Completing the Set: Lamy 2000 Mechanical Pencil

Due to the combination of timeless design, ergonomics, and quality, the Lamy 2000 series tops my list of personal favorite writing instruments. I started with the Fountain Pen, next acquired the Ballpoint and Multi Pen, and then the Rollerball. But what about the Mechanical Pencil? Lamy offers both .5mm and .7mm mechanical pencil versions of the Lamy 2000 in the same brushed black Makrolon finish as the rest of the line, and I decided it’s long-past time to check it out.

From top, the Lamy 2000 4-Color Ballpoint / Multi Pen, the .5mm Mechanical Pencil, and the Ballpoint pen. You can also see different degrees of wear on the Makrolon as these pens/pencils are used and age. The Ballpoint dates to the 1980s, and is worn smooth. The multi pen is about 5-6 years old and starting to show signs of “break-in,” and the pencil is still brand new and therefore matte. I love the look of aged Makrolon!

In terms of design, the Lamy 2000 Mechanical Pencil offers no surprises - the form factor is more or less the same as the Lamy 2000 Ballpoint in terms of both look and dimensions. The differences are what you would expect: the standard metal knock is replaced by a Makrolon knock/eraser-cover engraved with a “5” or “7” on top to denote the lead width (a thoughtful detail, actually), and the tip of the pencil reveals a bit of the lead protector sleeve.

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As with most mechanical pencils, the knock on the Lamy 2000 can be removed to expose an eraser and to refill the lead.

In the hand, the Makrolon (fiberglass-blend) pencil is of course both lightweight, balanced, and tactile. With a mechanical pencil, you need to pay attention to balance in particular, as an excessively front-weighted or back-weighted pencil can place pressure on the graphite and lead to frequent breakage. I had no such issue here, especially since I use the durable Uni Kuru-Toga or Pentel graphite in most of my mechanical pencils. (The stock Lamy graphite is also very good.)

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In hand, this is a very lightweight mechanical pencil, which feels very much on par with both Lamy 2000 ballpoints (standard and multi pen).

While I have long adored Lamy’s 4-Color Ballpoint (the multi pen), the one knock on it (pun intended) is that it doesn’t include a mechanical pencil option like the Sailor Imperial Black. In my opinion, the next best thing is to have a matching mechanical pencil (or, as in my case, a full matching set ;)).

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All the Lamy 2000 pens! (Well, most of them. I have more.)

Takeaways and Where to Buy

I’ve been a fan of the Lamy 2000 in all its iterations for well over a decade. The Lamy 2000 Mechanical Pencil is no exception, and if you’re a fan of either the overall Lamy 2000 design aesthetic or simply good quality mechanical pencils in general, this one deserves your consideration. As with other models of the Lamy 2000, we stock them directly in the T.G.S. Curated Shop, in both the .5mm and .7mm variations. The pricing on the Lamy 2000 Mechanical Pencil is around $55, which is the lowest price point of any pen or pencil in the Lamy 2000 range, making it a nice entry point if you would like to try the shape and feel before committing to a more expensive item.

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The mechanical pencil is conveniently labeled “5” or “7”, depending on whether it’s the .5mm or .7mm version.

Further Reading on the Lamy 2000

With the mechanical pencil, I’ve now completed my review series on the standard black Makrolon Lamy 2000 models. If you’d like to read up on the other pens in the Lamy 2000 collection, as well as more backstory regarding the history and story behind this Bauhaus-inspired pen design, check out our reviews of the Lamy 2000 Fountain Pen (Workhorse Pens Series), Ballpoint, Rollerball, and 4 Color Ballpoint - Multi pen.

The Gentleman Stationer is supported entirely by purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop and pledges via the T.G.S. Patreon Program. This post does not contain third-party affiliate links or paid advertising.

Pencil Review: Wingback Mechanical Pencil in Brass

Like their machined pen counterparts, machined mechanical pencils have grown in popularity over the past five years or so, with many of these brands vying for top billing in the “buy it once/use it forever” category. People get emotionally attached to their mechanical pencils, possibly more so than any other tool or stationery item, and it’s not uncommon to find people still using the same drafting pencil they purchased in high school or college twenty or thirty years later. If you’re looking for such a workhorse, why not consider a high-quality, machined metal pencil that’s guaranteed for 30 years?

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Wingback is a UK-based company that makes a variety of stationery and lifestyle products, ranging from pens and pencils to hip flasks and leather wallets. The company presents itself as “a 100 year company and antidote to disposable culture,” offering a 30-day return period and a 30-year guarantee on all of its products. After a month or so of experiencing the Wingback Mechanical Pencil, I can easily see it lasting that long (or more likely, even longer).

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All of Wingback’s writing instruments - there’s also a pen - are machined from brass or stainless steel. The pencil has a shorter length and wider diameter than your typical drafting pencil, which helps significantly with balance. If there’s one drawback to a machined metal mechanical pencil, it’s weight, and a combination of weight and length can throw off the balance for some users, leading to hand fatigue and even more frequent lead breakage. Though shorter than I’m used to, the Wingback rests perfectly in the web of my hand. The subtle knurling on the barrel offers excellent grip and control without sacrificing comfort, though knurling is always a matter of personal preference.

