Thick ("jumbo") Pencil

[adim]

Hi all!

 

I generally prefer thicker writing instruments and I discovered that there are some so-called "jumbo" pencils (I mean wooden, graphite pencils, not mechanical). But I could only find two models, one made by FC and one by GvFC (marketed as "Magnum").

 

Do you know any other models or brands that offer more variety and thicker pencils?

 

I know I can get MPs, but I insist on wooden pencils, if you happen to know any.

 

And side question: Is there any reason why most pencils are about the same size? Is there a historical reason, a legal patent or something?

 

Thank you for your attention!

 

 

[sciumbasci]

Bic has a nice selection of such pencils, very jumbo like - it'll fit in a jumbo pencil sharpener only, the one with the big bore - and forces you to have a triangular grip. Only available in HB. They come in different colours, I had red.

These things also tend to last a LOT, but the graphite core is thick, so if you're a fan of thin lines this one won't do.

 

[adim]

Thanks, I didn't know about those, will check them out.

 

I was expecting a big core, of course, and I don't mind that. What I do mind is the hardness. I find myself writing most comfortably with 2B or even 4B...

[D B Holtz]

The only jumbo pencil I have used is the Caran d'Ache Blackwood, and I like it a lot but it is an HB. My favorite pencil supplier is CW Pencils, and they have a variety of jumbos on their website:

 

https://cwpencils.com/collections/jumbo-pencil

 

You probably have suppliers closer to you, but this may give you some ideas on what else is available.

 

DB

[ISW_Kaputnik]

There is the Ticonderoga Laddie, which is a pretty ordinary #2 pencil, but noticeably thicker that most. I've even seen them in the school supplies sections of supermarkets. I'm not sure if it's as thick as the other pencils you linked, but it's certainly thick enough that it doesn't fit in all my pencil sharpeners.

 

I just have a couple lying around and don't use them much, but they are decent enough everyday pencils.

Edited May 5, 2020 by ISW_Kaputnik

[Zookie]

Check out the Musgrave pencil web site, they have several listed. You can also take a look at BrandNamePencil.com. It's a great site, and if I remember correctly, there are several listed there as well.

Good luck in your search!

Doug

[adim]

Thank you all for the replies and the helpful resources!

 

Indeed, I'm mainly looking for shops in Europe, but I had a look at cwpencils a couple of days ago as well.

 

After a more careful search, I could also find:

• Fabriano Matita Small Ergonomic Pencil, which comes with a 3B lead: https://www.cultpens.com/i/q/FB56089/fabriano-matita-small-ergonomic-pencil
• Staedtler Noris Triplus Jumbo Learners Pencil, which comes with an HB lear: https://www.cultpens.com/i/q/SD19155/staedtler-noris-triplus-jumbo-learners-pencil

That CdA Blackwood looks very tempting, as the rest of the lineup by CdA, but since I usually write with a fountain pen, I much prefer a softer lead in pencils, because otherwise I tend to grip too firmly and push too hard. It may well be my fault, though...

[flatline]

You said you don't want mechanical pencils, but there are some large 2mm lead holders that might be interesting to you:

Ohto wooden mechanical pencils lead holder

Kaweco Special AL lead holder

 

I'm sure there are others, these just happen to be the ones I found quickly on jetpens.

 

The nice thing about a 2mm lead holder is that you can choose your lead holder independently of the lead you use. Any of these would work great with whatever 2B or 4B or whatever lead you decide you want to use.

 

As to your question about why pencils are as narrow as they are...the incense cedar pencil slats are a standard size and they want to maximize the number of pencils they get per slat without being so narrow that the pencil is uncomfortable to hold or too easily snapped.

 

--flatline

[chravagni]

There are also the carpenter pencils, which are longer and thicker, have rectangular grip (flat and broad) and also the lead is flat. Easy to find in a variety of shops, from low quality to high.

[adim]

You said you don't want mechanical pencils, but there are some large 2mm lead holders that might be interesting to you:

Ohto wooden mechanical pencils lead holder

Kaweco Special AL lead holder

 

I'm sure there are others, these just happen to be the ones I found quickly on jetpens.

 

The nice thing about a 2mm lead holder is that you can choose your lead holder independently of the lead you use. Any of these would work great with whatever 2B or 4B or whatever lead you decide you want to use.

 

As to your question about why pencils are as narrow as they are...the incense cedar pencil slats are a standard size and they want to maximize the number of pencils they get per slat without being so narrow that the pencil is uncomfortable to hold or too easily snapped.

 

--flatline

 

Thank you, I know there are even 5 or 5.6mm lead mechanical pencils and I even bought a Rotring Rapid Pro with a 2mm lead which I kinda like, but I still much prefer the humble FC Grip Jumbo that I have. To be honest, I see myself buying the GvFC Perfect Pencil Magnum one day...

