Pencil enthusiasts are an enthusiastic group. They seek out pencils that would interest other pen addicts through thrift stores, yard sales and eBay auctions.

Their desired pencil should write well and look attractive, at an affordable price. Pens are easy to lose or throw away; therefore they must contain special qualities to ensure they survive and outlive others.

1. Graphite

Modern pencils often utilize clay minerals as the “lead,” while artist drawing pencils are still made using natural graphite – one of only three allotropic forms of carbon, it features black to dark grey hues with a slightly greasy surface texture.

Contrary to fountain pens, pencils tend to be much cheaper to purchase and therefore more cost-effective for those interested. Additionally, vintage pencils may often provide greater value as they have already been in use and may still be in great condition.

There are two primary groups who appreciate old pencils: collectors and enthusiasts. Collectors seek out specific models while enthusiasts simply like writing or drawing with particular pencils that appeal to them and how they write.

2. Wood

Pencils were traditionally made of wood, and this remains true today. While some collect wooden pencils for their aesthetic value alone, others use them regularly for writing and drawing tasks; the latter group are known as pencil enthusiasts who tend to prioritize quality of wood over aesthetic considerations.

Old pencils tend to write just as well as they did when first created, although they may lack erasers and become brittle with age; nonetheless, their functionality remains the same as when new.

Some vintage pencils can fetch more than others depending on their brand and condition; for instance, a Caran d’Ache Swiss Wood pencil in mint condition would fetch a higher price tag than another model of its same kind that has seen more wear-and-tear.

3. Design

Some pencil collectors seek out rare models or brands they haven’t encountered before, while others focus on how a particular pencil feels in their hand – these people can be considered pencil enthusiasts.

Caran d’Ache’s vintage Toison d’Or pencils are an outstanding example. Similar to Koh-i-Noor Swiss Wood pencils, their only differences lie in dipped end caps and imprinted body imprint (both very legible). Furthermore, this 100% recycled box cleverly mimics coffee beans cutouts, with debossing that reads: “A Recycling Story Is In Your Hands”. Additionally, both pencils in this set responded well to mechanical helix blade sharpening while cores were perfectly aligned despite visually off center visual impression.

4. Sharpness

This pencil feels great to hold, and I appreciate their efforts to make it appear vintage-esque – with end caps painted like vintage paint job and an embossed foil stamp as though applied manually onto its barrel.

One drawback of this pencil is its incompatibility with modern leads (0.9 mm), which are thicker and less stable; therefore it requires sharper pencils in order to work correctly.

I recommend this pencil for sketchbooks, writing notes or letters, taking standardized tests or doing art. Any dark spots on the paper due to wax bloom will not affect its quality as much.

5. Durability

At least they don’t make pencils like they used to, which is an improvement, but there are still plenty of good ones out there if you know where to look.

Recently at a thrift-store find was an unexpected treat: an entire box of “Casemate” store brand pencils (actually produced by Hindustan Pencil Co under their Nataraj Bold line), alongside some current production Pen+Gears. Unfortunately, many of the Casemate pencils had lost their eraser and their wood was becoming dry; yet they wrote just fine!

Other interesting pens and stuff at infinity pencil ,georgecottrell ,china ,Westport 

Pen+Gears pencils are relatively new offerings with similar core qualities but improved lead, finer point, and sharpening properties compared to their older Brutfuner counterparts. Overall they make for an enjoyable writing experience but do not compare as favorably to classic models like Brutfuners.