4 ms·

I would argue that this is not the nexus of good and cheap. While 100 for 14 may look like a bargain in cents-per-pencil, would you really spend the next coupl

I would argue that this is not the nexus of good and cheap. While 100 for 14 may look like a bargain in cents-per-pencil, would you really spend the next couple years working with 100 slightly worse pencils for $10? Stated in this way, the answer is obvious. I would, instead, recommend the Ticonderoga Black. The cedar wood is both smoother to grip and more fragrant than in the traditional pencils. Getting ready to start a task by sharpening your pencil is definitely enhanced by the smell of cedar shavings. The black eraser seems to be less prone to drying out, and while I'll echo your experience that the pink variants are better than cheap knockoffs that do little more than leave smudges, but even the Ticonderoga erasers can leave pink smudges. Leaving a faint grey smudge is much less annoying than pink. It is, of course, black. This does make it slightly more difficult to locate on a crowded desk than the iconic yellow pencil. That's an example of a good design feature that's largely become ignored as traditional, but isn't really necessary. One benefit of a unique black pencil is that it's much less likely to be accidentally swiped by another student or coworker. The Ticonderoga Black also retains the hexagonal cross section, which prevents it from rolling off your desk - another feature that is too often ignored. To try a more modern design, try the cleverly named "Triconderoga" which has a rounded triangular cross section that some people find more comfortable. And I'm not sure how to say this clearly, but no, that was not sarcasm. I really do like those pencils.

mdip 10y ago
I have some Ticonderoga Blacks here. I gave them to the kids, though, because I don't like the weight. The cedar wood is more dense, making them hard to "hillbilly sharpen"[0] accurately. They're heavier, which kind of annoys me because it just doesn't feel right (I feel the same way about the black wings, but they don't feel quite as hefty as the blacks). On the eraser, I've not run into pink smudging with the Ticonderogas, or had any of them dry out, but that's mostly because I blow through these things very quickly (4 kids, all elementary age, and I'm good at losing cheap things). Very good point on the shape -- I hadn't even thought of that as a feature but I should have being that I specifically purchased a few boxes of triangular crayons for the kids -- I hate climbing under tables to fish out whatever color they want that's managed to roll off the table. I totally get it, though, I'm pretty ridiculous about my pencils, too. I've tweeted, reviewed and written (in pencil) a letter to Dixon Ticonderoga. And they wrote back a snarky-ish reply ... in pencil (I think there's a picture of the reply on my Twitter feed somewhere)! :o) [0] A term my dad used to use when you're doing construction work, you snap the lead of the pencil and are nowhere near a pencil sharpener so you take whatever qualifies as a sharp edge (often one half of a pair of clippers) and scrape it sharp, again. I often sharpen my pencils with razor blades and find it easy to get a good tip in a minute or two on the standard Ticonderogas.

mdip 10y ago

I have some Ticonderoga Blacks here. I gave them to the kids, though, because I don't like the weight. The cedar wood is more dense, making them hard to "hillbilly sharpen"[0] accurately. They're heavier, which kind of annoys me because it just doesn't feel right (I feel the same way about the black wings, but they don't feel quite as hefty as the blacks). On the eraser, I've not run into pink smudging with the Ticonderogas, or had any of them dry out, but that's mostly because I blow through these things very quickly (4 kids, all elementary age, and I'm good at losing cheap things). Very good point on the shape -- I hadn't even thought of that as a feature but I should have being that I specifically purchased a few boxes of triangular crayons for the kids -- I hate climbing under tables to fish out whatever color they want that's managed to roll off the table. I totally get it, though, I'm pretty ridiculous about my pencils, too. I've tweeted, reviewed and written (in pencil) a letter to Dixon Ticonderoga. And they wrote back a snarky-ish reply ... in pencil (I think there's a picture of the reply on my Twitter feed somewhere)! :o) [0] A term my dad used to use when you're doing construction work, you snap the lead of the pencil and are nowhere near a pencil sharpener so you take whatever qualifies as a sharp edge (often one half of a pair of clippers) and scrape it sharp, again. I often sharpen my pencils with razor blades and find it easy to get a good tip in a minute or two on the standard Ticonderogas.