ORIGINAL POST DATE: July 3, 2006
Pencils have changed very little over the years, at least in their outward appearance. They are still the same length as they have always been, give or take the presence of an eraser, and a pencil made 100 years ago could easily be mistaken for one made yesterday. Triangular pencils are a big innovation then compared with all the years of stability in outward design, and rather than being just a novelty item they seem to be growing in popularity. I am excited by these new triangular pencils - as excited as one can get about pencils anyway. The shift from hexagonal shape to triangular shape is a wonderful functional improvement, a major jump forward in the slow evolution of pencil design, and it has me trying out a bunch of new pencils.
I love the feel of a triangular pencil in my hand; it just fits so much better. I also have issues with tendonitis from years of drawing, so the improved ergonomics of the triangular shaped barrel is something I really appreciate as well. From a geometric perspective the new barrel shape, which I recently learned is not actually a triangle but a curve of constant width known as a Reuleaux Triangle. The fact that this shape does not have a fixed center of rotation means that triangular pencils don't roll off your desk as easily as a hexagonal pencil, which is another nice feature of the design.
I have been using a variety of triangular pencils lately to find the best one in the lot for my own use. They include:
- Dixon Tri-Conderoga 2/HB with eraser.
- Mongol Trio with eraser.
- Faber-Castell Jumbo Grip.
- Faber-Castell Grip 2001 2=B (available in other grades).
- Staedtler Mars Ergosoft HB (available in other grades).
- Staedtler Noris Ergosoft HB 2.
- California Republic Golden Bear HB.
- Ticonderoga Tri-Write 2/HB with eraser.
The first three pencils on the list are large diameter pencils designed for small children. I was unable to track down the Staedtler Noris Learner's pencil which is another larger diameter triangular pencil that I wanted to try, but they don't seem to be available in the US any longer. I like the large diameter pencils for sketching, since they are even more comfortable to hold than the smaller versions, but they may be too large for most people, and they require a special size pencil sharpener (the Tri-Conderoga comes with a sharpener for that purpose).
These three pencils all have a very similar feel to the graphitei, so none of them exceed the others on that front. The Tri-Conderoga has a black "grippy" finish to it that makes it easy to hold without feeling sticky and the Grip 2001 which features raised textured dots. The Mongol Trio has a nice semi-gloss natural finish that isn't slick at all. Each of these finishes works well with the large format triangular barrel, adding to the ergonomic comfort of using these pencils. When it comes down to choosing one over the other for these three pencils it will be a matter of subtle preference; do you want an eraser - do you like the color - do you prefer the finish. My choice is the Dixon Tri-Conderoga because of the construction of the pencil. Even though I prefer the little dots on the Jumbo Grip, the wood used by Faber-Castell to make these pencils is not cedar, but some other very light-weight wood that makes it feel insubstantial to me. The cedar of the Tri-Conderoga sharpens very well compared to the Jumbo Grip, and gives a better overall feeling to the pencil. The Dixon and the Mongol pencil are very similar but I prefer the style of the Dixon over the Mongol. Additionally, the Dixon Tri-Conderoga is much easier to find in stores in America.
The five other pencils on the list are all regular sized and of similar grades of graphite. The Mars Ergosoft and the Staedtler Ergosoft pencils have the best graphite in my experience; with the other pencils having good but not excellent writing qualities. The Golden Bear HB doesn't match my hexagonal Golden Bears for graphite quality, lacking the smoothness I have come to expect from California Republic. It's not bad graphite, just not as smooth as it should be.
The finish on these pencils is varried, with the two Staedtler pencils have the same "grippy" rubberized finish, the Grip 2001 having the same dot grips as its larger version, and the Tri-Write and the Golden Bear having a traditional lacquer finish. Of the last two the Golden Bear has the best finish, with a nice thick orange lacquer with a blue endcap. I like the rubberized finish of the Staedtlers and the dots of the Grip 2001 over the lacquer, but if you have a tendency for sweaty hands these may not work as well for you.
