Saturday, December 31, 2011

My Find of the Year

Today seems like the perfect day to bring out my top find of this year.  The series of impossible coincidences that have happened over the last couple weeks ended up bringing together three brands that I never knew were connected and led me to a conclusion that I never dreamed up: 

Eversharp stole the idea for its repeating pencil from someone else. 

This story starts innocently enough, with the article I wrote in early December titled "The Ferengi's Acfad."  After the article was published, I went back to Michael Little (the Ferengi in the article) and told him how excited I was to discover that his ACFAD was actually a pre-Moore pencil, from the days when Moore was known as The American Fountain Pen Co.  I didn't ask him to sell it to me - I just asked that if he ever did decide to sell it, to consider selling it to me.

Well, Michael did ask me how much I'd pay for it, and after I made an offer, we had a deal.  There was only one problem: 

he'd lost it.

He emailed me frantically after I'd sent him the check and said it just had to be somewhere in his apartment, that he was on the hunt for it and not to worry.  Fortunately, I know Michael well enough to know that he would find it - in fact, while he was looking, he might find some other cool things while he's looking for it.  From his description, his apartment sounds like Warehouse 13.

Sure enough, a few days later he emailed me to let me know he'd found it, along with about six other pencils he thought I'd like.   One of them, he said, was a "Gilfred."  Quite correctly, he pointed out that I did not list the Gilfred in The Catalogue.   He didn't send me a picture of it, but a little later in the day he sent me a link to a court case decided in January, 1942, captioned Gilfred Corporation v. Eversharp, Inc. (ok, the lawyer in me can't stop there -- the citation is 43 F. Supp. 645). 

I was amazed as I read the case.  This "Gilfred Corporation" claimed that Eversharp's design for its version of the repeating pencil infringed on Gilfred's patent.  Eversharp didn't defend by saying it came up with the idea first, and Eversharp didn't claim to have rights under its own patent.  Eversharp's entire defense was that Gilfred's patent claims weren't valid because someone else had thought of it before Gilfred, in 1896. 

Who won?   I'll give you one guess.  Ever hear of a Gilfred Skyline?   

(Now as an aside, stop here for a minute and ponder the irony of this.  Just three years after this case was decided, Eversharp was on exactly the opposite side of this argument, when the Reynolds Pen Company introduced the ballpoint pen and  Eversharp sued Reynolds for infringing on Eversharp's rights -- Reynolds, just as Eversharp had done in 1942, argued that the ballpoint pen had been patented in the 1880s and the rights to it had long since expired.    But I digress.)

To get back to our story, a couple days later I decided to dig a little deeper and look into the two patents that were mentioned in the case.  The "Clement Patent" from 1896 was number 566,444, issued August 25, 1896 to John Clement of Birmingham, England.

But it was the Gilfred patent that raised my eyebrows.  OK, it didn't raise them, it had them sailing off my forehead like in an old Warner Brother's cartoon, with a steam whistle blowing in the background.  The Gilfred patent was number 1,592,502 and was originally issued to Abraham Pollak.  The assignee was . . . Samuel Kanner.  Wow!  That's the patent for the Presto repeating pencil I wrote about just a few weeks ago.  Remember this?

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Friday, December 30, 2011

Mr. Culbertson goes to Detroit

With a title as intriguing as "Salz Culbertson pencil," I had to bid on this one . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Thursday, December 29, 2011

Everytime I Think I Found the Apex, There's Another!

In The Catalogue at page 20, you'll find a pair of pencils manufactured by the Apex Products Corporation.   Since the book went to print, I've found a couple others that are worthy of note . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Wednesday, December 28, 2011

My New "Parts" Pencil

At shows, one of the things I enjoy the most is helping people get their broken pencils "back on the road."  This year at the Ohio show, there was a bumper crop of busted pencils hobbling in, and I had pretty good success with all of them.

One guy, who I've seen at the Ohio show before, brought me a 1930s Waterman pencil that had a nose cone that wouldn't stay on -- a common problem that occurs with these, since the goofy design Waterman came up with made these particularly prone to coming apart.  My friend not only had the pencil for me to work on, but he supplied me with a second pencil from which I could harvest the parts I would need. 

