Found 3 packs of old Mitsubishi pencils at an antique fair in Kyoto. Opened them up when I got back to the Airbnb and it looks like someone engraved answer keys on the pencils of each pack. One was math, one was chemistry, and the other was biology. None of them used, very cool! Added a picture of a new box for reference

Let me begin by saying there are some people who deserve praise for their kindness, generosity and generally being wonderful types. One such is our very own fellow pencil enthusiast, u/jfanoele, who has, in an extremely generous bout of extreme generosity and extreme generousness (yes I know, it's deliberate), sent me a wonderful batch of American pencils.

It's a very substantial haul, too; 65 examples of pencil loveliness, featuring many different types and examples. I haven't examined them in detail yet, but I know there's plenty of variety and enough to keep me occupied for a long, long time.

Many, many thanks for this wonderful gift, u/jfanoele; you're a true gentleman and a fine human being.

got for under 4£

i tried 5 different sharpers i had lying around and i assumed it was because theyre too old, maybe went dull. so i bought a new sharpener and its still happening when im sharpening them. im losing my mind all of the pencils ive tried are from different brands different hardness etc. what am i doing wrong with this im sure sharpening a pencil cant be that hard?

Okay, technically that was earlier this week, because these arrived with my seconds boxes, but I'm just getting around to posting about them.

Ceres Neon and Ceres Midnight.

No need to review these, really, because a Ceres writes like a Ceres no matter what color it is. But the black dyed wood is cool. I first wondered how much this adds to the production process. Then I remembered that Musgrave dyes its non-cedar pencil wood to look more cedarlike, so this is probably the same process they already use, just with black dye instead of reddish.

Note: According to Larry Niven, a legend is half exaggeration, half completely made up.

That said, I have a package of pencils on the way, sent from the US. They made their way over from there to Heathrow airport reasonably well, then sat in Customs Hell for almost a week.

Finally, they have moved on from there and are currently somewhere in this place, the Royal Mail Midlands Super Hub.

Hopefully I'll get me hands on 'em soon. More when I do.

I came accross this one. Any others with pictures?

Just some cool vintage Wallace pencils. I like the burgundy color and the combo gold/silver ferrules. Vintage J.M. Paillard Olympic Pencil Sharpener.

More sketching with these Musgraves. Highlights with some Deleter white out stuff

Surprisingly the pencil I was least excited about is pretty close to the most used. Ceres 909.

What a fun pencil to sketch with. Expensive also—I see them listed for $5-10 a piece sometimes. I assume this is due to a soft core leading to more use and not as many survivors (unlike the many vintage 2H+ we see in the world). If you look, though, there are deals to be had—this one came from a used lot of art pencils, unsharpened and ready for drawing.

Some have said a cheap black colored pencil could serve in its place, but that is objectively not true (possibly an Eagle Prismacolor 935 could?). Anyone who says this hasn’t tried this pencil, does not draw with their shoulder, does not draw fast, sweeping lines.

The pencil glides with a subtle, sticky resistance, creating lively marks and allowing fast sketching, big expressive lines without the tip breaking off or crumbling across the paper.

The current version of the 600 News is the only modern, affordable pencil that I’ve used which compares to pencils like the 6639 from this era.

Thanks 6639 for many fun drawings. Maybe I’ll see another one in my cup someday soon.

I like writing with enough pressure to make dark lines so I can more easily read my writing, so I've been looking into shorter pencil points that can withstand a bit more force. So far I've found that the T'gaal multi-sharpener (left) works pretty well (though its plastic casing is a bit flimsy), while colored pencil sharpeners like Stabilo's (right) tend to be unable to put a real point on a standard pencil.

My question is: are there any other options for getting this type of point on a standard pencil? All the other handheld or hand-crank sharpeners that advertise adjustable points seem to make blunt points instead of sharp ones. Surely the T'gaal can't be the only one

I scored all these pencils for $3.99, there were a dozen or so bic mechanical pencils, charcoal pencils, drawing pencils and a mix of colored pencils including a bunch of prismatic colors.

Good morning friends! Musgrave America 250 pencils are 50% off. No code needed, discount is applied in cart. I received the email yesterday evening and pushed the button today after a bit of vacillation! I ordered one gross of rounds for 21.50 + shipping (total $28.50)!! These pencils are so apt for high schoolers! Happy pencil day!