The wood of the Grip 2001 and the Mars Ergosoft are lighter than I like, as I mentioned above, with the Mars pencil being so light that it seems to be made from Balsa wood. The Mars Ergosoft is nearly impossible to find, but it would be nice to have the choice of graphite grades that it offers available with the Noris as well. The Noris Ergosoft, Tri-Write and Golden Bear are all made from more substantial wood, and fit my liking better. As with the larger pencils, your choice among these may depend on subtle preferences, but based on graphite and quality I prefer the Staedtler Noris Ergosoft over the others. I like the look of the design as well, with the black and yellow stripes and the distinct red end cap.
Let me know if there are any good triangular pencils I missed or if you have anything to add on the pencils discussed in this post.
UPDATE: 7/14/06 You can read part two to this post HERE.
Original Comment Stream from NWD Blog
The oversized ones don't fit my hand well but I am a fan of the regular size triangular pencils. The Noris Ergosoft is a favorite of mine. It works great (a smooth and dark line but not too soft), feels great (the lightly rubbery matte finish), and looks cool too (the black and yellow stripe with the red cap stand out in a crowd).
Now that PencilThings carries them, the Noris Ergosoft is not as hard to find as when Pencil Revolution reviewed them.
Posted by: JAbbott | July 03, 2006 at 01:25 PM
J -
I have a stockpile of Noris Ergosofts on hand, I like them enough to buy more each time I order pencils from Pencil Things. That is where I found out the Noris Learner's pencil isn't available in the US anymore.
What I would love to see is a California Republic Palomino with a triangular barrel. Woodchuck says: "Sorry to say we have no immediate plans to offer a triangular version of the Palomino pencil." Too bad for that! I do love the Noris Ergosofts, they have become my daily work pencil of choice. Thanks! - NW
Posted by: Ninth Wave Designs | July 03, 2006 at 01:40 PM
A nice discussion. I would love to try some of the pencils mentioned - the Jumbo Grip 2001 and the Tri-Conderoga in particular, but I can't find them locally, and mail ordering low value items isn't always practical.
Have you run across the Royal Scot by Richard Best? It has a unique shape - a very rounded equilateral triangle, and comes in a black finish.
Posted by: Stephen | July 03, 2006 at 03:33 PM
Hi Stephen -
The Jumbo Grip came from Dick Blick - which charges too much for shipping in my estimation. I save up an order to make it worth the while, and added a few of the Grips to my last order. Otherwise you are right, it would be pretty impractical.
The Tri-Conderoga were purchased from Staples. I think they came 6 to a package with a special sized sharpener.
I have never seen the Royal Scot pencils in stores, are they still being made? I will have to keep a look-out for those. Thanks! - NW
Posted by: Ninth Wave Designs | July 03, 2006 at 04:20 PM
I acquired the Royal Scots from the global garage sale known as Ebay. I doubt they are still made, but I mentioned them since their shape seems relevant to your theme. There is a picture that better shows their shape at the bottom of this page. It looks like they preceded Dixon and Faber-Castell in using a triangular shape.
Posted by: Stephen | July 03, 2006 at 06:06 PM
Stephen -
Thanks for the pictures, those are some great old triangular pencils. I will keep a watch on Ebay for some of the Royal Scots, they look like a fun addition to the mix. - NW
Posted by: Ninth Wave Designs | July 03, 2006 at 06:11 PM
Nice post. I have a few of the Faber-Castell Grip 2001 pencils and love them. I wasn't even aware of the others!
Chris
http://amateureconblog.blogspot.com/
Posted by: Chris Meisenzahl | July 05, 2006 at 07:53 AM
Chris -
Yes, there are lots to choose from now, and I had fun trying them all out for this post. - NW
Posted by: Ninth Wave Designs | July 05, 2006 at 01:04 PM
Anyone invented the triangular pencil sharpner yet?