I took a look at the "parts" pencil and told him I thought the parts piece was nicer than the one he wanted me to fix.  Turns out what he didn't like about it was the name engraved on the clip, and that's why he thought it would be a suitable donor.

Now I don't want to start a pencil collectors' rumble or anything, because the collectors who are opposed to any engraving and those who don't mind it so much are like the Jets and the Sharks.  Personally, I don't mind a little engraving if it is tastefully done, and I certainly wouldn't condemn an otherwise nice piece to the parts bin because of it.

But before I could get into a discussion about this, my friend offered me a deal I really couldn't refuse.  If I could fix the pencil, I could have the "parts pencil."   It was tricky, but after a couple hours I had it repaired without stripping out the other pencil -- turns out that would have been the only way to do it anyway, since the parts between the two weren't compatible.   My friend went away happy, and I was a pencil richer.  Here it is, the green one (called "emerald ray") next to the one I had in my collection already, in red ("copper ray") . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Tuesday, December 27, 2011

A Keen Pair

A few weeks ago I was the successful bidder on a lot which included a pair of Keen-Point pencils.  Keen-Point was a subbrand for Dur-O-Lite, and examples don't come around very often.  These were particularly nice . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Monday, December 26, 2011

NIAOB: A Parker Find

I freely admit that I don't know as much about Parkers as a lot of people.  I am able to notice differences between different pencils, though, so when I see one that looks a little weird to me, I'll pick it up if it's priced reasonably.

So when I found this little jewel at the Scott Antique Market last month and the price tag said "Parker NIB $25," (NIB for "new in box") I thought it seemed like a pretty good deal . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Sunday, December 25, 2011

The Eagle Automatic Part 3: Merry Christmas!

I said yesterday that the "Twas the night before Christmas" pencil was my second favorite of the Giant Eagle Automatics.  That's because this one is my favorite . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Saturday, December 24, 2011

The Eagle Automatic Part 2: 'Twas the Night Before Christmas

My second favorite of the Eagle 75-12 Giant Automatics is this one . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Friday, December 23, 2011

The Eagle Automatic Part 1: All Pencils Great and Small

When I wrote The Catalogue, I didn't just want to write a book about pencils that you never see "in the wild."  My goal was to write a book that beginners and experienced collectors alike would be able to use, so I included information about all the pencils I knew about, not just the superstars that are rarely seen.

But there wasn't room enough for everything.  While I was finishing up the editing The Catalogue, I received an email from "Steve," a visitor at my Mechanical Pencil Museum website, asking about what he referred to as his "Shaw Mechanical Pencil."   His example, marked "Property of the U.S. Army," was marked with Patent Number 1,859,433.

That patent number gave his pencil away as an Eagle "Automatic" pencil.  The patent, for the eraser tip, was applied for by Isidor Chesler on October 18, 1930 and was granted on May 24, 1932.  Here is a good example of the Eagle Automatic . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Thursday, December 22, 2011

The Indian the Wife Doesn't Mind Too Much

When it comes to the Slencil, there are two basic types.  The first are the quirky little metal pencils which come in a wide variety of styles and options, invented by Carl C. Harris in 1933.  The second variety, while still unique, is the rectangular plastic pencils which have a  more conventional nose drive mechanism . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Wednesday, December 21, 2011

It's All Adding Up Now

At page 90 of The Catalogue, I've got an entry for the Houk Adding Pencil Co.  Here's the picture . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Sheaffer Pearlies Part 2: and Then There Were Seven

When I left off yesterday, I had "discovered" (or rather, learned of the existence of) a sixth variation on the Sheaffer Pearlie and was quite proud of myself:   But since four of this "new to me" variation had surfaced within just a couple weeks, I resolved that I would pay even more attention to Sheaffer pearlies when they passed by my way.

Within just a couple of days, I saw an ebay listing for something that didn't quite make sense to me.  It appeared to be a Sheaffer pearlie in green, but the clip looked like a regular balance flat ball clip and the listing title said "Sheaffer Jr."  The picture was a little fuzzy, but Matt McColm, who pointed it out to me, said it was exactly what it appeared to be.

