Zaners on Parade

I should be more dedicated to collecting Zaner-Bloser pencils.  They hail from Columbus, Ohio, my hometown, and they are goofy, which usually puts things squarely in my crosshairs.

But on the other hand, Zaner-Bloser was a one-trick pony when it came to making pencils.  There's one ultra-rare, ultra-desirable variant - the ones made by Parker blending the Parker Streamline Duofold with Zaner's unusual shape - that I haven't been able to track down, mostly because they cost hundreds of dollars when they surface.  I have a picture of Joe Nemecek's example pictured in The Catalogue.  

All the rest are along the same lines.  But lately, I have been finding some interesting variations. 

The examples in this first bunch all have painted wood barrels . . .

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