Yes! pens AND pencils. coffee AND tea. dogs AND cats. rice AND beans… a plea for tolerance, for an understanding of the ‘other’…. but much remains to be done.
to paraphrase Orwell, ‘All writing instruments are equal, but some writing instruments are more equal than others…” power to the pencil…. ;-)

By Steve L. on 03.06.06 11:25 pm

I could not agree more! Untill recently my handwriting was illegable. Writing with a fountain pen improved it greatly. However pencils have always had a place in my heart. Even though my writing is better I like writing with a fountain pen, but a pencil is always in my pocket.(along with wallet, keys, multi tool,mechanical pencil, fountain pen, gell pen,and rollerball)(yes I have a lot).

By Eolt on 03.07.06 4:03 pm

The difference between pen and pencil can blur at times - Parker and others made a liquid lead pencil a few decades ago.

On the flip side, copying and indelible pencils may contain ink-like dyes.

By Stephen on 03.07.06 6:33 pm

Speaking of LL pencils…The massive conglomerate that makes papermate pencils, (did I ever think I’d see that - its like ‘kosher porkchops’) recently tried to sell, and may still be selling a disposable version of the liquid lead pencil, - I forget what they call it - But there is a reason why Parker didn’t keep selling the liquid lead pencil. It stinks. Imagine a rollerball with a very pale grey ink - if these where to be given a number grade like a real lead pencil, the ones I got give a line about like a 9H. Its a great concept, but so far no one seems to be able to get a liquid lead that approaches HB or darker in real world conditions.
I suspect someone at corporate level, that overseas pens, looked through Parkers patents and/or archives, and thought maybe they could revive the idea with modern technology. But it seems they couldn’t do any better than Parker did back in the 1950s.
So if you find one of the Liquid Lead parkers, keep it as a good example of a genuine new idea in pencils, that still hasn’t been perfected. Fortunately, Parker mechanical pencils of a more conventional type, are very high quality, and usually cost a lot less than their Fountain pen companions on the collectors market…(I’ve got a .9mm propel/repel/expel that matches the Parker 45, red barrel, steel top, gold clip and tassie. Erasers still available. I love it…)

By steve L. on 03.08.06 2:49 pm

I once tried the PaperMate version myself, and it was pretty awful — it recalled my experiences of reaching for a ball-point pen to do something important and finding that the ink wouldn’t flow and then frantically shaking it to no effect. But: I’m curious what problem the liquid-lead pencil is supposed to solve? If its output is supposed to be just like a pencil’s, it loses to an actual wood-cased pencil in that one can’t hold it in any position (not to mention cost disadvantage). Does it (at least the better versions of it) perhaps require less pressure from the user’s hand and shoulder?

By Dorai on 03.09.06 12:17 pm