 

About the narrow size: thank you, I didn't know that but was suspecting some kind of standard.

 

There are also the carpenter pencils, which are longer and thicker, have rectangular grip (flat and broad) and also the lead is flat. Easy to find in a variety of shops, from low quality to high.

Yes, I am aware of those. My great-grandfather was a carpenter for almost 80 years and I know about the carpenter pencils. But I don't find them particularly comfortable. Nevertheless, they could be an option. At least for the emotional value.

[flatline]

I'm working from memory, so take this with a grain of salt.

 

The companies that process the incense cedar into slats are often not the same companies the produce pencils, so if a pencil maker wants to produce a thicker pencil, they need make arrangements to have thicker slats produced. Thicker slats mean fewer slats for the same amount of input wood, so the cost per slat goes up. If the pencil producer thinks they can make a profit even though the cost per pencil is higher, then it makes sense to do this, but this explains why a 2-pack of thicker pencils for pre-schoolers can cost as much as a dozen regular pencils.

 

As folks get older and their fingers less dexterous, it seems like there would be demand for nice, thicker pencils. But I don't see many pencils that attempt to address that market.

 

Some Japanese pencils like the Tombow Mono and Mitsubishi Hi-Uni are thicker than typical pencils by 1-2mm. Is that enough to meet your needs?

[sciumbasci]

Another option may be the Conté pastel pencils. Not proper pencils, not jumbo as the Bic's. Still bigger than standard pencils (at least to me eyes, I saw some displayed in a shop recently but didn't pay much attention) and have different shades of black.

[flatline]

To be honest, I see myself buying the GvFC Perfect Pencil Magnum one day...

 

I bought the "perfect pencil 9000" several years ago. I like the extender and the sharpener in it, but I can't stand the grippy lead that Faber-Castell uses in their pencils. I gave the pencil away and used the extender with a Staedtler Prismacolor pencil instead.

[adim]

I'm working from memory, so take this with a grain of salt.

 

The companies that process the incense cedar into slats are often not the same companies the produce pencils, so if a pencil maker wants to produce a thicker pencil, they need make arrangements to have thicker slats produced. Thicker slats mean fewer slats for the same amount of input wood, so the cost per slat goes up. If the pencil producer thinks they can make a profit even though the cost per pencil is higher, then it makes sense to do this, but this explains why a 2-pack of thicker pencils for pre-schoolers can cost as much as a dozen regular pencils.

 

As folks get older and their fingers less dexterous, it seems like there would be demand for nice, thicker pencils. But I don't see many pencils that attempt to address that market.

 

Some Japanese pencils like the Tombow Mono and Mitsubishi Hi-Uni are thicker than typical pencils by 1-2mm. Is that enough to meet your needs?

 

Thank you for the details on the wood. I understand.

 

It's likely that there are not enough users I reckon given the scarcity of the thicker pens, I would say... I don't think 1mm would be enough to be honest, but I haven't tested enough pencils. Currently, I have about a dozen of regular Staedtler pencils and a couple of FC Grip Jumbo. I haven't measured them, but if I'm to take GvFC's marketing, I think the regular size is around 7mm and their Magnum is 10mm, so the difference could be more sensible:

 

 

Another option may be the Conté pastel pencils. Not proper pencils, not jumbo as the Bic's. Still bigger than standard pencils (at least to me eyes, I saw some displayed in a shop recently but didn't pay much attention) and have different shades of black.

 

Thank you. I didn't know those, will check them out.

 

 

I bought the "perfect pencil 9000" several years ago. I like the extender and the sharpener in it, but I can't stand the grippy lead that Faber-Castell uses in their pencils. I gave the pencil away and used the extender with a Staedtler Prismacolor pencil instead.

Could you explain a bit what you mean by "grippy lead" please?

 

I am in a period of experiments, to be honest. I've been using fountain pens for years and recently considered to try pencils for quick notes or research stuff when I have to pause and read or think between writing so the ink tends to get dry or I'm too lazy to cap and uncap the pens every time. So I bought the whole range of pencils from B to 6B, as well as shapes (mechanical, regular, jumbo [i could only find the triangular grip by FC here in a jumbo size]). So if it turns out this method works for me and I find myself using pencils often enough, I will really consider a Perfect Pencil Magnum. It seems to fit my bill, but I'm a bit concerned about its future, more so that it's not a standard size so the extender cannot be used with other pencils I reckon.

[flatline]

 

Could you explain a bit what you mean by "grippy lead" please?