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I opted for the .7mm. With a heavier pencil, I sometimes find that .5mm leads tend to break more frequently, especially at the softer B and 2B hardnesses.

Clearly, the Wingback Mechanical Pencil has been designed and created as an all-day, everyday writing instrument. (In other words, what I’d call a workhorse.) Though it’s a bit more complex to refill than the average mechanical pencil, the Wingback holds a massive number of leads inside the metal barrel. Wingback pegs this number at 40, and I haven’t done an official test, but I was easily able to fit an entire pack of Pentel 2B leads, which will take me at least a year to use up. The pencil features a retractable pipe, making it suitable for pocket carry. One drawback, however, is the lack of an integrated eraser. That’s not an issue for me, since I rarely use mechanical pencil erasers in favor of better stand-alone options, but those who don’t want to carry a separate eraser should be aware.

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The Wingback Mechanical Pencil is machined in England, with the internal pencil mechanism made in Japan. The pencil is capable of holding an absolutely massive number of pencil leads inside the barrel, so you should rarely have to refill.

Takeaways and Where to Buy

If you appreciate the look and durability of a machined mechanical pencil, but worry that many of the models currently on the market are too heavy or unbalanced for your hand, you should consider the Wingback Mechanical Pencil. Personally, I love the “buy it once” philosophy Wingback espouses, and I especially appreciate the large lead capacity and retractable pipe, which lands this pencil squarely within “portable workhorse” territory. If you’re the type of person who loves to have a single pen or pencil in your bag, at hand and always ready, you can opt for the Wingback Mechanical Pencil without any concern over whether it will be ready to go.

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The Wingback Mechanical Pencil, second from left, shown here alongside the Rotring 600, Modern Fuel Mechanical Pencil, and Rotring 800.

You can purchase the Wingback Mechanical Pencil directly from Wingback, starting at £95.00 in either the brass shown here or stainless steel. Wingback has also started to offer special finishes, including a “Black Steel” version that’s now sold out, as well as an artist collaboration with cartography studio Lást Maps. Given the quality of the work and the fact that I would expect this product to last for many years, I consider Wingback’s pricing more than fair, and even a good value. If you’re in the market for a machined pen or pencil, I would highly encourage you to check out their offerings.

Wingback provided me with the pencil featured in this review free of charge, for review purposes. I was not otherwise compensated for this review. This post does not contain affiliate links, and all opinions expressed herein are my own.

Stock-up Obsession: "B" and "2B" Pencils

When CW Pencil Enterprises announced earlier this year that it was closing, my first instinct was to stock up on their store exclusives and those items that you couldn’t easily get elsewhere. In addition to their custom pencil pouches, a copy of Caroline’s book, and Billy Reid desk accessories tray, I made a huge purchase of a bulk box of 2B Camel pencils. I don’t think it’s a full gross, but it’s something like 100 pencils and I don’t see myself using these up anytime soon. Why this particular purchase, you might ask? Because I’ve settled on 2B as my perfect graphite hardness.

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There’s nothing like the look of a bulk box of pencils. All that untapped potential….

Orange caps on a box of a dozen Staedtler Noris 2B pencils.

Now, all true pencil lovers understand that the graphite hardness scale can vary significantly between brands and regions. A Japanese “HB” pencil, for example, might feel identical to a German 2B, and leave nearly as dark a line. I tend not to dwell too much on these differences, however. If there’s a “B” or “2B” version of any pencil available, it’s what I’ll buy, and chances are, it will work very well for me, striking the right balance of darkness and usability (meaning that the graphite won’t smear across the page).

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Both the Tombow 2558 HB and Uni-Mitsubishi 9850 HB leave a smooth, dark line, especially for an HB-grade pencil, but they still don’t quite touch the darkness of the Staedtler Noris 2B, much less the extremely dark Camel 2B.

So what are my favorite 2B Pencils? Well, the 2B Camels that I picked up are wonderful, with their streamlined eraser that sits flush with the barrel. You get the look of an eraserless, “capped” pencil without losing any functionality. (See the pics below for how they do this - I always wondered “how much eraser” you actually get - turns out its a lot.) I’ve also grown fond of the 2B Staedtler Noris, that classic German school pencil that’s seemingly everywhere in Europe but difficult to find in the U.S. The 2B version has an orange cap, to differentiate it from the red, yellow, and black HB that’s typically considered the “standard” Noris. And though not a true 2B - some say more like a 4B but nobody really knows what the heck they are - I’m partial to the Blackwing Matte (or the Blackwing MMX, or “Original,” or whatever you want to call it). Sure, it’s soft, but for some reason I find the “softest” Blackwing maintains its point much better, and smears less, than the Pearl. Mechanical pencil refills are a no-brainer, with most brands offering “B” and “2B” options in both standard mechanical pencil leads and leadholder refills. That’s my default choice.

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Now I just need to work on stocking some “B” and “2B” pencils for the shop. If anyone has a contact at Camel, hit me up! These are quite difficult to find anywhere else and I would hate to see them become even more difficult to obtain. I’m having visions of a red Camel with a black eraser….

