Who Else Thinks That A Mechanical Pencil Is The Next-Best Thing To A Fountain Pen?

[Chthulhu]

I am. I bought one at the start of my first year of Junior College. Still have it; still works.

I also have a couple of Shaeffer see through mechanical pencils.

Used to use those in grade school; thought they were the coolest thing ever.

Transparent Sheaffer pencils? I'd love to see those; can you post a photo?

[flatline]

I love love love mechanical pencils. I have moved from very very thin pencil lead to .9mm and 1.1mm. My current fave is a MB Le Grand .9mm. But I still love my first 1.1mm Caran D'Ache Ecridor which I got used. And my Pentel P209s. I wore out a Rotring 600 Trio with a .7mm pencil before I moved up to thicker lead.

 

For writing, my preference is 0.3mm. For puzzles, however, I like the 0.9mm since I can write the answers big and bold but use the edge of the lead to write very fine and small as I work towards the answer.

 

0.5mm is tolerable for writing.

 

I love 2mm clutch pencils for doodling and working out my ideas on scratch paper.

 

I've never had a use for 0.7mm leads except when desperate.

 

--flatline

[flatline]

I just received the "fat" Platinum Pro-Use II pen in 0.3mm. It looks funny, but it really does feel great in the hand. It's the kind of pencil that everyone looks sideways at, but once they try it, they want to know how much it was and where I got it ($25 from jetpens, of course, is the answer).

 

I am such an enabler.

 

--flatline

[Moshe ben David]

Just stumbled across this thread. I've always ensured I had a MP in any of my carry sets.

 

I don't use pencil much for writing but mostly for calculating estimates and very rough sketching (e.g., drafts of PowerPoint slides, flow charts, etc).

 

I like either 0.9 mm or 1.15 mm leads; my favorite MP are of the 'propelling' type like the older Parker Duofold or the Retro 51. Also have quite a few of the Pentel 209 -- truly the benchmark pencil if there ever was one. Can't find anyone around me that carries the Pentel Kerry; I suppose I'll just order one eventually.

 

I don't much care for the more modern 'twist' mechanism which typically are 0.7 mm that Parker and others have seemed to standardize on.

 

I also pick up a lot of MP at the local art supply store; they don't look fancy but work great and tend all to be less than $10 each. Mostly Pentel or PaperMate.

 

Moshe ben David

[setgoblen]

I also love mechanical pencils.

[Tasmith]

I also love mechanical pencils.

Ditto.

[Zookie]

I have more mechanical pencils than fountain pens. I'm especially fond of the translucent ones, like the clear Scriptos.

[JakobS]

If I am not using a fountain pen currently, I would use either a 2mm clutch pencil (Cda fixpencil), or a variety of wooden pencils. I haven't used smaller sized lead pencils in awhile, but if I were to, I would use any lead size in the Pentel A120 series, they are a phenomonal mechanical pencil. I tend to be drawn to the different varieties of wooden pencils these day though, so all of my mechanical pencils have been sitting in my desk drawer for a number of years.

Edited December 6, 2016 by JakobS

[flatline]

Well, it's been a couple of years since I posted in this thread, so I might as well give an update.

 

My experiment with fountain pens is largely over. I keep a Vanishing Point inked up and occasionally ink up something with a stub nib if I want to play with it, but I'm mostly back to my pencils and a small handful of gel and porous tip pens (and my EDC space pen).

 

Over the last couple of years I've experimented with lots of wooden pencils and have acquired several pencils that I really enjoy using (Mitsubishi Hi-Uni and Staedtler Lumograph are my favorites), but even my best wooden pencils aren't as nice to use as my mechanical pencils.

 

I've got lots of mechanical pencils, but I find that I get most of my use from a small handful of pencils that I keep in my bag.

 

Pentel 120 a3dx in 0.3 - this was the first drafting pencil I ever bought some 20+ years ago. The rubber grip has long since lost its rubberiness, but the pencil is still light as air and extremely comfortable to write with. I also have this pencil in 0.9, but it doesn't get much use since I find the 0.9 lead to work better with a heavier pencil.

 

Pilot s10 in 0.9 - this bottom heavy pencil is just the perfect match for soft lead, especially in 0.9mm. I apply lateral pressure to move the lead across the paper, but the pencil itself provides the downward pressure. I can write all day with this pencil without any fatigue from pushing down or gripping the pencil. Also, the knurling is great. I have the s10 in .3, .4, .5, .7, and .9. This is, quite possibly, my favorite writing instrument across all categories. Unfortunately, it's not pocket safe.

 

Alvin Draftmatic 0.3 - another solid bottom-heavy pencil with great knurling.

 

Staetler 925 0.3mm - super light like the Pentel 120a but new enough that the rubber is still grippy. This is the pencil I recommend as a first drafting pencil to anyone who asks since it's very comfortable to use and is available from several local stores. There are, perhaps, half a dozen folks at work who have purchased this pencil in .5 or .7 after having tried mine.

