Tom King Posted March 7, 2018 Report Share Posted March 7, 2018 This was touched on in another recent thead. I mentioned that I ordered some old, Eagle Verithin colored pencils in white. These were made back before pencil manufacturers started thinking that fast, and cheap was more important than quality. These still have wax mixed in with the lead. Picture is a Walnut board. There are regular pencil marks between the white pencil lines. I don't know if they will show up in the downsized picture or not. These pencils will mark lines for a long time before needing sharpening, but the lead is pretty soft. It's probably about like a No. 1 Mirado lead. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pondhockey Posted March 8, 2018 Report Share Posted March 8, 2018 Nice. My brother spent a summer making those pencils, in Danbury Ct. (I spent one shift, there, myself.) Where did you order from? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom King Posted March 8, 2018 Author Report Share Posted March 8, 2018 ebay. The company has been bought and sold several times, and according to pencil experts, the quality has gone down at every change of hands. DId they process the lead like this (picture) when you worked there? Was it Eagle, Berol, or Papermate? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bleedinblue Posted March 8, 2018 Report Share Posted March 8, 2018 I keep white colored pencils on hand specifically for walnut or any other dark colored woods. Works great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kurt Triebe Posted March 8, 2018 Report Share Posted March 8, 2018 My local Woodcraft had some white pencils- "Pica" they're called: https://www.woodcraft.com/products/pica-dry-longlife-automatic-pen They're not cheap- I got the pencil and a pack of like 10-12 extra lead for $25-ish- but they work really well. The outer fluorescent green thing clips into my apron pocket, and then I can easily pull the inner black pencil part out to write. The green part has a built-in sharpener, too. They make very visible lines. I'm working with a ton of walnut, and I couldn't see regular pencil marks, this is 100x better. The extra pack of lead will probably last me 5 years, which is part of the reason I didn't balk at the stupid price. They make "lead" in a bunch of different colors- blue, red, etc- but I only got the white... regular pencils work fine on all of the other wood types I use. My only complaint is that it's hard to get the point sharp/small enough to fit inside the tiny holes on my Incra Precision T-Rule. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted March 8, 2018 Report Share Posted March 8, 2018 I just read on Pica's website not to store the colored & white leads above 30c / 85f. So I am guessing some sort of wax type binder for the colors. Looks like something I might pick up next time I'm at Woodcraft. I got red & blue leads for a mechanical pencil to use with my Woodpeckers saddle square. The mechanical pencil fits in the holes used to mark lines, should be similar to the Incra T rule. Got to be careful with pressure when going crossgrain or the leads snap off easily. Then the little chunk of lead gets on the bench and marks up the underside of a part that's already been sanded ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WoodMan Posted March 8, 2018 Report Share Posted March 8, 2018 58 minutes ago, Kurt Triebe said: Pica nice things Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treeslayer Posted March 8, 2018 Report Share Posted March 8, 2018 41 minutes ago, wdwerker said: Looks like something I might pick up next time I'm at Woodcraft. I've been using one for about 2 years Steve, not a bad pencil and i like that its narrow enough to get into tight spaces, most times i have the black lead in it but when it comes to dark wood i switch to white. its soft (the white) and has to be constantly resharpened to keep a sharp point but the built in sharpener really helps and i like that the holder stays where you clip it. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gilgaron Posted March 9, 2018 Report Share Posted March 9, 2018 You can get a 2mm lead holder on Amazon or an office supply store, and then in addition to being able to get whatever variety of graphite is your favorite, there are packs of various colors for cheap on Amazon. Here the pencil I have: https://www.amazon.com/Staedtler-Technical-Mechanical-Pencil-780BK/dp/B000YQEFGU/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1520617839&sr=8-3&keywords=lead+holder&dpID=219Gnv9aAyL&preST=_SX300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch Here's the colored lead: https://www.amazon.com/June-Gold-Colored-Pre-Sharpened-Resistant/dp/B01HUIR6RO/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?s=office-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1520617889&sr=1-2-spons&keywords=2mm+colored+lead&psc=1 Using a lead holder is between a mechanical and a wooden pencil in use. They don't break like a 0.5mm would, but you have to sharpen them periodically if you want a fine point. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pondhockey Posted March 10, 2018 Report Share Posted March 10, 2018 On 3/8/2018 at 5:18 AM, Tom King said: ebay. The company has been bought and sold several times, and according to pencil experts, the quality has gone down at every change of hands. DId they process the lead like this (picture) when you worked there? Was it Eagle, Berol, or Papermate? Thanks for the memories! Larry and I worked there (briefly, for me) in about summer of 1968. We both had a lot of respect for the quality of their pencils and their methods/processes at the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coop Posted March 10, 2018 Report Share Posted March 10, 2018 10 hours ago, Gilgaron said: You can get a 2mm lead holder on Amazon or an office supply store, and then in addition to being able to get whatever variety of graphite is your favorite, there are packs of various colors for cheap on Amazon. Here the pencil I have: https://www.amazon.com/Staedtler-Technical-Mechanical-Pencil-780BK/dp/B000YQEFGU/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1520617839&sr=8-3&keywords=lead+holder&dpID=219Gnv9aAyL&preST=_SX300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch I think you may solved my search for lead for this thing. I used it back in the 70’s to do blue line drawings , back before CAD obviously. This was made by Berol and it says turquois but does not give the size lead, but the one you linked to looks very similiar to mine. The sharpener is in the red push button. Neatest mech pencil I’ve ever owned. Thanks Gilgaron! I’m ordering the pencil (so I’ll have an extra) and the leads rat now!!! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnG Posted March 10, 2018 Report Share Posted March 10, 2018 I also have a Pica and like the toxic green case that is pretty hard to lose sight of. I struggle to get a sharp point with the sharpener though. Not sure if it is user error or an issue with the sharpener. Whenever I get close to a fine point, the tip breaks off in the sharpener. I mostly use it for rough layout now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom King Posted March 10, 2018 Author Report Share Posted March 10, 2018 For those that like mechanical pencils, you can still find the Mikado leads on ebay. They don't make them like this any more. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Eagle-Pencil-Semaphore-Mikado-Thin-Leads-Silvered-Ends/222875553213?hash=item33e46b0dbd:g:UJ0AAOSwtZ5aoyuj Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coop Posted March 13, 2018 Report Share Posted March 13, 2018 On 3/9/2018 at 11:52 AM, Gilgaron said: You can get a 2mm lead holder on Amazon or an office supply store, and then in addition to being able to get whatever variety of graphite is your favorite, there are packs of various colors for cheap on Amazon. Here the pencil I have: https://www.amazon.com/Staedtler-Technical-Mechanical-Pencil-780BK/dp/B000YQEFGU/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1520617839&sr=8-3&keywords=lead+holder&dpID=219Gnv9aAyL&preST=_SX300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch Here's the colored lead: https://www.amazon.com/June-Gold-Colored-Pre-Sharpened-Resistant/dp/B01HUIR6RO/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?s=office-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1520617889&sr=1-2-spons&keywords=2mm+colored+lead&psc=1 Using a lead holder is between a mechanical and a wooden pencil in use. They don't break like a 0.5mm would, but you have to sharpen them periodically if you want a fine point. I ordered the above pencil but was shipped this and received it today. Pack of two and the function is the same just different looks. I also ordered the colored leads that Gilgaron links to. Unless I just absolutely need an extra fine mark, this will be my go to in the future. https://www.amazon.com/gp/slredirect/picassoRedirect.html/ref=sspa_dk_detail_7?ie=UTF8&adId=A07069154JD3N3450NW&qualifier=1520955496&id=6632153407852272&widgetName=sp_detail&url=%2Fdp%2FB01E4BL8N8%2Fref%3Dsspa_dk_detail_7%3Fpsc%3D1%26pd_rd_i%3DB01E4BL8N8%26pd_rd_wg%3DW4Amk%26pd_rd_r%3D0F447RQFABP16B51VZ3Q%26pd_rd_w%3Ds4T4l Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardA Posted March 13, 2018 Report Share Posted March 13, 2018 I have some waxed white pencils for close layout, with a lot of sharpening. And school white chalk for rough cut outs and planning cuts. Mostly walnut and some cherry's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gilgaron Posted March 13, 2018 Report Share Posted March 13, 2018 Glad you found the links useful Coop! I jealously guard my lead holder now that I've gotten used to it... I should probably just order a few more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.