Hmmm.  A possible seventh variation?  I added it to my watched items list.  And then I did something I rarely do. 

I forgot to bid.

I later found out Daniel Kirchheimer won the auction.  Since Daniel has helped me out by offering suggestions and corrections to my blog, I felt comfortable emailing him to ask if he would send me a good picture of this pencil to use here at the blog.  He said he would when he received it.

But the next time I heard from him, it wasn't to send me a picture.. it was to ask if I'd part with one of the carmine red military clip Sheaffer pencils I'd featured in my December 6 article, "A Tale of Three Pencils . . . or Maybe Five."  I hinted that he had a certain Sheaffer pearlie that I had forgotten to bid on -- no, he said, he wouldn't trade for that one.

But, he said, he'd trade me the other one he has.  He sent me a picture of the pair of them . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Monday, December 19, 2011

Sheaffer Pearlies Part I: and Then There Were Six

I've always had a soft spot for the Sheaffer pearlie.  My first pencil was one of these, albeit a later solid white school pencil, pictured on page 1 of The Catalogue. . . 

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Sunday, December 18, 2011

That's with one "L."

On page 26 of The Catalogue, I have listed the "Biltwell," lower quality pencils mostly of the Welsh-style flattop variety that come in an entertaining array of colors.

At first when I found this piece, I thought I'd found an example that would finally give me some insight into who made the Biltwell.  But a closer look revealed that this might tell me something quite different . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Saturday, December 17, 2011

It's Not a Jingle Bell

I get a few emails a day from people who stumble across my Mechanical Pencil Museum or this blog because they are looking for answers about the only pencil they have.  Whether it's someone who found an old pencil in grandma's desk or an antique dealer who thinks he might have found the piece that's his key to a long retirement, I give them all credit for taking the time to try to learn a little bit along the way.  I also try to answer their questions in a way that encourages them to want to learn more. 

Sometimes, though, it's a little hard to keep from giggling at how they describe what they have.

Since we are full on into the holiday season, I thought this would be a good time for this one.   A reader emailed me to ask a question about his relative's "Christmas pencil" that he had just inherited.   I asked him what made it a Christmas pencil, and he said it had a jingle bell on top.   Interesting, right?  So I asked if the pencil had any markings on it, and he indicated that yes, his Christmas pencil said "Bell System" on the barrel.

Ah, I said.  And over the fields I went, laughing all the way (ha ha ha).  We had our diagnosis . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Friday, December 16, 2011

O Reynolds, Where Art Thou?

The rise and fall of Wahl Eversharp is, bar none, my favorite story. 

The Wahl Adding Machine Company got into the writing instrument business by accident, when inventor Charles Keeran approached Wahl looking to purchase pencil-making equipment and ended up hiring the company to make his pencils for him.   By the close of World War II, Eversharp, Inc. (having dropped the Wahl name entirely) was at its peak, neck and neck with the other members of the "Big Four" fraternity for bragging rights as the leading writing instrument manufacturer in the United States.

Maybe it was arrogance.  Maybe it was ignorance.  Whatever it was, when Eversharp decided to be the first to produce a ballpoint pen, the company blindly assumed it would be first and best. . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Thursday, December 15, 2011

"What the Heck is This?"


I know that it would be silly to play a "guess what this is" game with this piece.  This is a blog about mechanical pencils.  Of course it's a pencil.

That doesn't mean that I didn't fall for it, though.  A friend approaches me at the Ohio Pen Show and says, "I'll bet you don't know what this is," and I'm thinking to myself "OK, Jon. . . you know this.  Television remote control?  No.  Nuclear weapon detonator?  No, looks a little small.  Pocket pasta maker?   Hmm..." 

Duh.  I'm at a pen show.  I'm a pencil guy with a giant booth promoting my new book about pencils.  Someone approaches me with an object and asks me to guess what it is.  Why did I fall for it?  He should have asked me if I wanted a "hurts donut" while he was at it. 

So here's the pencil . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Wednesday, December 14, 2011

My Travel Buddy

My day job, for those who don't know, is as lawyer in solo practice in Newark, Ohio.  My main focus is in real estate law, so from time to time clients send me off to other counties to do title research.  It's my favorite part of the job, getting out of the office for a bit of a change in scenery.