 

I've also got several lead holders. The Staedtler Mars Technico is my favorite to use just because it feels so good to write with even with mediocre lead. Other favorites are the Sanford Prismacolor Turquoise, Rotring 300, and Alvin "Tech" DA.

 

I find that as I grow older, my need for super fine tips like 0.3 and 0.4 has lessened. 0.5 is fine enough and I can even tolerate 0.7 now if I have to. 0.9 is special since it doesn't go flat like the others, so if I'm careful to rotate the tip, I can actually get a line as fine or finer than the 0.5 as long as I'm not writing on soft paper.

 

Anyways, I'm making myself use up the wooden pencils I've accumulated, but my mechanical pencils are still my favorites.

 

Resurrect this thread in a couple of years, and maybe my opinion will have changed. Only time will tell.

 

--flatline

Edited December 6, 2016 by flatline

[lurcho]

I'm the OP.

 

Since this thread started in 2013, I've bought a Graphgear 1000, a Rotring 600, a Kuru Toga, and a Kerry.

 

None of them is a patch on my favourite in 2013: the Pentel P205.

 

There. I've said it.

[ParramattaPaul]

Having spent many, many hours leaning over a drafting table working up a set of drawings in the old days before AutoCAD and other similar software programmes became commonplace I will admit I have a 'thing' for mechanical pencils with specific line widths and a variety of leads.

[Wolverine1]

Just saw this thread. Well, I started off with a Pilot H-1010 Shaker MP in 0.5 lead that I used through my college years in the mid-1990s. Later on, I added a Alvin Draftmatic MP with the 0.9 lead. Though I mostly use FP to do my writing with, since I have suffered multiple strokes, my right hand( my writing hand) is affected, making writing with a FP difficult, especially if the pen has a springy or if the nib is just slightly flexible. So, it is back to using my MPs again, and also use gelpens. I have found that I seem to like the Pilot Dr Grip pens the best.

Now today, I will order a Pilot Dr Grip MP in 0.9 from JetPens.

 

Oh, for my Creative Writing class, I use the Blackwing 602 wooden pencils I got as a gift. They are good for writing, but, I have to use a piece of thick rubber tube to make it thick enough for comfortable writing. So, I wont be buying these pencils, instead I will use the Pilot Dr Grip MP that I have ordered from JetPens.

Edited December 18, 2016 by Wolverine1

[sharonspens]

Maybe I missed it, as I really only skimmed this thread, but I can't see that anyone mentioned carrying a pen/pencil combo - i.e., when one side is an FP and the other is a pencil. My husband LOVES these vintage numbers (he is a pencil guy, and a leftie, so not a big fan of using FPs). Here is a photo of his collection.

[AL01]

I think so. I used to use a cross .9mm pencil - maybe one day I will upgrade to a Rotring 800.

[Flippy]

I'm going to have to disagree. To me, roller balls are the second best thing. However, I still do like MP's

[flatline]

I think so. I used to use a cross .9mm pencil - maybe one day I will upgrade to a Rotring 800.

 

Try one before you buy it. People either love or hate the Rotring 800 and without holding it in your hand, you won't know which side you'll end up on.

 

Personally, I hate the squishy click.

 

--flatline

Edited December 23, 2016 by flatline

[ParramattaPaul]

Without going and looking, I suspect I probably have 3 or 4 (or more) Rotring 800 or earlier model mechanical pencils in amongst my old manual drafting tools. There would be an equal or greater number of long out of production Faber-Castell and Staedtler mechanical pencils as well. The Rotrings were a favourite, but the Faber-Castell ​my most favourite.

[lovemy51]

Maybe I missed it, as I really only skimmed this thread, but I can't see that anyone mentioned carrying a pen/pencil combo - i.e., when one side is an FP and the other is a pencil. My husband LOVES these vintage numbers (he is a pencil guy, and a leftie, so not a big fan of using FPs). Here is a photo of his collection.

nice, nice!!!!

 

 

Edited: WHAT? the pic didn't post.... anyways, nice collection sharon!

Edited December 24, 2016 by lovemy51

[sharonspens]

nice, nice!!!!

 

 

Edited: WHAT? the pic didn't post.... anyways, nice collection sharon!

 

What do you mean? MY pic didn't post? Is it not showing up for you?

[Tweel]

I guess I think so -- FP and MP are my most-used writing instruments. My most-used pencils currently are a Sheaffer Prelude and an Autopoint Timberline (one is fat and brushed chrome, the other skinny and rosewood, so I guess I don't have a strong form preference).

 

I think I only have one combo, a c. 1930's Wearever. I replaced the corroded spoon-tipped nib with one from a Lady Duofold ringtop. I like the way it looks, but don't like using a pencil without an eraser.