Dede
Posted by: inki | July 10, 2006 at 08:20 AM
Dede -
Actually, the small round black thing with the clear plastic top in the picture above is just such a thing. It is a KUM Special Diameter sharpener, with a small and large format sharpener designed for use with triangular pencils. It works very well, and fits both size format triangular pencils discussed in this post. - NW
Posted by: Ninth Wave Designs | July 10, 2006 at 08:29 AM
I actually just picked up a Dixon Ticonderoga mechanical pencil at Staples and it has a triangular barrel like the Triconderogas. I love it. It's very elegant looking and has a great eraser. And it was $4 and change complete with refill leads and erasers.
Posted by: Alex | July 13, 2006 at 11:04 AM
Nice pencil round-up! When I started drawing many years ago the Faber-Castell line was realy big and over the years I've used most of the mainstream brands but found the Ticonderoga a good stadby. I've just road tested the Tri-Conderoga and found it quite nice. Easy to hold and the lead holds a line well even as the point loses it's edge. You have to carry the special sharpener but it's worthwhile trade off for the kind of line you get.
Posted by: Harold | August 09, 2006 at 01:27 AM
Interestingly enough, the triangular pencils have been around for a long time. I've got a few vintage pencils from Germany and England. The Richard Best Pencil Company is the first US pencil company that I am aware of that produced a triangular shape pencil. As mentioned there is the Royal Scot as well as two of my favorites the beautiful pink Futura and the standard yellow Try-Rex! They also make a number of colored pencils. Please visit my site to see some of these pioneers. Richard Best even made larger diameter triangular pencils as well. Apparently J.R. Moon purchased Richard Best and made a few of the Try pencils. Too bad Moon has all but given up on the brand name pencil market. That line may be gone forever. Also on my site you can view The Royal Sovereign Pencil Co. for older Try pics.
Posted by: Bobby | August 20, 2006 at 11:25 AM
I would like to offer a small defense of the Cal. Rep. Golden Bear triangular pencil, Comrade.
When I first got these pencils, I too was convinced that the grade of lead in this pencil was inferior. In fact, I was a bit disappointed in Cal. Rep. for offering such lead under their impeccable brand--synonomous with quality as the Palomino has made it.
Upon further use in my daily pencil rotation, however, I have come to appreciate the special character of the Golden Bear triangular.
I still agree that the lead is a bit rough for my own personal tastes, but we're talking a matter of degree here. The impressive aspect, in my view, is how well/long this pencil holds a point. Also, I am a strong writer; i.e. use lots of pressure. When one writes with great pressure, the results are very satisfying. The line is dark--almost as dark as a Palomino--and the point is strong, with hardly ever a break.
You're review of the triangular pencils was exciting, as I am a self-avowed leadhead. I will ultimately try all of the ones you tested, but I will take your suggestion and begin my trials with the Staedtler Noris Ergosoft. I will also buy some hexagonal Golden Bears, as I am interested in your comment that the quality of those seems to supersede the triangular variety.
I comment only to encourage fellow comrades who write with furious pressure to give this pencil a chance. Thanks for helping to keep the pencil revolution alive.
Posted by: Ryan | August 31, 2006 at 02:38 PM
Ryan -
I see your point (pun intended I guess) about the Golden Bear Triangulars, but I think once you see what a great core the hex GBs have you might feel differently about them. I was expecting the tri GBs would have the same core as the hex GBs, but it is very different. It is true that the Palominos and the hex GBs require frequent sharpening, and I do have a soft spot for softer cores, but the quality of the GB Triangulars is really not up to the rest of the line. I even wonder if the GB triangulars are actually a HB grade.
For contrast, you should try some of the Lyra Osiris triangulars that I discuss in the follow-up post. They offer just the kind of writing experience you describe with the tri GBs but with a much better made core. They are not as soft as the Noris and so don't require sharpening as often, holding the point for a much longer time while still providing a very pleasing feeling of pencil on paper.
Thanks for your comments, they ad another perspective to the highly subjective world of pencil reviews. Viva la revolution! - NW
Posted by: Ninth Wave | August 31, 2006 at 04:49 PM
I didn't realize that the faber castell pencils were not cedar. Do you know what type of wood they use. I am surprised/disappointed in that because I always thought they had the top fo the line pencils given the fact that they have been in business for nearly 250 years. Is cedar the best for a pencil or is that more of a marketing thing.
