Viarco, a small traditional pencil manufacturer in Portugal, continues to innovate.

The ArtGraf pencils are a pair of 22cm black and white pencils. The matte black finished “Soft Black” is a carbon based pencil, while the glossy white finished “Water-Soluble” is, as the name states, a water soluble pencil.

The format and presentation are unique and compelling, yet modest. Pencils of this dimension are truly unusual (a standard pencil is about 17.5cm) , and the combination of the two artist specialty formulas results in a very nice product.

The specific formulas may be a matter of prefence (I found the Caran d’Ache water soluble pencils easier to use as a beginner), but it is hard to imagine than anyone who likes graphite based artistic media would not be impressed by a gift of ArtGraf pencils.

The Mitsubishi NanoDia pencil is supposed to be something special. The graphite is claimed to benefit from some important and noteworthy quality advances.

The line was announced in 2008, and started with mechanical pencils refills; woodcase pencils were introduced a couple of years later. The features of note include strength and density.

Now considering this matter, I’ve been wondering just how a major pencil manufacturer introduces product improvements. Paint or wood improvements are probably simple enough to introduce, and won’t likely disrupt the user base, but a change to a graphite formula could cause problems. A key differentiator of the top global pencil lines – the Hi-Uni, the Mono 100, the Castell 9000, or the Mars Lumograph 100 – is that they remain the same high quality product, and perform the same way, year after year, decade after decade. That they remain absolutely reliable and stable as tools for artists is a main selling point over readily available and less expensive alternatives.

So how then, does an improvement get introduced? Well, perhaps it depends on what the feature is – if the strength of a lead core can be improved without changing other pencil characteristics, then that feature could possibly be integrated with the main pencil line. But any feature that changes the feel of the lead on paper, or the blackness or luminescence of the line, or the known chemistry between the graphite and paper, probably has to be directed elsewhere. And perhaps even making the lead stronger might be seen as too much change to a formula.

So if Mitsubishi did find a way to make a graphite core denser and smoother, one can see that they may have had a problem on the matter of what to do with their discovery. An established line can’t just be altered. So the features went into a new product – the NanoDia.

NanoDia? Nanoscopic diamonds? Well, graphite molecules are no doubt the cousins of diamonds in the carbon family.

The pencils look like (and are labelled as) a product for children. So what about the scientific advances said to be in the formula? Shouldn’t this be a product in Mitsubishi’s premier Uni range? Here I am lost – if the product is what it claims to be, why is it priced and packaged as a lower end item?

So regarding the pencils – they come in B and 2B grades, and a choice of green, pink, or blue finishes. They are hexagonal with unfinished ends. I bought a box of the 2B with the blue finish.

The pencil does leave a notably dense, rich, black line. I like it, but am undecided about the appearance.

turn it is a wooden top whose axis is a woodcase pencil.

The packaging tells me that the design is by Miguel Soeiro and was produced by ESAD.CR and Viarco.

This is a short video showing the top in action. Depending on your browser, it will open inline in a new window, or download as an .mp4 file:

That was with minimal spin. You can get much more “air time” with practice, and the patterns left by the pencil also become quite intriguing:

I’m sure a crafty person could build something like this on their own. Do you like it?

Matthias of Bleistift also received a few of these from Sean, and seeing my post, took pity on me and kindly redirected a few spares my way.

More recently, I learned of the limited edition (I have box no. 296) World Press Cartoon pencil.

Here they are:

The blue pencil is meant to fill out J. C. Penney surveys, and the purple (and hexagonal) pencil is a souvenir from an international cartoonist conference, and was made by Viarco of Portugal.

With a regular pencil for contrast:

I remain amazed that pencils can be manufactured at this scale. Have you encountered pencils like this?

The Faber-Castell 250th anniversary pencils.

The raised lettering is remarkable.

The caps acknowledge the anniversary year.

Congratulations to Faber-Castell on their 250th anniversary year!

Though – it unfortunately looks like products we’ve already seen. The special imprint Castell 9000 pencils given out at Paperworld probably have more cachet as an anniversary item.

Lothar von Faber’s Polygrade is a historically important pencil. Launched in 1837, and sold until the early 20th century, the product offered pencils in a system of standard grades, and established the Faber name globally. The pencils were also the first by Faber to use the Conté/Hardmuth process of blending graphite with clay, an improvement over the use of raw graphite.

The particular box we see here is rather ornate, and reflects the price and status of the Polygrade pencils in the 19th century. 1851, 1853, and 1855 prizes are mentioned on the box. The pencils within are additionally stamped “E. Faber 133 William St. NY”. Eberhard Faber is known to have departed that address in 1877, so the pencils can probably be dated from 1855 to 1877, placing them closer to Faber’s 1761 establishment than the present. (2011 is Faber-Castell’s 250th anniversary.)

A metal push button mechanism to open the box is still functioning:

Eight of the original set of ten remain. All are a bit worse for wear. The imprints of the softer grades are the best preserved.

