – I am not connected with them, just a satisfied customer.
July 20th, 2008 at 5:14 am
Thanks Gunther, will take a look.