Comments for pencil talk

Comment on General’s Supreme 550 pencil by George Faber

George Faber — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 15:27:48 +0000

I think that the Supreme 550 and the Semi-Hex are meant to be basic school or office pencils, economically priced, so not as much care is expended on their construction as on more expensive pencils.But I do agree that with just a little more attention to detail, General could make these at least as consistent as Ticonderogas without incurring significant extra costs. And yes, the rare Semi-Hex Number 1 has a great smooth lead. (For some reason, Pencils.com only sells the Number 2 version.) The only difference between the Supreme and the Semi-Hex is that the Supreme states to be “carbo-welded,” which at some point might have been the motto for all the General line, the same way that “woodclinched” worked for E. Faber. I do not think that the lead differs at all between these pencils, and they feel exactly the same. General should look to Musgrave’s, the only other remaining US manufacturer of pencils: their standard HB pencil is a thing of perfect beauty, albeit very hard to locate and purchase. I’ve never encountered a defective Musgrave HB. But when all is said: let’s not knock General’s too much. Their products are made in the USA, and even with some of the lazy workmanship that one finds in these pencils every now and then, they are still fine writers. Let’s rather urge them to raise, or return to, standards.I wonder if General’s is fully automated or if they still use hand-labor, in which case the lack of consistency in fit and finish might be explained.

Comment on Mitsubishi Uni M-552 drafting pencils by Andreea

Andreea — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 08:12:30 +0000

These are absolutely fabulous… I’ve owned them for 7 years now (it’s a miracle I didn’t loose them), heavily used (I’m an architecture student) and still the writing on them is still visible. They are the best mechanical pencils I have ever owned, and I have tried about 10 other brands.. and they all jam or brake after 1week/1month.

Where could I possibly buy the rest of the collection.. ?I only own the 0,3 0,5 and 0,7 (red yellow and blue) ones.

Comment on General Pencil Co. and the Kimberly pencil by Kevin

Kevin — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 04:02:48 +0000

My recent purchase Kimberly does have a barcode which appears to be heat stamped on the obverse, right next to the “USA” stamping. Why stamp a cheap looking non removeable barcode on the front of the pencil next to the beautiful gold printed lettering, when there are 5 more non obtrusive sides to choose from – weird!!

Comment on General’s Supreme 550 pencil by Manning

Manning — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 22:47:10 +0000

I was finally able to obtain some of these Supreme 550′s, and frankly, I cannot tell how they are different in any way from the Semi-Hex No. 2. I think they are the same pencils re-branded. The stripes on the ferules are identical, and the lead feels the same when writing. The barrels seem to be of equal thickness. I like the leads, and even the occasional grittiness. The Semi-Hex No. 1, however, is far smoother and darker. These are good pencils in terms of graphite, but I wish that General’s would go just a little further in quality control: on both the Supremes and the Semi-Hexes, the paint jobs are flaking and poor, the bands around the ferrules applied sloppily, and the wood where the ferrules meet the barrels chipped and jagged. Actually, they seem less well-constructed than the current Mexican-made Ticonderogas. American-made is one of the strengths of General’s, but they need to live up to the quality that that promises.

Comment on Bic Criterium 2603 2.0mm leadholder by TheHOINK

TheHOINK — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 21:55:01 +0000

Aloha’Auinala….
If anyone should find this Post and is still interested in buying or trading some, let me know.
I am an illustrator and leadholder collector myself (with a small collection), and it’s easy for me to get to BIC 2603 (Aluminium) and 2613 (Plastic) Models.
Anyhow, the Design of the 2603 has changed since last year, it’s not as classical to me no more, but it’s in some ways improved, too.
Aluminium and Plastic Barrel now are absolutely identical, the grip section is longer, the width a bit larger, the clip is absolutely fixed in position and can not slide any more and the push button / lead sharpener sits more tight now.
Greetings from Old Europe.
TheHOINK

Comment on Mitsubishi announces limited edition set of 240 colour pencils by shelly

shelly — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 20:48:07 +0000

I’m a UK resident where can I buy the Mitsubishi Coloured Pencils?

Regards
Shelly

Comment on Pencil displays – showcasing your pencils by Lregenold

Lregenold — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 12:20:04 +0000

Have you figured a way to display pencils similar to the aurora case? I really want to make one, since you can’t buy them anymore!

Comment on Nataraj 621 Writing Pencils by glenn parungao

glenn parungao — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 10:27:31 +0000

hi these is glenn from philippines. were i can buy nataraj product here in manila?

Comment on General’s Supreme 550 pencil by Bill

Bill — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 02:30:31 +0000

Sasha Nealand: Try calling General direct @ 650-369-7169 or 800-537-0734. They sell the Supreme 550 in minimum quantities of 144. I bought 6 dozen of their Semi-Hex pencils and they said they would be “easy on me” for shipping costs. Just tell them you are supporting them and they are very willing to work with you. They sent me a free sample of 5 of their writing pencils recently.

Comment on General’s Cedar Pointe 333 pencil by Bill

Bill — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 02:17:27 +0000

I just purchased 3 dozen General Semi-Hex No, 1 and 3 dozen no. 2 Semi-Hex directly from General. I spoke with Ingrid about their Supreme pencil which they had sent to me earlier in a set of samples. I liked the Supreme but they are supposedly only available in college bookstores, or I could buy a gross directly from General. Alas, that won’t be happening.

Comment on Staedtler pencil holder 900 25. by sk

sk — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:47:53 +0000

how does the mechanism work is it a screw down mechanism or a push button clutch?

Comment on Uni Style Fit multipencil by Nilufern

Nilufern — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 14:25:10 +0000

What a great idea, I think it is really useful for doing diagrams and engineering. Trust me having your pens rolling around the place or an expensive pen being taken is not great. Do you know of any other pens of this sort as I am in the process of introducing good multipens to medics? Any help on the subject would be met with eternal gratitude as well as where to buy them online etc?

Please help.