Hmmm....I can try...smooth vs grippy is a description of how the lead feels against the paper. Smooth lead feels like it slides across the paper without any resistance, similar to a gel pen. Grippy lead feels more like a ballpoint pen where it takes a bit of pressure to make the lead move across the paper. In my limited experience, the difference is most pronounced between HB and 2B lead hardnesses. I can't feel much of a difference with the really hard or really soft leads.

 

Some people like smooth, some people like grippy, some people never notice the difference. If you're curious, get some smooth pencils and some grippy pencils of the same hardness, and some different kinds of paper (and maybe some 3x5 cards) to experiment with.

 

Examples of "smooth" pencil:

Steadtler Prismacolor

Uni Mitsubishi Hi-Uni

General's Kimberly

Palamino Orange

 

Examples of "grippy" pencil:

Koh-i-Nor Toison d'Or

Faber-Castell 9000

 

Pencils that seem to be somewhere in between:

Tombow Mono

Dixon Ticonderoga

Most budget school pencils in the back-to-school isle

 

Personally, I can't stand grippy leads. It feels like the pencil is actively fighting me as I write with it. I have noticed that grippy lead seems more resistant to smudging (but maybe that's because I press harder with it?) and I have to sharpen a grippy lead less often. But some very popular and relatively expensive art pencils are grippy, so maybe it has properties that artists like. I'm not an artist, so I have no idea.

[adim]

Hmmm....I can try...smooth vs grippy is a description of how the lead feels against the paper. Smooth lead feels like it slides across the paper without any resistance, similar to a gel pen. Grippy lead feels more like a ballpoint pen where it takes a bit of pressure to make the lead move across the paper. In my limited experience, the difference is most pronounced between HB and 2B lead hardnesses. I can't feel much of a difference with the really hard or really soft leads.

 

Some people like smooth, some people like grippy, some people never notice the difference. If you're curious, get some smooth pencils and some grippy pencils of the same hardness, and some different kinds of paper (and maybe some 3x5 cards) to experiment with.

 

Examples of "smooth" pencil:

Steadtler Prismacolor

Uni Mitsubishi Hi-Uni

General's Kimberly

Palamino Orange

 

Examples of "grippy" pencil:

Koh-i-Nor Toison d'Or

Faber-Castell 9000

 

Pencils that seem to be somewhere in between:

Tombow Mono

Dixon Ticonderoga

Most budget school pencils in the back-to-school isle

 

Personally, I can't stand grippy leads. It feels like the pencil is actively fighting me as I write with it. I have noticed that grippy lead seems more resistant to smudging (but maybe that's because I press harder with it?) and I have to sharpen a grippy lead less often. But some very popular and relatively expensive art pencils are grippy, so maybe it has properties that artists like. I'm not an artist, so I have no idea.

I understand, thank you for the details! I think I know the feeling, it is as if the lead has some impurities, writes as a scratchy nib. I didn't know the term, but I know the feeling.

 

But as I prefer 2B or even 4B leads, I haven't found that issue. I do remember the feeling from some HB pencils though.

 

Nevertheless, the Perfect Pencil Magnum has a 4B lead so this should be an extra plus for it.

[dan in montreal]

Check out the Musgrave pencil web site, they have several listed. You can also take a look at BrandNamePencil.com. It's a great site, and if I remember correctly, there are several listed there as well.

Good luck in your search!

Doug

Musgrave have a few different jumbo models. I like the MyPal 2020.

There was the Eberhard Faber Excel 340, not sure if it's still made.

 

You can also check out this shop. They also carry some bigger pencils. https://pencils.com/collections/pencils/jumbo

[adim]

Musgrave have a few different jumbo models. I like the MyPal 2020.

There was the Eberhard Faber Excel 340, not sure if it's still made.

 

You can also check out this shop. They also carry some bigger pencils. https://pencils.com/collections/pencils/jumbo

Thank you, I'm especially hopeful for the Koh-i-Noor Triograph to be found in Europe.

[flatline]

Just realized in my previous post, I said "Staedtler Prismacolor" as a smooth lead pencil. That should have been "Staedtler Lumograph". I'll correct the post.

 

Edit: Hmm...can't edit the previous post. That's annoying....

Edited May 11, 2020 by flatline

[adim]

Just realized in my previous post, I said "Staedtler Prismacolor" as a smooth lead pencil. That should have been "Staedtler Lumograph". I'll correct the post.

 

Edit: Hmm...can't edit the previous post. That's annoying....

As it happens, I just ordered a batch of Staedtler Lumographs, with B, 2B, 4B and 6B hardness. I like the feel of the lead, I prefer the 4B of all, but the pencils are the standard thickness, so a bit too thin for me. But nevertheless, I mostly ordered to test the various lead grades, as I've previously written only with HB and B.