Yesterday, I was called on to travel to Wooster, Ohio, in the northeastern part of the state (for those not from Ohio, that's WUH-ster, not WOO-ster).  I ran a mapquest search to confirm my directions, and on paper, it looks like a relatively straight line from here to there.  In real life, the trip was more challenging. 

The first leg of the trip is fairly straightforward, until you get to the little town of Danville, Ohio, where US 62 takes a hard right.  The way to Wooster is to go straight, up what looks like someone's driveway but really is Ohio State Route 514.  If any of you have ever seen the movie Rat Race, I was looking for a sign that said "you should have bought a squirrel."   By the time they get that high in the Ohio route numbers, you know we're getting off the beaten path. 

It was a beautiful drive, with lots of hills and sharp turns, and had it been a warm day on a motorcycle it would have been an ideal getaway.  In a Ford F-150 and in a hurry.... let's just say my knuckles were white.  Route 514 turned into 226, and I rolled into Wooster a bit frazzled.   At 4:30 p.m., the government offices were closed and with them, most of the doors of the town closed.  As dusk approached, I saw a little antique store on the right heading out of town.  What the heck, I thought...

This place was long and narrow and just packed with stuff . . . just not my kind of stuff.  About the best things I saw . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Tuesday, December 13, 2011

"Mono-point" Wouldn't Have Sold Very Well, I Suppose

Back we go to the Scott Antique Market, on my same swing through the larger of the two buildings that netted me that Presto box I talked about a couple weeks ago.   I ran across these two pencils, at different booths but in the same aisle . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Monday, December 12, 2011

The Pencil Parker Should Have Built All Along

It's no secret to readers of The Catalogue that I'm not much of a fan of pre-World War II Parker pencils.  Out of the "Big Four" writing instrument manufacturers in the United States, Parker comes in a distant third behind Wahl Eversharp and Sheaffer (who were neck and neck for first) chronologically to get into the pencil business.  As far as quality is concerned, in my opinion Parker came in dead last. 

I can already hear the angry mob of Parker devotees, pitchforks and torches in hand, pounding on my door as I make this statement.   But think about it:  how often do you find an Eversharp, Sheaffer or for that matter, a Waterman pencil that doesn't work?   For every one of these that is our of commission, you'll find ten Vacumatic or Duofold pencils broken down by the side of the road with its owner thumbing for a ride.

With the Vacumatic pencils, it's usually a problem with a cracked drive tube.  Vac clutch pencils tend to jam and freeze up as if they were superglued.  Streamline Duofolds are the best of the bunch, but when there's a problem with one of them it's a bear to get into it for the repair (I spent about half a day at the DC Supershow a few years ago entertaining myself by repairing the marine green pearl one shown on page 112). 

With the first generation of Duofold pencils, the "bell top" flattops, the problem (in addition to a cantankerous screw drive) is that the tops are so fragile, it's a real challenge to find one that isn't dented or deformed.   While Parker was advertising a Duofold Pen that was so sturdy you could drop it from an airplane, the pencil that accompanied it would dent, as I commented at the Mechanical Pencil Museum, in anything more than a stiff breeze.

There is one exception, and it's taken me a few years to track one down.  Here is a picture of a Parker "Big Bro" pencil from around 1923-1924 . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Sunday, December 11, 2011

My Fellow Americans

The American Pencil Company, founded in New York in the 1860s, doesn't get a lot of press in The Catalogue, primarily because the company's focus from the beginning was the manufacture of wood-cased pencils.  Perhaps the most famous brand name introduced by the company was Venus, which became so popular that American actually changed its name to Venus in 1956. 

It's a bit confusing that there was another pencil company called the American Lead Pencil Company, founded in 1861 in Hoboken, New Jersey.  American Lead Pencil Company was renamed General Pencil Company fairly early on, probably due to the confusion that must have arisen, and is still in business today.

While the company that became General did not (to my knowledge) manufacture mechanical pencils, the American Pencil Company certainly did, with lines such as the "Perpetual" and the "Everpointed."  There are many parallels between American's early mechanical pencils and those made by one of New York's other prominent early pencil manufacturers, Eagle Pencil Company.  Both manufactured cheap and very durable pencils which tend to be underappreciated today.