This post does not contain paid third-party affiliate links. All products pictured in this review were purchased with my own funds, for my own use. Purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop support original content, pen reviews, pen show events, etc. from The Gentleman Stationer. If you would like to support us even further, please consider checking out the T.G.S. Patreon Program, which offers access to online meetups, exclusive discounts and pre-orders, and more!

A Surprise in the Mail from Musgrave! And a Giveaway!

Nicole, the Marketing Director at Musgrave Pencil, was kind enough to send over a BUNCH of product samples to celebrate back to school season, including a Heritage Collection Variety Pack featuring one dozen assorted pencils from Musgrave’s classic lineup and newer releases, such as the Tennessee Red. Since I kicked off this week with a review of two pens from Chattanooga-based BigiDesign, I thought it would be fun to end the week with a giveaway post featuring some pencils from Musgrave, located literally just down the road from me in Shelbyville, TN. (I really do need to go visit sometime - not sure they give tours, though….)

Enter Below to Win a Dozen Tennessee Reds or a Dozen Harvest 320 Pencils!

I’ve previously written about the Musgrave Tennessee Red, a throwback to the time when pencils were made from American red cedar. I also have a dozen Musgrave Harvest 320 pencils, which is Musgrave’s classic yellow No. 2. You can enter the giveaway and view the terms and conditions via the Gleam widget below, but the short version is that I will pick two winners on Weds morning. First winner gets the Tennessee Reds, second winner gets the Harvest 320s. Many thanks to Musgrave for making this possible!

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My daughter already claimed the sampler pack and the pencil cup. Sorry!

Where to Buy

If you’re interested in grabbing one of these awesome pencil samplers for yourself, head over the Musgrave website, which you may notice has been redesigned since you last visited! The Heritage Collection Variety Pack pictured here is available for $12.75, including the awesome reusable pencil cup that won a Dieline award, and in addition to the Tennessee Reds and the Harvest pencils, Musgrave recently released the Greenbelt, an FSC-certified natural wood pencil made. I can’t wait to get my hands on some of these!

This post does not contain affiliate links, nor am I being compensated by Musgrave Pencil. The Gentleman Stationer is supported by purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop and reader donations. If you would like to support us even further, please consider checking out the T.G.S. Patreon Program, which offers access to online meetups, exclusive discounts and pre-orders, and more.

Essential Stationery Items: Pentel PD345 Quicker Clicker

Today I’m reviewing one product in my personal collection that may actually be nearly 30 years old: the Pentel PD345 “Quicker Clicker” mechanical pencil. Those of us who came of age in the early to mid-1990s might remember this mechanical pencil as “the one with the clicker on the side that holds a ton of lead.” I constantly had two or three of these in rotation throughout my middle and high school years, and one of them seems to have survived in the back of a desk drawer. I got curious: Was this pencil still available, and was the modern version as good as the vintage?

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My early 1990s-vintage Quicker Clicker (center) alongside two modern versions, which still have their plastic eraser caps. I lost the original cap long ago.

I happily discovered that you can still get the Pentel PD345 today, with the design mostly unchanged. The aspect of this pencil that I always appreciated was that it seems to be made for actual writing, as opposed to drafting or engineering like many knurled metal mechanical pencils. The “Quicker Clicker” features a round barrel with a convex grip section coated in soft rubber. Despite the tendency for the grip to accumulate lint and other backpack detritus, and get kind of grungy over time, this pencil was insanely comfortable to use for long stretches, making it a go-to for test-taking and essay writing. I distinctly recall never having to refill this thing, and true to form, when I pulled the eraser from the original pen nearly a dozen leads fell out the back, all still intact.

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Unfortunately the texture on the modern version of the Quicker Clicker probably makes it more likely to accumulate dirt, lint, etc, though it might be fairly easy to clean with compressed air.

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If there is one drawback with the Quicker Clicker, it’s that you have to rotate the pencil if you’re interested in keeping a uniform point on the lead, and the placement of the plastic lever on the grip may make this uncomfortable for some people. For that reason, I’m not sure it will ever replace the Uni Kuru-Toga as my go-to inexpensive mechanical pencil recommendation, but hey, some things still get points for nostalgia, and anything that’s managed to hang around in my desk for 25-30 years isn’t going to be replaced altogether.

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Takeaways and Where To Buy

Few items have had as much staying power in my collection as the Pentel Quicker Clicker, and at $8 for a pack of two (or $40 for a box of 12?!?), its hard to argue that this mechanical pencil isn’t a great deal. It’s a solid Amazon or big box stationery purchase, and with the enormous lead capacity and comfortable grip, one of the relatively few mechanical pencils on the market actually intended for writing.

I purchased the pencil featured in this review from Amazon, with my own funds, for my own personal use. Last time I checked, you could still find this pencil at Staples, Office Depot, Target, etc., though Amazon seems to have the best pricing, especially if you’re looking to acquire a good, inexpensive mechanical pencil in bulk.

Disclaimer: This post does not contain affiliate links. If you’re interested in helping to support The Gentleman Stationer, consider joining our Patreon or shopping the T.G.S. Curated Shop, our related retail operation. Many thanks!