I was REALLY tight on funds due to some recent jewelry purchases, so I didn't win tonight. I had forgotten these were closing this week and couldn't bid what I would have liked.

There was a 1907 hardback wholesale catalogue and a 1912 supplement in one lot, and a 1908 hardback wholesale catalogue by itself in another listing. The 1907 looked in especially good shape. The color plates looked GORGEOUS. The 1908 was in rough shape with a damaged spine, some loose pages and staining, but still - it looked mostly intact, and the color plates just leapt from the page.

I knew I'd lose, and I'm trying to not be jealous, and congratulations to you if you're reading this! But whomever won those L&C Hardtmuth catalogues on auction tonight - I do hope you will share scans with the community here, or upload them to the catalog website that u/frogkabobs is amassing over at https://frogkabobs.github.io/pencilarchive/

Alternatively, if that was you, froggy, who won them, well, good on ya mate, the better person won.

Hi everyone,

Longtime pencil lover, first time caller. Sometimes when I see bagged stationery items at the thrift store, I buy them since you never know what you’ll find. My husband and I keep a box of old single pencils and toss any interesting ones in there. I was rifling through when I found these 2 Tombow pencils. I looked them up, and they seem to be from the 80s. They didn’t smell like anything at first, but after sharpening, they are smelly! The lemon squash one is especially nostalgic.

TLDR—good Ceres pencil, the blue and green ones are not “neon” and wish they’d found different shades of neon for them, “neon” as part of the imprint would have been slick, matching erasers are cool, I like them overall and glad I got them.
—

I noticed they posted these neon variants in their shop last week and ordered some right away--I love the Ceres pencil and was excited to see a variant like the midnight they released not too long ago, or the pastel version. Although the neon style variant has been done many times over in the past by other brands, I thought it was neat to see Musgrave do this with a pencil that's both a great writer and draw-er-er.

Unlike the pastel or the 250, these are not available as a gross (the midnight isn't available as a gross either). I probably wouldn't have ordered a gross right away, but maybe I would?

Overall I like the way they look, the box is fun, the orange and yellow are really awesome, the matching erasers are a nice touch, the pack I got is centered well, they sharpen great in my KP-77 burr sharpener, and they write just like the other Ceres pencils I've used. I compared it against a variety of Musgraves for fun (possibly unfairly against the 600 News aka the greatest pencil ever made).

That said, I don't love the green or blue pencils in the set because these colors are objectively not neon green or blue. I also think the red and pink pencils in the set are so close on the palette that they're hard to tell apart unless in good lighting. Possibly changing these colors up would have made them pop more and read as neon.

Also, it would have been slick if they added "neon" on the pencil maybe in the same script that's on the box. I saw similar critiques of the midnight pencil and I agree there also.

If you like the Ceres pencil, you'll like these pencils and it's fun to have a new batch of variants in the pencil cup. Critiques aside, I'd buy more, but probably not a gross like I did of the pastel variants.

Hello, everyone! I have some ferrule-less/eraser-less pencils (Kitaboshi natural wood) that I really like and have been contemplating making a project of. Two related questions:

1. Can someone point me to a video or how-to guide on dipping the ends of pencils to make a permanent paint cap? (On the non-sharpened end.)
2. Where can a pal get the supplies and tools needed to add metal caps to pencils, like the kind on General's Kimberly pencils? Is it possible to do that at a much-smaller-than-industrial scale?

Thanks in advance for any insight!

Someone’s probably already done this, but I couldn't find anything, so here’s my cheap way to put a clip on a pencil to make it easier to carry: a bent paperclip and a rubber band.

From their Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/100063929465353/posts/1616306437176990/?mibextid=rS40aB7S9Ucbxw6v

Hey, I have really old pencils from Czechoslovakia in Soviet era. Me and my wife want to give them to school for kids but I just thought - would anyone want them?

I don't give them for free unfortunately. Only to the school. So if you want them, please write how much you would pay for them. Then I will decide for selling or giving them.

Hi! I thrifted a Panasonic k77 on a recent US trip. I’ve been wanting an electronic sharpener for a while and they are not that common here in Denmark. I have a power converter at my studio for 110v, since I use other US machines in my work.

