3 ms·

I have a box of 120 Blackwing pencils of all types. They look nice, expensive, but a bad tool. (review -> https://www.instagram.com/p/CrD5KRnuLnh/?img_index=2&

by leonidv 2mo ago

I have a box of 120 Blackwing pencils of all types. They look nice, expensive, but a bad tool. (review -> https://www.instagram.com/p/CrD5KRnuLnh/?img_index=2&igsh=cDYzMWpuNndnYmFs https://www.instagram.com/p/CrD5KRnuLnh/?img_index=2&igsh=cD... ) They are not suitable for fine drawing (too waxy and soft) - those are either STAEDTLER, FaberCastell, or Tombow (Japanese brand). The fancy tip eraser is also not very useful. The metal around it is so soft, it can't hold any pressure. Also extremely not child friendly, as the small metal part inside just fells out. Tombow Mono - de-facto standard eraser.

disce-pati 2mo ago
Even the Blackwing sharpeners are not that great. A pencil plane works just fine for almost all pencil sharpening I've ever needed to do and making your own isn't very hard.
xtajv 2mo ago
I consider them terrible for drawing but excellent for taking handwritten notes that will scan well.
kashunstva 2mo ago
Terrible tool for drawing possibly; but among musicians they are widely considered the standard for marking scores. There’s always a Blackwing on my stand.
linguae 2mo ago
I also enjoy my Blackwings, though my normal pencil of choice is the Mitsubishi Hi-Uni HB, which is cheaper than the Blackwing but is still an awesome pencil. I think my supply of pencils will last at least a decade. I take a lot of handwritten notes when doing research, and I prefer pencil over pen when working in computer science and math.
- lb1lf 2mo ago
  This. When in Japan for work, I always buy a couple of boxes of Hi-Unis (mostly 2H for me, HB for the kids) I started using them a couple of decades ago, but things escalated once my kids started school, seeing as I just sent them off with a couple of Hi-Unis. Teacher noted she hardly ever had to help my kids sharpen their pencils, wondered why, asked me if I could get her those for the entire class... Next thing I knew, I peddle in the pencil business - currently bringing in ~240 pencils a year... (The lead is nigh on unbreakable, and it holds its point very well.)
noahbradley 2mo ago
I don't know, they've always seemed nice to draw with.
encode 2mo ago
They're not really targeted at artists but for writing and taking notes. In my opinion, they have a nice smooth feel and work well for this purpose. But they're on the expensive side, so if you don't care about the looks, there are many other—wallet-friendly—options out there! The eraser is infamous for being terrible. But it looks cool.
skywal_l 2mo ago
What does a pencil have over a mechanical pencil? Mechanical pencils never need sharpening, infinite supply of lead of various type and and they seem more environmentally friendly (assuming you keep using the same for many years).
- dylan604 2mo ago
  In my experience, mechanical pencil tips broke too easily. I've had cheap wooden pencils where it felt that the let was shattered inside which meant the sharpened tip kept falling out. That's how I felt about pretty much every mechanical pencil.
  - wky 2mo ago
    The main thing that helps with lead breakage is a mechanical pencil with a sliding nose cone/tip. Even finer lead becomes fairly reliable as long as it is protected against sideways pressure. My personal favorite is the Kuru Toga Advance 0.3mm, though a larger lead size and a model purpose-built for break-resistance would be better if tip breakage is the main concern.
  - ziofill 2mo ago
    About a decade ago I bought a metal mechanical pencil (rotring 800, 0.5mm). Best pencil I’ve ever owned. It will last so long I’ll leave it to my children.
    - soperj 2mo ago
      Was it actually $60?
      - ziofill 2mo ago
        Yes something like that (around 50€)
  - m4rtink 2mo ago
    Try the Zebra DelGuard mechanical pencil - they have a sophisticated system protection the lead, with springs and whatnot - even in 0.3 mm version, it is actually quite hard to break the tip of the lead, even intentionally.
ssttoo 2mo ago
These pencils are sort of an “industry standard” for folks who write (or annotate) music because you can be fast with low effort due to their softness. And also easy to erase since you didn’t damage the paper, there’s no need to press hard to leave the mark

by leonidv 2mo ago

disce-pati 2mo ago

Even the Blackwing sharpeners are not that great. A pencil plane works just fine for almost all pencil sharpening I've ever needed to do and making your own isn't very hard.

xtajv 2mo ago

I consider them terrible for drawing but excellent for taking handwritten notes that will scan well.

kashunstva 2mo ago

Terrible tool for drawing possibly; but among musicians they are widely considered the standard for marking scores. There’s always a Blackwing on my stand.

linguae 2mo ago

I also enjoy my Blackwings, though my normal pencil of choice is the Mitsubishi Hi-Uni HB, which is cheaper than the Blackwing but is still an awesome pencil. I think my supply of pencils will last at least a decade. I take a lot of handwritten notes when doing research, and I prefer pencil over pen when working in computer science and math.

lb1lf 2mo ago
This. When in Japan for work, I always buy a couple of boxes of Hi-Unis (mostly 2H for me, HB for the kids) I started using them a couple of decades ago, but things escalated once my kids started school, seeing as I just sent them off with a couple of Hi-Unis. Teacher noted she hardly ever had to help my kids sharpen their pencils, wondered why, asked me if I could get her those for the entire class... Next thing I knew, I peddle in the pencil business - currently bringing in ~240 pencils a year... (The lead is nigh on unbreakable, and it holds its point very well.)

noahbradley 2mo ago

I don't know, they've always seemed nice to draw with.

encode 2mo ago

They're not really targeted at artists but for writing and taking notes. In my opinion, they have a nice smooth feel and work well for this purpose. But they're on the expensive side, so if you don't care about the looks, there are many other—wallet-friendly—options out there! The eraser is infamous for being terrible. But it looks cool.

skywal_l 2mo ago

What does a pencil have over a mechanical pencil? Mechanical pencils never need sharpening, infinite supply of lead of various type and and they seem more environmentally friendly (assuming you keep using the same for many years).

dylan604 2mo ago
In my experience, mechanical pencil tips broke too easily. I've had cheap wooden pencils where it felt that the let was shattered inside which meant the sharpened tip kept falling out. That's how I felt about pretty much every mechanical pencil.
- wky 2mo ago
  The main thing that helps with lead breakage is a mechanical pencil with a sliding nose cone/tip. Even finer lead becomes fairly reliable as long as it is protected against sideways pressure. My personal favorite is the Kuru Toga Advance 0.3mm, though a larger lead size and a model purpose-built for break-resistance would be better if tip breakage is the main concern.
- ziofill 2mo ago
  About a decade ago I bought a metal mechanical pencil (rotring 800, 0.5mm). Best pencil I’ve ever owned. It will last so long I’ll leave it to my children.
  - soperj 2mo ago
    Was it actually $60?
    - ziofill 2mo ago
      Yes something like that (around 50€)
- m4rtink 2mo ago
  Try the Zebra DelGuard mechanical pencil - they have a sophisticated system protection the lead, with springs and whatnot - even in 0.3 mm version, it is actually quite hard to break the tip of the lead, even intentionally.

ssttoo 2mo ago

These pencils are sort of an “industry standard” for folks who write (or annotate) music because you can be fast with low effort due to their softness. And also easy to erase since you didn’t damage the paper, there’s no need to press hard to leave the mark