Since this is the year in which the Faber-Castell Castell 9000 turns 100 years old, it’s only fitting that we end the first calendar year of the Revolution with a piece about this great green pencil. This piece is from pencil Comrade Michael Leddy.

Serious pencils indeed.

My love of “supplies” — pencils, pens, notebooks — goes back to Saturday morning trips with my father and brother to Alan’s Stationers in Brooklyn. My dad was (and is) a meticulous artist, and his affection for tools and materials was something I picked up on very early. I remember my own early “supplies” very well — a series of miniature Carter’s dip pens, which came packaged with miniature bottles of ink; a Scripto mechanical pencil; dozens of Venus coloring pencils; and a gray “T-Ball Jotter” (I never thought of it as a Parker) with thick, fragrant blue ink.

As I’ve gotten older, the fascination of “supplies” has fused with my deep affection for the artifacts of what I like to call “the dowdy world” — modern American life before it was refigured (or disfigured) by certain forms of technology. My affection for supplies has become, of necessity, an affection for what is largely past. As I’m writing these words, I’m looking at a Mongol ad from the 1950s, framed on the wall to my right:

Your Best Buy’s
MONGOL
2,162 words
for
one cent

In the dowdy world, people took their pencils seriously.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s I found some wonderful traces of the dowdy world in Warner’s, an old-line office-supply store in downstate Illinois. Warner’s has long since moved to an emphasis on office-furniture and “gifts,” a necessary choice for economic survival. But back then, the store featured an entire aisle of typewriter ribbons, most of them for machines already extinct. The ribbons had long since dried out, as I discovered after buying a supply for my Olympia manual. But other stuff was still as good as new, more or less — Listo pencil leads, gummed airmail labels, card pockets for library books. O Warner’s!

My ultimate Warner’s find (in 1991) was a cache of A.W. Faber Castell 9000 pencils. I came away with two-dozen pencils in tins, and a few loose pencils in a third tin. I’ve sharpened and used up a few of the loose ones over the years (down to the bittersweet end, with a pencil extender), but the dozens remain untouched. These are serious pencils indeed.

Consider the box, which suggests the sort of presentation more frequently associated with fine cigars. (The box came along for free with the pencils.) I like to imagine an arrangement of these boxes, perhaps in a store window, eye candy for the pencil connoisseur.

The pencils are packed twelve to a tin, each tin complete with a seal. (I’ve seen photographs of Vladimir Nabokov at work with this kind of tin at his side.) The lead is dark, rich, smooth. The wood, so far as I can tell, is red cedar. Yes, red cedar. Simply sharpening one of these pencils is a delight. The shavings are smooth and papery. The fragrance brings back dim recollections of closets and clothes chests. No other pencils I’ve used have smelled like these.

And now for the most remarkable feature of these pencils. Their history is inscribed, a bit blurrily, on their sides:

LEADS IMPORTED FROM
AMERICAN ZONE GERMANY

Which is to say that these Castell 9000s were made between 1945 and 1949, when post-war Germany was divided into four Allied sectors. And these Castell 9000s were still sitting on a shelf in 1991 (and selling for 1991 prices too, about seventy cents a pencil, I think). I said something in the store — something vaguely articulate, like “Wow! These are really old!” “They never sold,” was the plainspoken American-gothic reply. And now here I am in 2005, vaguely articulate once again.

Michael Leddy teaches college English and has published widely as a poet and critic. He blogs at Orange Crate Art. Many thanks to our hard-working Comrade!

There are two other great articles about the Castell 9000 on the web for your reading pleasure. Faber-Castell has a great article in English on the German site (here), and there is a very very fine piece at Paper and Pencil (here) on our green Comrade.

[Images and text, M.L. Used with kind permission.]

We’ll be back today or tomorrow, before the end of 2005, with some goodies regarding the Faber-Castell Castell 9000, in it’s 100th year. Stay tuned!

Happy Holidays to all of our Comrades and People of the Revolution! Thanks for reading and participating and making this blog all it is!

This review comes from Comrade Bill Brandon. Many thanks to Bill for writing this for us during this very busy time of year!Technical Information
Type: Blade.
Material: Plastic.
Shavings Receptacle: Barrel.
Point Type: Variable.
Markings: See images.
Place of Manufacture: Made in Japan, by Kutsuwa Company, Ltd.
Availability: Locally, and online at Wet Paint Art.

T’GAAL: What the heck is that?
A pencil sharpener review by Bill Brandon

What has a blade, a tank, no batteries, sharpens pencils – and allows you to control the length of the point? Look at Figure 1, which shows identical pencils, sharpened to five different lengths. All five were produced by the same sharpener.

