Category: pencil

Guide to Small Handheld Pencil Sharpeners

18 February 2016 By ian

There are dozens of different sharpeners, in all shapes, sizes, materials and colours. Here I’m looking at small one-step handheld sharpeners. One-step just means you can get a finished point in one go. Some sharpeners are two-step: you sharpen the wood first and then the graphite, to give a long point. Handheld sharpeners are sharpeners […]

Musgrave Test Scoring 100 Wooden Pencil Review

28 January 2016 By ian

The Musgrave Test Scoring 100 is a budget wooden pencil in a distinctive silver finish. It’s designed for filling in those little boxes you get in multiple choice tests, with extra-reflective graphite meant to be picked up more reliably by scanners. Price: $0.70 Lead grade options: just this – feels like 2B or so Barrel […]

Guide to Pencils for Drawing

14 January 2016 By ian

What makes a pencil good for drawing? While it’s possible to produce absolutely beautiful art with just a single pencil, for the purposes of this guide we’ll be looking only at pencils that are available, as a minimum, in a range of grades from at least HB to 6B. Erasers aren’t necessary as you’ll almost […]

General’s Calendar Pencil Review

7 January 2016 By ian

The General’s Cedar Pointe is one of my favourite pencils so I was looking forward to trying another one of their range, the Calendar pencil. Price: $0.70 Lead grade options: No. 2 (HB, but more like 2H in this pencil) Barrel colours: yellow Barrel shape: hexagonal Eraser?: no This is a simple pencil. There are […]

OHTO Promecha 1000P Mechanical Pencil Review

4 January 2016 By ian

OHTO make one of the best pens ever but their other products can be a bit hit and miss. The Promecha range of mechanical pencils has a good reputation so I was interested in giving this Promecha 1000P model a try. Price: $16.50 (USA) £11 (UK) Lead size options: 0.3mm, 0.5mm. 0.7mm, 0.9mm Barrel options: […]