Rhodia Pencils

[sentraser165]

Hey all,

 

I was doing some perusing of the Rhodia products that are out, and I saw that they make pencils (and EXPENSIVE ones to boot). Has anyone tried these? Are they worth the money? If so (or if not) why? Thank you very much.

 

Steve

[zenhikester]

Sometimes a pencil is a pencil is a pencil....know what I mean. Other than the fact that the wood is dyed black, has a triangular shape and that nifty little logo.....well it's pencil, an expensive one to boot. If you are a die-hard Rhodia fan, get one just to say you have one.

[all my hues]

That's interesting, I was wondering the same thing. I actually procured a Rhodia pencil recently, and will be reviewing it soon. I'll send you a PM, if you want, when I finish the review

[Breck]

They're the worst pencils I've ever used, frankly. The graphite is scratchy, chalky and not dark at all; the finish coating on the wood traps graphite particles, transferring them to your fingers; the dyed wood crumbles as it sharpens, and is much too soft for this application; and (this one is purely personal) the triangular cross section was terribly uncomfortable for my grip.

 

The eraser is a joke, too. It doesn't erase - instead it crumbles and shreds black goo all over the page, smearing graphite behind it.

 

In my experience (and I've tried LOTS of woodcase pencils), there has never been greater disparity between any pencil's cost and quality.

 

Just rotten.

 

Too bad, too. I really like Rhodia papers and basically everything else from the Exacompta family that I've ever tried. This is the only dud in their line-up.

 

[burmeseboyz]

They're the worst pencils I've ever used, frankly. The graphite is scratchy, chalky and not dark at all; the finish coating on the wood traps graphite particles, transferring them to your fingers; the dyed wood crumbles as it sharpens, and is much too soft for this application; and (this one is purely personal) the triangular cross section was terribly uncomfortable for my grip.

 

I think Murderface has it right on. I wouldn't say that it's the worst pencil, but the price/performance ratio is way off. For me the graphite is the most important part of the pencil and it's too chalky and crumbles a bit too much. My other pencils do a much better job. I do like the color of the pencil finish, but I won't stock up on them though.

 

 

A pencil is just a pencil as much as a pen is just a pen. And there are differences between them as there's a difference between a Sheaffer PFM and a Bic ballpoint.

[Mrsal]

for a simple wood case pencil, i dont think it worth the money that they want, but i would like to try them just for he fun of it

[Mrsal]

for a simple wood case pencil, i dont think it worth the money that they want, but i would like to try them just for he fun of it

[Philip1209]

I don't like the pencils either. The triangular body shape doesn't work well for my stubby fingers- I can't get a secure grip on the pencil. It just doesn't have that large of an effective diameter.

[all my hues]

Wow, looks like they really suck (for the price, anyway)! (sorry for the blunt language, but sometimes ya gotta call a spade a spade, y'know?)

 

I thought they were so cool looking (the black wood was very appealing to me -- colored wood makes me instantly intrigued), but apparently they aren't anything special to sneeze at. I did a few scribbles of the pencils and sadly it's not nearly as dark as I would like Alas.

[burmeseboyz]

They perform similar to the California Republic Golden Bear pencils, which are so much cheaper. For the same price, you can get one of the higher end Japanese pencils with waxy smooth and dark leads. But I won't deny that they look good. I love that shade of orange.

[sentraser165]

You all are confirming what I had suspected: ripoff! Thank you.

[Breck]

They perform similar to the California Republic Golden Bear pencils, which are so much cheaper. For the same price, you can get one of the higher end Japanese pencils with waxy smooth and dark leads. But I won't deny that they look good. I love that shade of orange.

 

I think the Golden Bear is a considerably better pencil, even if it is the weak point in the California Republic line, IMHO. The wood of the triangular GB is about the same softness as that of the Rhodia, the eraser is similarly sub-optimal, but at least the GB has good lead.

 

+1 on high-end Japanese woodcase pencils. I just sharpened up a new Tombow Mono 100 yesterday afternoon. Heaven.

[Pippin60]

I personally like Dixon, my wife likes the darkness of the lead in Rhodia's but we only have a few of those. I have to admit I like the triangular shape of the Rhodia and would love to find a replacement.

[burmeseboyz]

+1 on high-end Japanese woodcase pencils. I just sharpened up a new Tombow Mono 100 yesterday afternoon. Heaven.

 

Yah I know what you mean. I have several boxes of the Tombow Mono 100's squirreled away in case they stop producing them.

[Pippin60]

They perform similar to the California Republic Golden Bear pencils, which are so much cheaper. For the same price, you can get one of the higher end Japanese pencils with waxy smooth and dark leads. But I won't deny that they look good. I love that shade of orange.

 

I think the Golden Bear is a considerably better pencil, even if it is the weak point in the California Republic line, IMHO. The wood of the triangular GB is about the same softness as that of the Rhodia, the eraser is similarly sub-optimal, but at least the GB has good lead.

 

+1 on high-end Japanese woodcase pencils. I just sharpened up a new Tombow Mono 100 yesterday afternoon. Heaven.

 

Does anyone know of a good triangular pencil? That the reason I like the Rhodia's

 

[NateB]

Does anyone know of a good triangular pencil? That the reason I like the Rhodia's

 

These are all decent pencils:

 

Ticonderoga Tri-Write

Tri-Conderoga

Golden Bear

Prospector

Mongol Trio

Faber-Castell Grip 2001

 

 

More on triangular pencils: Love Triangle

More on pencils in general: Pencil Talk

Edited June 26, 2009 by NateB

[aderoy]

I have to admit I like the triangular shape of the Rhodia and would love to find a replacement.

 

 

Why not try the Faber Castell Grip 2001?

Faber Castell Grip 2001

 

[Garageboy]

They're too meh for me. I just stick to Faber Castell 9000 series