Figure 1 Five points, one sharpener (click all images for larger ones).

These points are the product of the T’GAAL Multi-Sharpener, manufactured in Japan by the Kutsuwa Company. (See Figure 2, which will give you an idea of the size of the T’GAAL.) It’s a handy, pocket-size, blue plastic tool sold mainly to schoolchildren in Asia, but available to anyone.

Figure 2 The compact T’GAAL sharpener.

As you can see in Figure 3, the T’GAAL has a large dial on the side. The blade and its adjusting mechanisms are inside a container (the tank) that catches the shavings. The dial adjusts the angle of the sharpener blade, and therefore determines the length of the pencil point. There are five settings, from short and blunt to very long. The dial also has a sixth position, at which point a small shutter blocks the sharpener opening in order to keep the shavings inside; be aware that this is not a tight seal. The shutter will keep the shavings in, but graphite dust is liable to leak out. However, I have carried mine in the pocket of my jeans without any terrible mishaps.

Figure 3 The T’GAAL Multisharpener.

The sharpener accepts only standard-size pencils. Jumbo pencils like the Dixon Tri-Conderoga won’t fit. The blade appears to be replaceable, but no replacements come with the T’GAAL, and the Kutsuwa web site does not offer any for sale.

The experience of using a product tends to be highly subjective, but I’d have to say that the T’GAAL is very smooth. Shavings come off the pencil in an unbroken curl, no sawdust or crumbs, no broken leads. As long as you let the blade do its work, without jamming the pencil into the sharpener, it is an easy experience to obtain the precise points you saw here in the first photo.

There is some resistance when you turn the dial from “Close” to the “5” position, and you may think that the mechanism is jammed. But keep a firm grip on the (slightly slippery) dial and the shutter will open. The resistance is the result of the way the cam on the back of the dial is set up. To turn to “5” from “Close” you are pushing up over the “hump” onto the high point of the cam. However, once that is done, the dial turns easily to whatever setting you desire. If the resistance bothers you, just make it a habit to always turn the dial to the left – to “1” — and you will find that it turns quite a bit more easily.

The only true (but slight) imperfection involves the small section that slides off to allow emptying the shavings. It can be a little tricky to put back on, and it gives the impression that it might be easily broken or lost. It does open easily, and might come open on its own (though I’ve had no such problem).

The package that the T’GAAL comes in contains a wealth of information. Unfortunately, it’s all in Japanese, which I am unable to read. Fortunately, there are some good illustrations that show how to use the machine. (See Figures 4 and 5.)

The Kutsuwa phone number, web site, and customer support e-mail addresses appear on the package. You might be able to order replacement blades directly – many Japanese businesses use English when dealing with foreign customers.

Kutsuwa Company is a stationery wholesaler, selling to vendors who serve the Japanese education market. They don’t appear to sell directly to retail customers.
I bought my T’GAAL online from Wet Paint Art, but they also have a retail store in St. Paul, MN. The price of the T’GAAL was $14.50, plus shipping and handling. My order was sent UPS Ground (the only option offered) two business days after I placed it, and it arrived at my home near Dallas about three days later.

On the whole, if your work would benefit from variable angles on the points of your pencils, I’d recommend the T’GAAL. I’m not aware of any other sharpener that does what it does. Besides, it’s nice-looking, and clearly marks you as one of the pencil illuminati.

Addition:
A note from Tim, Marketing Manager at Wet Paint Art:

“Thank you and Bill Brandon for the very nice and comprehensive review of the T’Gaal sharpener from Holbein. This is a real staff favorite here at Wet Paint and we were hoping to give this unique sharpener some attention to a community that can really appreciate it.

We’ve had it at a promotion price thru December 31st, and it’s been such a hit that we are currently out of stock– we have more on order and expect them to arrive after Jan 1. Although at that time our price will return to list price ($14.50), we’d like to extend our holiday promotion price exclusively for those visiting your site through the month of January.

Simply have your visitors to type “BB review” in the comments section of their Wet Paint order during January and we’ll give them the discount price of $9.99. Of course any orders taken this week will automatically receive the holiday price.

Thanks again– I’m glad there are websites like yours out there!”

Max from Holland sent us this link to some…tasty pencils! Smencils.

“Yes - they really are pencils made from rolled sheets of newspaper instead of wood. You can even see the layers of newspaper when you sharpen them.

They sharpen the same as all other wood pencils and they SMELL WAY BETTER. Not only do they smell great, but they’re good for the environment too.