The pencils I am introducing today are no exception.  The red example shown is second from right on page 19 of The Catalogue . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Saturday, December 10, 2011

The "Other" Pencraft

At page 119 of The Catalogue I've listed the Pencraft . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company





Friday, December 9, 2011

Eversharp Checking Pencils Update

When The Catalogue went to press, I had space enough to illustrate a representative example of the original 1921 Eversharp checking pencil as well as the model offered from 1922 until around 1929.  Here's the shot from page 59 of The Catalogue . . . 

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Thursday, December 8, 2011

This One Reallly Puts the Color in Colorgraph

The Colorgraph is one of those weird brands we pencil collectors really dig.  Here's the picture from page 31 of The Catalogue . . . 

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Wednesday, December 7, 2011

A Two-Bit Mystery Finally Solved!

One of my early exhibits at the Mechanical Pencil Museum displayed the "Tubit," shown here in both ringtop and full size models . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Tuesday, December 6, 2011

A Tale of Three Sheaffers - or Maybe Five

Here's a family portrait of three seemingly identical Sheaffer "military clip" pencils, as shown on pages 139 and 140 of The Catalogue . . . 

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Monday, December 5, 2011

It Was a Little Ritzier at the Booth Next Door

At page 129 of The Catalogue, there's a trio of pencils marked "Ritzie" on the clip, which are identical to pencils made by National Pen Products.  A few weeks ago, Janet and I were on our way back from our weekend getaway at Salt Fork State Park near Cambridge when we stopped in another out-of-the-way antique mall outside of Zanesville. 

This time, as we were on the way home from our antiquapalooza weekend, we stopped just because we thought we should, since it's right on the way.  We were pretty tired, our little Audi was pretty full of stuff, and we were pretty unenthusiastic.  Nevertheless, we valiantly shuffled on through, and my one and only purchase -- last of a long weekend -- added a bit to the Ritzie clan . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Sunday, December 4, 2011

A Monitor to Make Charles Keeran Proud

At page 62 of The Catalogue, I discuss an unusual diversion for Wahl Eversharp fanatics.  In 1928 or so, the company introduced pencils which, for lack of any better description, I refer to as Eversharp-Autopoint hybrids.  Here's the picture . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Saturday, December 3, 2011

The Ferengi's Acfad

Michael Little is quite the ebay seller.  He once told me he was a Ferengi, and I said I didn't know which was sadder . . . that he was comparing himself to a mythical character from Star Trek, or that I knew what he was talking about.  It was a Big Bang Theory kind of moment.

(For those who don't know what a Ferengi is, I'm not going into it here.  Hit up wikipedia if you have to.)

So it surprised me when he brought me something to look at at The Ohio Show this year that he didn't offer to sell to me.  It did take me all weekend to talk him out of a nice Parker Writefine (more on that one later), but on this this one he never budged.  I can't blame him really . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company



Friday, December 2, 2011

"Marie's Patent"

Ebay sellers who are honest but who honestly don't know anything about what they are selling are a lot of fun.  I'm not talking about the sellers who state in the title that a pencil is 14k, but the picture clearly shows a gold filled pencil sitting on a scale to show you how heavy it is, when 99% of the weight is steel, not gold.  Those guys know exactly what they are doing and should be publicly flogged.

No, the sellers I'm talking about are the ones who have something they don't understand, so they are describing it to the best of their ability -- and also to the best of my entertainment.  They are being completely honest in trying to describe exactly what they are seeing and don't realize that they've gotten things a little mixed up.

The best example, which comes up on a regular basis, are the "PATO" pens and pencils you see listed every so often . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company




Thursday, December 1, 2011

A Brief Study in the Classics

Dale Yessler recently contacted me about a beautiful pencil he had found, marked only with the word "Classics" on the clip, and asked if I knew anything about it . . .

NOTE:  This article is now included in the print version of The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, available anywhere you buy books, or also from The Legendary Lead Company.

To order, here's the link:  Volume 1 at Legendary Lead Company