“I have always been a pencil…”
Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec
Yes, I am also a pencil nerd. It is a subtype of pen addiction. Recently, I saw a box of these sitting in a London stationery shop. Nobody seemed to recognise what they were. Wood case pencils date back to the 1500s, but these were personal, homemade, single pieces used by tradespeople and the like. Commercial manufacturing of wooden pencils, and their widespread use, started in the 1880s. The key to mass production was the hexagonal wood cases, that allowed precise mechanised handling. One of the leaders in the field was the Japanese company Mitsubishi. Their model 9800 has been in continuous production for over a hundred years. Mature graphite refers to a binding process that makes writing with the core smoother and more uniform. They are easier to sharpen and less prone to breakage. The harder core means a lighter mark, so for 9800s 2B is the standard, rather than the more traditional HB. #alwayschecktheshelvescarefully #letsmakelemonade
Pen Paint and Scalpel 