The ability to advance a mechanical pencil lead without thinking about it makes the Uni Kuru Toga Roulette a safe bet for most people. Is 0.5mm or 0.7mm lead better? The comfort of a mechanical pencil isn’t something only drafters, architects, or professional artists have to think about. People who have arthritis, smaller hands, or who suffer from hand fatigue should also consider how comfortable a pencil is before buying it. The best pencil will be lightweight, fit well in the hand, and have a rubberized or coarse grip. Lead composition – with the 5.6mm leads you have a choice of lead colour and composition. Graphite leads, chalks, sepia, red chalks, and charcoals are available.

I use clutch pencils for all sorts of drawing, preparatory sketching and notation. I use them in place of regular pencils, which I hardly ever have now. I like them because they’re really comfortable in the hand, plus it’s very easy to get a range of marks with the fatter ones. You can sharpen the lead to a point but also use it well-rounded for easy tonal drawing. They’re refillable and durable, and I really like things that are made to last, rather than having to keep buying new. I think I’ve had the Cretacolour one for over 10 years. I love that you don’t need a regular pencil sharpener or knife to use these, and the leads don’t tend to break either. They are also really good for mixing with other media, like other coloured pencils, watercolour and ink.” A clutch pencil body stays the same size over time as the lead is used up, neither the length nor weight changes, it feels the same always, the balance remains true. If an artist does long period of gradual shading and the wood-cased pencil keeps getting shorter and lighter as they sharpen it, it can be frustrating. A clutch pencil is a precision instrument and many artists who use lead holders draw for hours at a time and the quality of their tool is important to them. Many say that their favourite leadholder has given them years of loyal service.

PASSIONATE ABOUT PENS

A Staedtler Mars was one of my first quality everyday carry mechanical pencils. It's a lead holder, which means, unlike a standard design with a bunch of thin-diameter graphite shafts, the Staedtler Mars comes with a 2mm lead with an integrated lead sharpener that functions with the pushdown mechanism. It comes with HB hardness lead, and you can rotate the metal clip to the correct indicator point for the particular lead you place into it to remind you of what you have loaded. The lead holder design makes it closer to a traditional pencil in concept, built sturdier and significant for all-around everyday carry. It's affordable, too, but don't mistake being cheap for poor quality. Rhodia 9340C: The Rhodia 9340C has a distinctive hexagonal metal shape that works as a roll stop on a slanted desk. It also has a refillable 3-in-1 multi-pen and mechanical pencil mechanism. Some mechanical pencils use leads that are 2.0 mm or wider, but these are generally categorized separately as “ lead holders” and are typically used by artists and designers. Because of its short size standard length refill leads will need the ends snapped off to take them from 120mm down to 90mm, which is very easy to do. Leftover lead pieces can still be fully used. A wood pencil is one of the first things most people learn to write with as they grow up, but because they break easily, regular pencils don't feature that often in people's everyday carry. I use my trusty mechanical pencil whenever I need a pencil in my EDC.

Like a standard wood-cased pencil they are available in different hardnesses of graphite, though not as wide a range as wood-cased pencils – usually HB to 6B – as well as some charcoal and coloured chalk leads in the 5.6mm size. The barrel is robust, well-balanced and feels solid, comfortable to hold. Lovely weight and balance. Lightly ribbed plastic finger-grip zone, hexagonal barrel. Meanwhile, to further build up your artist toolkit, don't miss our guides to the best pencils of all kinds, the best pens for artists, and for expressive work and special effects, the best watercolour pencils. The best mechanical pencils for drawing None of these have erasers in the push-button. Some have lead pointers in the push button. One is ‘automatic’, advancing the lead in increments.

How to Choose the Best Mechanical Pencil for Drawing

In the case of the STAEDTLER Mars micro carbon 255 lead tube, individual leads are refilled one at a time by means of a push-button mechanism. Special feature: The refill process is designed for single-handed use. Tip: Refill leads compatible with all mechanical pencils are also available in red, blue and green for use on paper, drafting film and tracing paper. A pencil for drawing is a highly personal tool and each artist has different preferences for weight, balance, size and shape of the barrel and size of the lead. Some artists prefer a light or heavy pencil, some prefer the balance towards the tip or towards the centre, some like a smooth barrel and some like a knurled grip-zone so they can slowly rotate it as they draw to keep the tip even more precisely sharp.

In contrast to mechanical pencils, leadholders are refilled by pressing the push-button to open the drop clutch mechanism and inserting the 2-mm lead (Mars carbon 200) into the leadholder via the tip. In the table below, we list the advantages and disadvantages to using mechanical pencils instead of wooden pencils or pens: Advantages of Mechanical Pencils versus Wooden Pencils Below find the critical selection criteria you should use when selecting your drawing implement. We provide product recommendations with grades for each of these criteria below: Lead diameterLastly, all mechanical pencils come with a fixed lead guidance sleeve and a retractable mechanism that controls how much lead is released or retracted. Knowing the diameter the pencil can hold is vital to avoid buying larger or smaller lead refills. Comfort In this article, we've gathered together the best mechanical pencils on the market today, selected from a mixture of recommendations from artists as well as extensive internet research. We'll start with the best pencils for drawing, but if you're only interested in writing then skip ahead to the best mechanical pencils for writing. I thought clutch pencils would be a bit anachronistic, but there are still many clutch pencils available, and there are good reasons to use them. Many of the thin lead mechanical pencils come with an eraser in the end, either under the removable push button or by twisting out. I use mine for all my drawing whether its in my sketchbook or on watercolour paper. My usual approach to drawing is to start with my clutch pencil and then move to standard pencils