‘Saving trees…one pencil at a time.’ ™”

Smencils are an environmentally friendly alternative to wooden pencils that are guaranteed to keep their smell for two years! While I personally love the smell of a freshly sharpened cedar pencil, other scents might be fun, too. Coffee scented pencils for morning planning, etc. Mmm.

Thanks to Max for the tasty link!

[Image, Smencils.]

From the Revecess Blog (via Boing Boing):

“One of the great things about being a sort of vigilante teacher (I go where I’m needed) in Japan is that the kids will show me things that they wouldn’t show their other teachers. Today, they showed me Batoen.

Much like Pokemon is short for Pocket Mosters, Batoen is short for Battle Pencils… just the word for pencil in Japanese is enpitsu. It’s a simple idea. Take pencils, write stuff on each of the sides, so that the pencil becomes a sort of six-sided die. You roll the pencil and the pencil, which represents a monster from Dragon Quest, does something, like damage or healing of hp, or other interesting effects (One kid had some hot chick monster, it’s effect was, ‘Monster kisses everyone, they are made happy’, more detailed rules after the cut).

The kicker is that you are playing with pencils. Japanese schools are pretty strict when it comes to games. No cards(except for school sanctioned ‘Japanese cultural cards’ like karuta or hyakunin …), so poker and Magic/Pokemon are out. But the fact that this uses pencils means that it flies under the radar most the time. And even if the teachers did know about it, what are they gonna do, take the kids pencils away?”

And you can get them shipped to the US, too!

(Thanks to Dow, Mike, Shaun and everyone who sent this in for the links!)

And special thanks to my brother for holding down the fort while I was enroute on the railroad late last week. Don’t worry — I brought him some pencils.

[Images, Revecess Blog.]

I am leaving at 3 a.m. tonight (Thursday morning really) for a train trek half-way across the United States, so I will be offline until the weekend, most likely Monday. In the meantime, it would be great to get some feedback for our pencil Hero Woodchuck, who might stock some great sharpeners from the venerable KUM line at The Pencil World Creativity Store in 2006.

Woodchuck wrote:

“I’d be interested in feedback from fellow Revolutionaries as to what features seem most important. Are the following value added features something you would pay for or not?

- two hole sharpeners for normal and jumbo diameter pencils
- with or without containers to catch the shavings
- higher quality “luxury style” desktop hand sharpener which includes container in
Aluminim or Gold Plated finish as opposed to plastic container for shavings
- magnesium vs. bronze vs. gold plated finish
- any strong interest in a pointer sharpener to be used with mechanical pencils
- any interest in cosmetic pencil sharpeners
- would you really order replacement blades or not

…The medium wedge from a good KUM hand sharpener is my personal preference.”

Any feedback about this will certainly benefit the entire Revolution, since open-stock KUMs are very hard to find online.

Have a great weekend, and safe travels to all who are going home for the holidays before next week! In the meantime, my brother will be monitoring the comment moderation, so don’t be shy with your sharpener comments:)

In keeping with the blue pencil theme from yesterday, check out the great work of artist Steve Tansley, who tells us, “I only use the Sanford Col-Erase 20044 blue. Always have. Best pencil around.”

Goodfences:

“A cartoon by Bill Goodykoontz and Steve Tansley.”

Blue Pencil Unlimited:

“BluePencil Ultd. is the online portfolio of Steve Tansley. An illustrator and graphic designer for 12 years, an interactive designer for 6 years. His work has been published in the Arizona State Press Newspapers, Scottsdale Tribune Newspapers and Take 5 Entertainment Guide. He works full time at Studio Productions in Tempe Arizona as their Senior Graphic Designer and Illustrator. He has been honored with the Society for Professional Journalists Award and has won two Prisma Awards for interactive design with an honorable mention. Steve is the co-creator of Goodfences, a hilarious new comic-strip. He continues to teach cartooning principles, graphic design and web design for middle school, high school and undergrad students to help educate and broaden the appreciation of art.”

Of his favorite tool, Steve tells us:

“I use the pencil so much I named my freelance effort Blue Pencil Unlimited. As a full-time illustrator and graphic designer I am always sketching my ideas first. So the Col-Erase has become my standard. I offer a mac icon of the col-erase on my site if anyone is interested. I welcome feedback and best of luck with the revolution!”

Many thanks to Steve for sharing such amazing work with us! Sanford’s Col-Erase pencils are readily available at Dick Blick and Mister Art, for the adventurous who want to try them.

[Image and text, S.T. Used with very kind permission.]

Jacob of Untitled 13 is kind enough to let us post one of his recent pencil drawings:

PR: ” I have to ask: what kind of pencil is that? Prismacolor Verithin?”

