Year: 2008

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Mechanical pencil lead diameters

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

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 something suitable.

0.2mm
That’s not a typo! Introduced by Pentel in 1973, the 0.2mm lead is used by the PG2 (or PG2-AD) Pentel pencil. It is extremely thin. Refilling a pencil with this lead is not unlike threading a needle. While I expected this diameter to be essentially unusable, I didn’t find any problems in practice. I’ll give some credit to Pentel here – it seems almost impossible to me that this lead wouldn’t continually break, but it didn’t.

0.3mm
For drafting, this is the thinnest lead made by a variety of manufacturers.

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

0.4mm
Also for drafting, this diameter is a Japanese specialty. Some ranges of drafting pencils are sold with this width in Japan, and without elsewhere.

0.5mm
The thinnest writing and general use diameter, it is also used for drafting.

0.7mm
A larger diameter also for writing and general use, as well as drafting.

0.9mm
Introduced in 1960, this was once the “standard” thin lead pencil diameter.

Today, it is used for drafting and a few general use pencils.

1.18mm
Prior to the 1960s, the standard lead diameter. Still used by Yard-O-Led, and a few others, including some companies that didn’t exist when this diameter was the norm!

1.3mm
Pentel and some other Japanese manufacturers have made light use of the 1.3mm diameter, and Staedtler recently introduced a pencil in the category.

1.4mm
The Faber-Castell Emotion was the only pencil using 1.4mm lead until Lamy changed their ABC from 3.15mm to 1.4mm. Still, an unusual lead.

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

1.5mm
The lead shown is a historical variant. (This example from Faber-Castell.) Fedra and others once made 1.5mm leadholders, but I’ve not been able to find one.

1.6mm
(Not Shown.) One of two in production diameters that I’m aware of that aren’t shown here. Faber-Castell Brazil makes 1.6mm pencils. (Brazil is also where the 1.4mm leads are made.)

2.0mm
The diameter of the lead in a standard woodcase pencil, 2.0mm is the beginning of ‘wide’ rather than ‘thin’ lead in many definitions. The standard for many drafting clutch leadholders made around the world, and carried in ‘big box’ stores, it is possibly the most available lead width apart from 0.5mm and 0.7mm.

2.5mm
(Not Shown.) Koh-I-Noor is the only modern manufacturer of this lead that I am aware of.

3.15mm
The outer realm of drafting lead diameters, this lead is today mainly used for sketching, though some drafting-syle clutch leadholders are still sold. The quite amazing Lamy Scribble introduced many of us to this format.

3.8mm
Used by Pilot, Caran d’Ache, and Koh-I-Noor, this diameter is also inside many art pencils (graphite, colour, and other). Strictly for drawing.

5.6mm
The largest standard lead that will be found in an art supply store, there are 5.45mm and 5.5mm subvariants. Very useful for sketching, pencils in this diameter continue to have a market.

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

There are a number of historic diameters not mentioned, but I think this list is correct at present. Let me know if I’ve missed something!

So, which lead diameter do you use?

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Tombow Mono 30 pencil

Tombow Mono 30 pencil

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 for general writing, drawing, or note taking. Still, the pencils had some strong appeal and I purchased them.

Tombow Mono 30 pencil

The first pencil from this series that I’ll present is the Tombow Mono 30.

Tombow Mono 30 pencil

I can’t find any online or offline information about this pencil. The name and appearance suggest it is related to the famous Mono 100. A predecessor perhaps?

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Back to school choices

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

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Colleen Pencil Co. selling teak pencils

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, via Japan Post COD. I hope Colleen will expand sales to other countries soon.

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Musgrave Test Scoring 100 pencil

Musgrave Test Scoring 100 pencil

We looked at the famous IBM Electrographic pencil a few months ago.

Other pencils whose marks will be read by machine scanners are still made today.

I am happy to be able to present the Musgrave Test Scoring 100 pencil made by the Musgrave Pencil Co. of Shelbyville, Tennessee.

Musgrave Test Scoring 100 pencil

While the finish of the Musgrave HB is delightful and superior, and the Unigraph 1200 is okay if not nice, the Test Scoring 100 pencil’s finish seems very thin and cheap. The pencil’s varnish is silver with black lettering, with a small nod to the pencil’s function – some checkboxes, one filled in.

The pencil’s shape is like the HB’s – a sharp hexagon, with little rounding.

The pencil sharpens easily, revealing that nice cedar grain.

Musgrave Test Scoring 100 pencil

The lead is less crumbly than that of the HB, though nowhere near as dark and rich. For those who would use it as a writing pencil, it does seem rough and scratchy compared to the HB. Presumably the pencil’s main value is in the readability of the marks.

Overall, the pencil is a disappointment.

I’m not sure where (or even if) these pencils are sold at retail. Musgrave’s products are very hard to find, and the company does not exactly welcome enquiries, even commercial ones, in my personal experience. I bought a couple dozen of the Test Scoring 100 from pencilthings.com, before that company halted their international sales.

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Dixon Ticonderoga Laddie and Beginners pencils

Dixon Ticonderoga Laddie and Beginners pencils

Here are a couple of oversize pencils from Dixon – the Laddie and Beginners.

The Beginners in particular seems to make people laugh when they see it. There is definitely something amusing about it. It looks just like a regular Ticonderoga, except that it is round and almost twice the diameter. The Laddie is somewhere between the regular and Beginners pencils.

Where there is a Laddie, there is often a Lassie, but I couldn’t find that brand offered.

Dixon Ticonderoga Laddie and Beginners pencils

The Beginners box says, “The Perfect Oversized Beginner Pencil”, while the Laddie claims to be “The Perfect Intermediate Beginner Pencil.”

The boxes also have a faux seal stating “Teacher Preferred”.

A ring with smaller text states, “Tradition & Quality Since 1795.”

Not in pencils of course – Dixon was making stove polish and crucibles back than. This mention of the company’s year of origin strikes me as just a bit curious.

Dixon Ticonderoga Laddie and Beginners pencils

The boxes indicate the pencils are made in Mexico.

They sharpen easily, but the lead seems not to match that of modern Ticonderogas, and is somewhat scratchier in my testing. That’s too bad, as these pencils won’t be offering the best experience for the children who use them.

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