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Ruperto Mendiones
10-26-2012, 11:49 AM
All of the pencils I buy and the freebie ones I encounter are made of mdf. They have no mechanical strength. They break in my pocket. In sharpeners they shred.

Has anyone found a reliable source of good, hardwood pencils? Are there any sharpeners that work well on these mdf clones of a real pencil?

Ruperto

Mel Fulks
10-26-2012, 12:47 PM
Seems kind of strange that people think we will keep a pencil with their company name on it ,when it can't be used to write. The only reasonably priced pencil that I can sharpen and make work is the Mirado Black Warrior.

Tony Joyce
10-26-2012, 12:52 PM
Real wood pencils
http://www.dickblick.com/products/dixon-ticonderoga-pencils/#photos

Sharpening
http://www.artisanalpencilsharpening.com/

I'm afraid I don't take my pencils quite as seriously as some, I use a Pentil-P209 mechanical pencil.

Tony

Larry Edgerton
10-26-2012, 6:45 PM
I buy Ticonderoga #2's at Office max by the case. Still Cedar, lead is centered in the pencil, and they don't break like the ones you are speaking of.

For a sharpener I found that the Exacto sharpener at the same store is faster and more accurate than any elactric that I have ever owned.

Larry

Jim Koepke
10-26-2012, 10:41 PM
I bought some from Quill.com recently. The reason was they were the only place with #1 lead in stock.

I bought 5 dozen, the shipping was free. They are cedar and so far seem to hold up quite well.

I wonder why they would try making them out of manufactured wood, it seems like a waste to make something that doesn't work.

jtk

Bruce Page
10-26-2012, 10:53 PM
MDF pencils!?!? Sheesh, I never even heard of them!
I've been using mechanical pencils for as long as I can remember.

Matt Meiser
10-26-2012, 11:06 PM
Office Max and Staples have them.

Mel Fulks
10-26-2012, 11:22 PM
They also make plastic ones. I don't think it has anything to do with saving wood. Probably cheaper machines.

John Coloccia
10-26-2012, 11:45 PM
Lee Valley pencils are quite nice. Pencils I pick up at Dick Blick are nice. Staples and Office Max pencils are absolute junk. Good pencils cost a few cents more than junk pencils. I now use mechanical pencils for most things. I like my Staedtler lead holder when I need it SHARP (and I have their sharpener). I have a .03" for drafting. My .07"s for general marking. .05" for most precision work. Like everything else, pencil quality has gone to hell. Spend a few extra bucks and get real pencils from a reliable supplier. Office stores are NOT a reliable supplier IMHO and will just give you junky, off center, unsupported, and frustrating leads.

edit: I can't even tell you how embarrassed I am to have to make a post suggesting that you have to be careful buying a stupid pencil. Seriously, does EVERYTHING have to become so unreliable and cheap? How difficult could it possibly be to make a decent pencil, anyway?

Peter Kelly
10-27-2012, 8:11 AM
Sharpening
http://www.artisanalpencilsharpening.com/His book on the subject is pretty hilarious.

Curt Harms
10-28-2012, 8:28 AM
MDF pencils!?!? Sheesh, I never even heard of them! I've been using mechanical pencils for as long as I can remember. Me too. .9mm leads seem pretty durable on reasonably smooth wood and the width of the line doesn't change. Don't the Incra marking rules take .5 mm pencils?

Ron Natalie
10-28-2012, 2:32 PM
Hardwood? The classic wood for pencils is Western Red Cedar.

Mel Fulks
10-28-2012, 2:37 PM
You guys are really organized if you can keep up with mechanical pencils. That would be an expensive habit for me .Usually lose or break every one I get the first day. The inferior pencils, files, etc proves "all the worlds a stage" much of what we buy comes from the prop room.

John Coloccia
10-28-2012, 4:23 PM
You guys are really organized if you can keep up with mechanical pencils. That would be an expensive habit for me .Usually lose or break every one I get the first day. The inferior pencils, files, etc proves "all the worlds a stage" much of what we buy comes from the prop room.

For just rough and tumble use, I use regular pencils or dirt cheap, practically disposable mechanicals (which are far better than cheap wooden pencils). My wooden pencils, though, are all brand name and high quality. They cost a few cents more, but I have several dozen Office Depot pencils that are useless and a far bigger waste of money than the extra cost I spent on good pencils that are really well made and usable right up to the eraser.

Kevin Groenke
10-28-2012, 7:21 PM
I prefer a lead HOLDER with an aluminum body like a Koh I Noor or FixPencil. With this sort of "instrument", you can point the lead with a sharpener, flatten the lead on sandpaper or just use the round lead for rougher materials or coarser markings.

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31QxD%2BydIxL._SL500_.jpg 244306


Hardwood? The classic wood for pencils is Western Red Cedar.

Actually, the classic wood for pencils is Incense Cedar, a relative to Western Red Cedar but smaller trees with a finer grain. Typically found in dryer environments than Western Red with a more southern range from Central Oregon all the way down to the Baja Peninsula.

Mel Fulks
10-28-2012, 7:35 PM
Never heard of that before ,going to look at them .Thanks

Larry Edgerton
10-28-2012, 8:02 PM
Mechanical pencils make my ear hurt.

Larry

Matt Meiser
10-28-2012, 8:33 PM
Then stop poking them in there! :D

Keith Westfall
10-28-2012, 8:37 PM
In where? Sorry, can't hear you... :o