The inside cover mentions, in French and English, the pencil grades:

BBBB and BBB: very soft and very black
BB: soft and very black
B: soft and black
F: less soft and black
HB: middling
H: hard
HH: harder
HHH and HHHH: very hard

We would call these 3B and 4B today:

Though quite faded, the imprints are beautiful:

The patina of the wood is certainly no less attractive due to the age.

The previous owner performed some nice hand sharpening:

What is perhaps most interesting is the other end of the pencil: these pencils have rectangular leads, and use the historic construction method of placing the square lead in a square cavity, then gluing on the remaining third of the pencil. This was the technique used prior to the use of sandwich slats.

Note as well that the leads vary in size – just like modern quality pencil sets, the cores of the softer grades are larger.

Do they still write? Of course they still write! On a toothy paper meant for charcoal or pastel:

And the HB on a good quality writing tablet:

Well over a century after their manufacture, these pencils continue to impress.

Further reading and references:

The Pencil, A History of Design and Circumstance by Henry Petroski, has many references to this pencil. Two chapters in particular are relevant. Chapter 6, “Does One Find or Make a Better Pencil?”, discusses the history of pencil construction, and Chapter 11, “From Cottage Industry to Bleistiftindustrie”, focuses on the establishment of the pencil industry, driven by the Faber family and products such as the Polygrade.

Eberhard Faber’s Pencil Factory by Mary Habstritt at Archive of Industy. (PDF format.) A nice three page summary of the history of Eberhard Faber business.

Eberhard Faber Pencil Company Historic District Designation Report at City of New York. (PDF format.) Though officially about a municipal zoning matter, the report has an excellent history of the Eberhard Faber company, and is illustrated with maps and many photos of the historic Eberhard Faber buildings.

Thank you to Staedtler for this very generous offer!

Staedtler kindly sent pencil talk a sample of their new pencilmaker set.

The official product description in English is “7-piece historic pencil kit including instructions,” and the model number is “61 HP KIT”.

Readers of Lexikaliker know that the product was unveiled at the 2011 Paperworld show, and part of a larger series of pencil products with historic themed packaging.

The set contains two carpenter style pencil slats, a rectangular lead, string, glue, a seal, and instructions.

For some years, Staedtler has promoted their brand with employees in historical garb performing pencil making demonstrations. A little online searching reveals that these events are held in many countries.

As well, finished historic appearance pencil products have been packaged, as shown in the first volume of Stationery Magazine.

I am told the best place to observe the rendition of historic pencil making craft is at Nürnberg’s Christkindlmarkt. If you haven’t heard of a Christkindlmarkt, the Guardian has a nice piece on them. There is even one in my own backyard, though I haven’t been to it.

The kit is simple enough that I think it doesn’t need too much explanation. The version I received differs from the one seen at Bleistift and in official photos in that the slats in my version don’t have any markings. i.e. they are not marked “Staedtler”.

As Joan asked, a key question is – are you going to assemble the pencil and use it, or just keep the set as a memento?

Staedtler sent this sample, but that’s far from all they did. They contacted pencil talk about giving away 175 sets (corresponding to their 175th corporate anniversary) via this blog. I was amazed. Manufacturers have regularly sent items for review or as contest promotions, but never anything at even close to this scale.

The logistics alone represent a significant expenditure by Staedtler. And it was all done very graciously with just a few coordinating phone calls. The kit fits so well with the interests of pencil talk readers – it is great promotion, and I sincerely thank Staedtler for choosing to reach out this way.

Some further details – the kits are being given away on a first come, first served basis. As of June 3rd, about 75 kits were claimed, and there are still some available as of the 6th. Shipping will not begin until late June, so please allow 4 to 8 weeks for delivery.

To request a free pencilmaker set, see the details in the previous post.

In celebration of the 175th Anniversary of the founding of the JS Staedtler pencil making plant in Nürnberg, we are offering a limited quantity of “Historic Pencil Maker” Kits, free of charge, to Pencil Talk readers. Simply email us, and tell us what you like best about Staedtler pencils and how you use them. Only 175 tins are available to readers in Canada and the USA.

Manufacture your personal historic pencil just like Friedrich Staedtler in former times! The construction kit comes with all necessary materials; wood, lead, glue sealing wax and string. Step-by-step instructions included. Packed in metal tin with historic motif.

This kit is not available at retailers in Canada or the USA.

Email: Advertising@staedtler.ca and tell us why you should have one to add to your collection.

Please allow 4-8 weeks for delivery.

[Update]

The special offer from Staedtler has ended. All 175 kits have been claimed. Winners will be notified by the end of today (June 15, 2011).

Thank you to Staedtler for this very generous offer!

A curiosity from eBay, this box of Koh-I-Noor 3433 red and blue pencils has a surprise – the pencils are marked Accademia Navale.

I’d love to know the whole story. They certainly are an impressive looking stationery staple.

Spotted at a local store – Faber-Castell Grip 2001s (Grips 2001?) in black and white with grey dots.

Nice, but I am disappointed that Faber-Castell hasn’t issued a pencil with a historical theme in their 250th anniversary year.

Take a look at this Pelikan Souverän M101N reissue. It’s already getting a lot of press pre-issue. Faber-Castell has no shortage of classics in their own archives, and could easily create some similar reissues/reinterpretations.