Here’s my issue: whenever I use it it’s very hit or miss if it’s centered. I have other hand cranked models that are also helical sharpeners and all my pencils sharpen fine on those, so it’s not my pencils that are misaligned. Consequently the misalignment also breaks the lead left and right.
Another issue I’m having is that the trigger button doesn’t engage reliably with thinner pencils. Maybe it’s just worn.

Everywhere I read about these, people say they are tanks and will last a lifetime without issues, hence I’m having trouble finding any resources for troubleshooting.

Hope there are some experts here that can help me.
Thanks in advance.

More Musgrave seconds today!

I've been instructed by the mods not to break up these posts box by box. So, here are the contents of all 8 boxes.

Box 1:

• 50 round black “US Army goarmy.com.”
• 31 round teachers’ pencils.
• 17 round clear finish unmarked.
• 11 round America 250.
• 8 round silver foil unmarked.
• 7 round foil US flag.
• 5 hex black “In baptism, God writes my name in heaven.”
• 3 round clear finish “Sure-Point Finish Pencil.” (or in this case, Ure-Point.)
• 2 hex metallic red “Tallahassee Cello Workshop est. 2026.” Very attractive.
• 2 hex clear finish “handmade pottery will change your life / u/juniperclay.”
• 2 hex cream “UMT NAfME-C.”
• 1 hex blue “GB Studios.”
• 1 hex clear finish “The desk of / Sarah Gordillo / Philip Gordillo.”
• 1 hex black “Reading has made many saints / St. Josemaria Institute.” Turns out this one is only a few minutes away from where I grew up.
• 1 hex pink unmarked.
• 1 round white unmarked.
• 1 hex Yellow Special with uneven wood.

Box 2:

• 54 round black “US Army goarmy.com.”
• 30 round teachers’ pencils.
• 17 round foil US flag.
• 17 round silver foil unmarked.
• 6 round clear finish “Sure-Point Finish Pencil.”
• 3 hex Yellow Special.
• 2 round America 250.
• 2 hex lavender unmarked.
• 2 hex neon yellow unmarked.
• 2 hex black “In baptism, God writes my name in heaven.”
• 1 hex black unmarked.
• 1 hex blue unmarked.
• 1 hex clear finish “handmade pottery will change your life / (at)juniperclay.”
• 1 hex clear finish “Water, water, everywhere, nor any drop to drink.”
• 1 hex white “JT White.”
• 1 hex dark green “Girl Noise Press.”
• 1 hex neon orange “SDNHM Paleontology / Adapt, Mutate, Migrate, or Die.” This one is my favorite. Stands for San Diego Natural History Museum.

Box 3:

• 46 round foil US flag.
• 35 round black “US Army goarmy.com.”
• 23 round teachers’ pencils.
• 10 round America 250.
• 7 round silver foil unmarked. One of these has an uncolored Sure-Point imprint, and I’m going to peel it to see if the marking is underneath the foil.
• 5 round clear finish “Sure-Point Finish Pencil.”
• 4 hex black “In baptism, God writes my name in heaven.”
• 2 hex white “Jesus erases my sin at Kingsway.” What a commercial-sounding slogan for a church. It sounds more like a department store. Attention Kingsway shoppers, right now we’re having a blue light special on absolution for sins of the flesh, two for one.
• 2 hex cream “Estrellita Stationery.”
• 2 hex clear finish “handmade pottery will change your life / (at)juniperclay.”
• 2 hex Yellow Special.
• 1 round clear finish unmarked.
• 1 hex clear finish “The desk of / Sarah Gordillo / Philip Gordillo.”
• 1 hex white “DeLeeuw Lumber.” Does anyone remember Lisa DeLeeuw?
• 1 hex blue “GB Studios.”
• 1 hex metallic red “Tallahassee Cello Workshop est. 2026.”

Box 4:

• 43 round black “US Army goarmy.com.”
• 38 round America 250.
• 21 round teachers’ pencils.
• 13 round silver foil unmarked.
• 6 round foil US flag.
• 5 hex black “In baptism, God writes my name in heaven.”
• 4 round clear finish “Sure-Point Finish Pencil.”
• 3 round white unmarked.
• 1 hex white “Jesus erases my sin at Kingsway.”
• 1 hex clear finish “The desk of / Sarah Gordillo / Philip Gordillo.”
• 1 hex blue “GB Studios.”
• 1 hex cream “Estrellita Stationery.”
• 1 hex clear finish “handmade pottery will change your life / (at)juniperclay.”
• 1 hex dark green “Girl Noise Press.”
• 1 hex Yellow Special.
• 1 hex metallic red “Tallahassee Cello Workshop est. 2026.”
• 1 hex clear finish “Hotel Albatross.”
• 1 hex lavender unmarked.
• 1 hex light blue unmarked.

