Dillon's Pencil Picks

[nxn96]

I had a Slight and didn't find it heavy at all. I'm not sure if I've ever found any aluminum writing instrument too heavy. Another option for a 1.18 mp would be a vintage Autopoint. There are usually a good number of them available on ebay and they normally sell for modest prices.

 

You can also get new Autopoints directly from the source. It is interesting that they are located in Janesville, WI. I wonder if they were related to Parker.

 

Dave

Sometime after Gillette acquired Autopoint, they sold the name and product line to a group in Janesville. My understanding is that there were some former Parker people in the group, but I'm not certain. This took place some time before Parker itself was acquired by Gillette, so I doubt there was any connection between the two events.

 

I also collect vintage Autopoints, and have come across the "modern" Autopoints from time to time. Compared to the vintage pencils, the modern ones are much lighter and I would say not as good a build quality; however, the current ones are still pretty decent and a pretty good value for the money. Also, the leads and erasers fit the vintage Autopoints, so it's a good source both new and vintage.

 

Hope this helps.

[Dillo]

 

Forgive me bumping this thread, I hope that's okay, but I just wanted to say I picked up a Kuru Toga Roulette last week and so far I am happy with it, but it's very different - the grip is, as someone else commented 'grippy', which feels odd at first but certainly doesn't allow any slipping! The strangest thing to me is the balance - it's a little longer than the basic version, which at first really threw me off. I'm getting used to it slowly, but I have to say I do wish it was a little shorter. It feels nice and slim and sturdy though, and functions really nicely - I'm very glad I got it, anyway. Thank you so much for the review which prompted me to get this excellent pencil

 

Good to hear!!

 

Dillon

[nitnop]

I also have no issues with my Scribbler .7 lead advance. Nice pencil.

I was given a Kaweco Sport Ice .7 as a holiday gift. Fun little pencil. I believe they make a lead holder as well.

[PaperDarts]

I'm glad this thread got bumped because I found it such an interesting read. I too love mechanical pencils as well as fountain pens, and just bought myself a Lamy Scribble .7 with money my parents gave me for Christmas. The salesperson described it as "short and sweet" and in my opinion it is indeed.

I also have a handful of the old Pentel .05 pencils around. Mine have the "click" advance on the barrel, and a substantial replaceable eraser.

Thanks to all who made this such an interesting thread.

[Dillo]

Hi,

 

About the Kaweco Sport Ice lead holder, I had one, but the mechanism is not very high quality. It uses a four element clutch like the Lamy, but the edges are rough and not well polished. As a result, every time you operate the pencil, the sharp burrs on the edges of the clutch eat away at the plastic at the tip of the pencil.

 

Schmidt pencil mechanisms, in my opinion, although passable, feel quite inadequate once you have used a high quality Japanese mechanical pencil. (Or even the Rotring Tikky. Those are good)

 

Dillon

Edited January 3, 2013 by Dillo

[NedC]

Hi,

 

About the Kaweco Sport Ice lead holder, I had one, but the mechanism is not very high quality. It uses a four element clutch like the Lamy, but the edges are rough and not well polished. As a result, every time you operate the pencil, the sharp burrs on the edges of the clutch eat away at the plastic at the tip of the pencil.

 

Schmidt pencil mechanisms, in my opinion, although passable, feel quite inadequate once you have used a high quality Japanese mechanical pencil. (Or even the Rotring Tikky. Those are good)

 

Dillon

 

Interesting, mine, which I bought last year, has a very smooth 3 jaw clutch mechanism, no visible burrs.

[Dillo]

Hi,

 

Does the rim of the plastic tip of the pencil look chewed away? If it doesn't they might have fixed it or you got lucky and that's a good thing. Mine had four jaws in it.

 

Dillon

[Merrib]

I'll throw in my pencil recommendations:

 

Inexpensive:

Zebra 701 Pencils (has a matching ballpoint)

Pentel p Series Pencils

 

Medium Cost:

Retro 51 Pencils

Cross Pencils

 

That's about where I draw the line I don't like to spend to much for pencils.

[isildur]

Just wanted to mention two very different pencils:

Rotring Core Technor

Very inexpensive (around $9.00 in amazon) and seems nothing like a pencil. But it is surprisingly comfortable to hold, very well balanced and writes great.

 

Waterman hemisphere Pencil. I have a red marble one. Really cool looking.

 

Also Twsbi precision pencils are great too

[Dillo]

Hi,

 

I find that the Zebra 701 pencils are somewhat lacking in fit and finish. It's not as good as the Zebra Color Flight which isn't that great. The Zebra Air-fit is quite a good pencil though. The Pentel P series is a decent pencil, but isn't anything special. I think the Pilot S3 is a better drafting pencil since it is more balanced and more solidly built and has a similar cost.

 

If you are looking for something cheaper, the Japanese-made Papermate pencils are quite good. I'd keep them in my pencil cup, but I don't have any anymore. I think I gave my last one to a friend. They are light, well-balanced, comfortable, and have a good mechanism. I almost forgot about these since I don't have them with me anymore. If I was at the store and had a choice, I might even get these pencils over the Pentel ones.

 

Rotring makes excellent pencils in general.

 

As for Cross, I also like their pencils.

 

Dillon

[NedC]

Hi,

 

Does the rim of the plastic tip of the pencil look chewed away? If it doesn't they might have fixed it or you got lucky and that's a good thing. Mine had four jaws in it.

 

Dillon

No chewed away look, looks like new, but then again I haven't been using it as much since I discovered the Pilot Croquis Very pock friendly, tough, and cheap! I like the triangular grip too.

[Dillo]

Hi,

 

If the Kaweco has indeed changed, I might be interested in revisiting it. I liked the pencil a lot, but I didn't like the roughness of the mechanism they put in it.

 

Dillon