U13: ” It’s a Staedtler non-repro blue pencil, which is probably pretty similar to a Verithin in softness and color…Been trying to use pencil more and more as it allows for much greater gradient control than pen stippling.”

[Image, Untitled 13. Used with very kind permission.]

The popular myth is that NASA spent millions of dollars on developing a pen that would write in outer space, while the Russian Cosmonauts simply used pencils like the Russian and American spacemen used before the introduction of the Space Pen to Apollo VII in 1968. As is now widely known, this is not true. Paul Fisher produced the Space Pen with millions of his own dollars. Nevertheless, it does speak volumes about Americans that we would invent a special pen for space, rather than using pencils — whether it is an example of our ingenuity, wastefulness, inventiveness, etc.

The joke is that the Soviets used regular pencils and saved their comrades millions, so we have what is one of the funniest dang geek gift items you’re likely to find: The Russian Space Pen.

This is from NASA’s site:

“Fisher developed his space pen with no NASA funding. The company reportedly invested about $1 [I’ve read that it was $2 million] million of its own funds in the effort then patented its product and cornered the market as a result. Fisher offered the pens to NASA in 1965, but, because of the earlier controversy, the agency was hesitant in its approach. In 1967, after rigorous tests, NASA managers agreed to equip the Apollo astronauts with these pens. Media reports indicate that approximately 400 pens were purchased from Fisher at $6 per unit for Project Apollo. The Soviet Union also purchased 100 of the Fisher pens, and 1,000 ink cartridges, in February 1969, for use on its Soyuz space flights. Previously, its cosmonauts had been using grease pencils to write in orbit.”

Stay tuned next week for the first pseudo-heretical (some would say) and post-hypocritical act of writing about a pen on Pencil Revolution: the Fisher Space Pen.

[Image, JustWrite.com.au. Thanks to Lindsay for the link!]

Philofaxy writes about mechanical pencils and the love and comradery we feel for our mechanical Brothers and Sisters, not to mention our inky Cousins:

“Some days, I worry about world peace. Some days, I worry about my family. Most days, though, I worry about what writing implement I should carry in the lone pen loop in my Filofax. To date, I’ve been using a nondescript, black-barreled Uni-Ball (blue ink). But, as I’ve noted before, ink carries with it a price: the price of permanence. A choice made in ink cannot be undone. A choice made in pencil, however, is inscribed only in dust. And we know how permanent dust is. (It blows in the wind.)

I’m a man of impermanence, not permanence. So I’ve switched to pencil. The problem with the usual wooden pencil, though, is twofold: (1) You have to have access to a sharpener at all times; and (2) it doesn’t stay in a typical planner pen loop, because it is a cylinder of uniform diameter. Problem No. 2 is probably decisive; Problem No. 1, however, is no small matter. In combination, they left me with no choice for general planner usage: mechanical pencils. The folks at Pencil Revolution have assured me that mechanical pencils are not necessarily evil. (They say that, but I note a conspicuous lack of mechanical pencil porn on the site.)”

Read the rest of the post here.

[Text, Philofaxy. Image, J.G.]

A good friend and colleague of mine gave me permission to quote from an email she sent me about pencils, Thoreau and a Mars Lumograph 100 that I left in her mailbox. I’ve been thinking about environmental issues and how they relate to throw-away (non-refillable) pens, etc. And the issue of quality versus value pencils comes up often in our little community, so I thought I’d post this:

“I know I’ve teased you about the extent of your fascination with pencils, but I understand where it comes from. These are the tools of our trade, if we’re doing philosophy correctly. We might need the laptops to do academic philosophy, but to really think and explore the meaning of life, we need quiet time to ourselves, away from the hum of electronics; time alone in nature, with a means of recording our thoughts as they come to us. Most pens are disposable, and their use reflects our attitudes toward the environment, others, and ourselves. Pencils are finicky, and they need care. If we don’t sharpen them, they won’t write, and if we don’t use caution, they will break. Using pencils — in a strange way — cultivates stewardship.

Also, it’s encouraged me to take note of the quality of the things that I usually take for granted. There is a demonstrable difference, and we should aim for quality. And all too often, the quality gets disregarded, especially as we search for good deals. I’ve almost gotten to the point of doing searches for quality chalk for my classes, since there are some years that the school’s chalk simply doesn’t work. What’s kept me in check is the fact that I know I’m nowhere near organized enough to keep it on me. I’d have a crate of the good stuff in my office and nothing on me when I got to class.

And I get the same looks from my family that you’ve gotten over the pencils. When my aunt and I get to talking about spices and various brands of olive oil, it’s as if we’re speaking Outer Mongolian. One of my uncle’s called me a pseudo-intellectual snob because I knew what Earl Grey tasted like.”