Thanks!
Posted by: John Dooney | October 14, 2006 at 09:55 PM
John -
The Grip 2001 pencils are definitely not made from cedar, but I don't know exactly what kind of wood they are made from. It is something much less dense and lighter weight than cedar. I don't know if there is any one kind of wood that is "best" for making pencils, but I imagine that the long straight grain in cedar is a big part of why it is used so much. It sharpens well, without tearing, and then of course there is the smell of cedar when you sharpen a pencil that is a big part of the experience for people.
Since I am used to cedar pencils, the weight of the Grip 2001 seemed much less substantial to me, and was something I didn't like. Perhaps that would be a plus for some people - a very light feeling pencil to write with - but it just didn't feel right to me.
Faber Castell does make some fine pencils, but their triangular offering isn't destined to be one of my favorites. Plus, since they came in as the most expensive triangulars of the ones I compared I expected a little more from them. Thanks for your comment - NW
Posted by: Ninth Wave | October 15, 2006 at 09:50 AM
I work with a classroom of preschoolers, age 4. We are starting to write and have jumbo pencils with triange plastic holders which I find to be very uncomfortable. I noticed these triangular pencils. We cannot use erasers because the end of the pencils seem to end up in the childrens mouths and we do not need a choking hazard to occur. What I would like to know is, since you think the Faber Castell jumbo eraserless pencil is not made with a strong wood, would it be okay for our preschoolers? All our pencils that we have now have teeth marks in the top. Is there a problem with any kind of lead poisoning since the lead is exposed at the end? I would like to purchse new pencils that will make writing easier, but safety is our number one concern. Thank you for your help.
Posted by: Roberta DeMarie | October 28, 2006 at 11:18 AM
Roberta -
I don't know if the Jumbo Grip would work for your preschoolers, but it might be worth trying out. I'm not sure there is anything that would keep them from chewing on them, but I do know that there is no lead in pencils, only graphitei, so there is no issue of lead poisoning with any kind of pencil. You could try to find out what the safety and health information is specific to the product through the manufacturer's website to better determine if the pencils will work for your specific needs. Good luck! - NW
Posted by: Ninth Wave | October 28, 2006 at 11:59 AM
I stumbled across your blog while looking for J.R. Moon pencils.
Moon still produces the Try-Rex jumbo triangulars that Bobby mentions above. They seem to be widely available through teacher supply outlets online.
Posted by: Allen | March 13, 2007 at 05:12 PM
Allen - Thanks for the info, very good to know they are still out there - I will have to try and find some now. - NW
Posted by: Ninth Wave | March 14, 2007 at 08:50 PM
I'm new to so many triangles.
I still have to try most of these triangles that you speak of. I have tried a few over the years and the best one I had come across was the yikes! which I horded as best I could, but alas I have been down to nothing but nubs for the past few years.
I've tried the Faber Castell Grip 2001's but I just cannot bring myself to like them as they are way to light and I tend to forget I have one in my hand when I go to scratch an itch or rub my nose, now I have many graphitei freckles because of them. So while they write okay they're just too light for forgetful old me.
I absolutely love the sharpen-ability of the Rhodia triangles as they sharpen as easily as the old plastic barreled yikes! I loved so much but they have one major flaw to me as well, they're dayglo and anything that distracts my attentions from my work is a big no no. Otherwise, it's a pretty good pencil. I here tell there are black ones lurking about but I have yet to come across one.
I am excited to try the Cal Republic Triangular Prospectors I just ordered and the Lyra Osiris (even if they are bright yellow). I'm also looking forward to trying the Hi-uni 4B triangular pencils from Mitsubishi. So one day soon I should be able to better participate in a discussion on triangles, the sturdiest and most pleasant of shapes.
I acquired the Royal Scots
I acquired the Royal Scots from the global garage sale known as Ebay. I doubt they are still made, but I mentioned them since their shape seems relevant to your theme. There is a picture that better shows their shape at the bottom of this page. It looks like they preceded Dixon and Faber-Castell in using a triangular shape.