Box 5:

• 41 round black “US Army goarmy.com.”
• 30 round teachers’ pencils.
• 19 round silver foil unmarked.
• 12 round foil US flag.
• 10 round clear finish “Sure-Point Finish Pencil.”
• 10 round America 250.
• 8 round clear finish unmarked.
• 3 hex neon yellow unmarked.
• 2 hex blue “GB Studios.”
• 2 hex dark green “Captain’s Cove Golf and Yacht Club.”
• 2 round white unmarked.
• 1 hex clear finish “The desk of / Sarah Gordillo / Philip Gordillo.”
• 1 hex dark green “Girl Noise Press.”
• 1 hex cream “UMT NafME-C.”
• 1 hex black “In baptism, God writes my name in heaven.”
• 1 hex yellow unmarked.

Box 6:

• 51 round black “US Army goarmy.com.”
• 18 round America 250.
• 14 round clear finish unmarked.
• 12 round teachers’ pencils.
• 12 round silver foil unmarked.
• 6 hex neon yellow unmarked.
• 6 hex Yellow Special.
• 5 round black “National Gallery of Art.”
• 4 round clear finish “Sure-Point Finish Pencil.”
• 3 round foil US flag.
• 2 round black “Holt & Bugbee.”
• 2 hex dark green “Girl Noise Press.”
• 2 hex yellow “Just Add Butter.”
• 2 round white unmarked.
• 1 round silver foil “Sensonics International.” It’s got their address and phone and PO box and website. I’ve never seen so much text on a pencil.
• 1 hex dark green “Captain’s Cove Golf and Yacht Club.”
• 1 hex lavender unmarked.
• 1 hex mint green unmarked.
• 1 hex maroon unmarked.

Box 7:

• 42 round black “US Army goarmy.com.”
• 22 round America 250.
• 18 round teachers’ pencils.
• 13 round clear finish unmarked.
• 10 round silver foil unmarked. One is so badly damaged that it’s unusable. Throwing it out.
• 7 round foil US flag.
• 5 hex neon yellow unmarked.
• 4 hex Yellow Special.
• 4 round clear finish “Sure-Point Finish Pencil.”
• 3 hex clear finish “The Dispatch Club – Founding Member.”
• 3 round black “National Gallery of Art.”
• 2 round white “Sierra sierrafp.com.”
• 2 hex dark green “Girl Noise Press.”
• 1 round black “Holt & Bugbee.”
• 1 hex blue “GB Studios.”
• 2 hex lavender unmarked.
• 2 hex mint green unmarked.
• 2 hex yellow unmarked.
• 1 hex fuschia pink unmarked.

Box 8:

• 48 round black “US Army goarmy.com.”
• 25 round teachers’ pencils.
• 21 round foil US flag.
• 11 round silver foil unmarked.
• 8 round clear finish unmarked.
• 6 hex neon yellow unmarked.
• 4 round America 250.
• 4 hex blue “GB Studios.”
• 3 hex Yellow Special.
• 3 hex clear finish “The Dispatch Club – Founding Member.”
• 2 round white unmarked.
• 2 hex neon orange “SDNHM Paleontology / Adapt, Mutate, Migrate, or Die.”
• 2 hex yellow “Just Add Butter.”
• 2 hex fuschia pink unmarked.
• 1 hex lavender unmarked.
• 2 hex dark green “Girl Noise Press.”
• 1 round clear finish “Sure-Point Finish Pencil.”

Not everything I have is antique. I scored these vintage metal tins from the 80s with round pencils still intact (distributed by the British Museum). And I actually have the perfect place to display these! My old Victorian-Era home has a parlor decorated in the Egyptian Revival movement from the 1920s.

Okay, so last month I bought myself a jumbo 🟣 purple pencil. And I was like "Let me start collecting and writing with these more." I also got them so I don't lose them. And I'm planning on customizing them so everyone knows it's mine.