http://www.penciltalk.org A discussion of the art and beauty of the pencil. Since 2005. Wed, 20 Aug 2008 00:38:58 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Though appearing to be a regular hexagonal pencil, the Tajima pencil is aimed at the construction trades - carpentry in particular. It is definitely a different interpretation of this pencil style than seen in North America or Europe. The product website indicates that this pencil is highly humidity-resistant. With a sophisticated red ... http://www.penciltalk.org/2008/08/tajima-carpenters-pencil The Eyeball Pencil Co. makes these extreme miniature pencils. Impractical as they may be, they work. http://www.penciltalk.org/2008/08/miniature-colour-pencils The Dong-a World Best Black Wood pencil is the last in our series on the pencils of Korea. This pencil has a black matte finish and black dyed wood. To my eye, it has a very powerful minimal design. I'm told that this pencil is very hard to find, even in ... http://www.penciltalk.org/2008/08/black-wood-pencil Just a quick picture of some very nice pencils sent to me by blog reader Steve: Apsara Platinum Apsara Triangle Apsara Beauty Apsara Grip Liner Apsara Gold for executives Nataraj 621 (with eraser) Nataraj 621 http://www.penciltalk.org/2008/08/hindustan-pencil-company-pencils Yesterday, I mentioned pencils made from wood scraps. Well, I just found another - the Mitsubishi 2667 EW red and blue pencil. Mitsubishi's product page is here, and the page includes a small diagram that appears to mention the construction method. The pencil has a very nice woodgrain finish. The text ... http://www.penciltalk.org/2008/08/mitsubishi-2667-ew-red-and-blue-pencil My first blogging injury. pencil talk reader Joshua kindly sent me some Mega Brands SRX pencils. Mega Brands has been mentioned here before as the owner of the RoseArt brand, which is a longtime U.S. pencil manufacturer. They now have some pencils in the Mega Brands name, with RoseArt unmentioned. One ... http://www.penciltalk.org/2008/08/pencils-made-from-wood-scraps An unexpected package arrived yesterday with no note and only a partial name on the outside. I'll reply to the postal address directly, but I also wanted to say thank you here. Filled with fantastic looking Nataraj and Apsara pencils, I'll take a wild guess that the package came from a ... http://www.penciltalk.org/2008/08/thank-you This new post at Timberlines discusses the recent acquisition of Lyra by Fila. Here is an Italian language business article on the subject. Several more can be found online. Given that American-made Dixon pencils seem to have disappeared under Fila's ownership, one has to wonder if the German-made Lyra pencil has a ... http://www.penciltalk.org/2008/08/fila-buys-lyra Photo (L-R): Leads in 0.2mm, 0.3mm, 0.4mm, 0.5mm, 0.7mm, 0.9mm, 1.18mm, 1.3mm, 1.4mm, 1.5mm, 2.0mm, 3.15mm, 3.8mm, and 5.6mm diameters Mechanical pencil users have a lot of choice in lead diameters. Between thin leads used for drafting and wide leads used for sketching, most of us should be able to find ... http://www.penciltalk.org/2008/08/mechanical-pencil-lead-diameters A short while ago, I had the chance to acquire some vintage Japanese pencils. I had some qualms before the purchase, as most of the lead grades were in the very hard range used by professional draughtspeople. Very useful for certain tasks, but not as great for someone using pencils ... http://www.penciltalk.org/2008/08/tombow-mono-30-pencil An interesting article in the Salina Journal (Salina, Kansas) discusses some of the back to school supply routines in their community. Mechanical pencils, woodcase pencils, and specific brands may be required depending on the school. Link: Making the list http://www.penciltalk.org/2008/08/back-to-school-choices We mentioned in July that the revived Colleen Pencil Co. had made some significant announcements, including some fascinating new products. The Colleen web store now seems to be online. A dozen teak pencils sell for JPY4200. I didn't see the Hi-Pierce pencil for sale. Unfortunately, it appears sales are to Japan only, ... http://www.penciltalk.org/2008/08/colleen-pencil-co-selling-teak-pencils