[Text, Tanya J., used with permission. Image, J.G.]

Gordon Coale was very kind in writing the review of the Boston Bulldog sharpener for us (which also appears on his site here).

Technical Information
Type: Blade.
Material: Plastic.
Shavings Receptacle: Barrel.
Point Type: Long-Point.
Markings: “BOSTON” (body).
Place of Manufacture: Made in China, by Hunt Mfg. Co.
Availability: Office Max stores and Mister Art, among other sources.

“The heartbreak of a pencil sharpener.”

This is the second time I’ve written this review of the hand held Boston rotating lid pencil sharpener.

The little Boston hand held sharpener has a lot of things going for it. This biggest thing is that it has a container to hold the shavings. Even better, it has a rotating top that keeps the shavings inside.

It’s big enough to hold a fair amount of shavings but small enough to fit in a pocket. It also puts a nice long point on the lead and the barrel shape makes it comfortable to hold while sharpening. However, there was one teensy drawback. I wrote the first review as I did this one, with my California Republic Palomino HB in my Moleskine notebook. I was almost finished when the little Boston sharpener started to eat my Palomino. The blade had gone dull.
No continuous curls of shaved wood — just sawdust and a broken lead. Oh, heartbreak! Was this relationship to end when it had barely begun? Apparently.

The blade was attached with a screw which means that the blade could be replaced if only I could find a replacement. I Googled high and low, and not a single replacement blade was to be found. I was looking for a long term relationship with my pencil sharpener, and now it appears that I will be forced into a series of short term relationships and one night stands as I search the seedy environs of drug stores and supermarkets for the cheap plastic thrills they offer. I can’t do this. I want a good sharpener that I can settle down with and make shavings.

So I Googled for a sharpener with replaceable blades. There isn’t much. Staedtler had some hand held pencil sharpeners with replaceable blades but I couldn’t find anyone who carried the sharpener and the blades. What has this world come to?

Then I found the hand held sharpeners at Alvin — a fine assortment of spiffy sharpeners and their replaceable blades. Unfortunately, Alvin only sells the sharpeners in blister packs containing many sharpeners. I’m afraid I can’t afford a polygamous relationship with many sharpeners. I am a one sharpener kind of guy. But they did sell the blades in affordable 3 packs. Alvin has Alvin and Kum sharpeners. The Kum sharpeners had a variety of models with containers. The Alvin brand has some nice metal ones including the sublime Bullet, a sharpener reduced to it’s essentials.

I searched the web for an Alvin or Kum sharpener and it’s replaceable blades. I only found two sites, and the selection on both sites was minimal. Oh, where will I find the sharpener meant for me? Maybe there is hope. I had an exchange of emails with Charles Berolzheimer, aka WoodChuck the pencil pusher, President of California Cedar Products Company, from whom all Palomino pencils flow, and I spilled my heart out to him about my fruitless search for a long term relationship type of pencil sharpener. He is going to see what he can do at the Pencil World Creativity Store. Good luck WoodChuck!

Maybe some day in the near future there will be the pencil sharpener of my dreams nestled in my pocket ready to make shavings. A guy can hope.

Many many thanks, Gordon! Be sure to check out Gordon’s other post about pencils and Moleskines.

[Text and images, G.C. Used with kind permission. First image, J.G.]

Ross at Pencilmation let us know a few weeks ago that he’s got some great new cartoons up at his site. Brighten up your Friday by checking out some really cool little films — especially the adventure of Infinity Snail!

(Flash required to view the little movies.)

[Image, Pencilmation.]

We do not make a habit of politically-charged posts, but we certainly will not shy away when politics involved pencils and pencil gear:

“A student at Waterloo Primary School in Ashton under Lyne dismantled a pencil sharpener and used the blade as a weapon, slashing another student across the neck. The school’s response? Nothing short of unbelievable.

The attacker was suspended for two days and is now back in school.

Police, who were notified two days later, have spoken to the young attacker and his parents.

Headteacher David Willis has now banned all pencil sharpeners.

They have banned pencil sharpeners. Banned pencil sharpeners. One more time - they banned pencil sharpeners.

The problem here was not the pencil sharpener. It was the wannabe Jack the Ripper who manipulated an ordinary tool to craft a weapon. Would the absence of a pencil sharpener have prevented this kid from his meticulously planned assault? Do they think that a kid who figures out how to use a pencil sharpener as a weapon will have any difficulty in using another tool in a similar fashion?”

Read the rest of the article here.

[Image, J.G.]