Calling All Artists

[Halgar]

I am looking for pencils that are #2.5 or preferably #2.7. Where in the heck can I find such a beast? Locally I've tried a hobby supply like Micheal's, an office supply, and Target. Nobody has anything beyond a typical #2 pencil.

The art pencils I found were #2 to 8H (?? ), not sure what that means. I don't know if a drafting supply would have harder pencils or not, or do these just not exist anymore?

[integra22t]

i have never seen a 2.4 or 2.7 in a pencil

the #1,2, and 3 are soft lead the higher the number the softer

the 1H, 2h and 3, are hard lead the higher the number the harder

from what i can rember from drafting i used a 2h-4h for the start and finished with a #2

[THEYTOOKMYTHUMB]

Just curious Halgar, what ya got going on that requires such a specific pencil? I figured you only wrote with crayons...

[Coelacanth]

Stop using Standard pencils and switch to Metric pencils already.

[Halgar]

The problem with #2 pencils is that they don't stay sharp very long and the lead tends to break off during sharpening. I don't have as much trouble with this as my sister, who demands a sharp pointed pencil (better for poking me with, I'm sure ). Her favorite pencil is a 2.7 and it's almost gone, second favorite is a 2.5. She says they stay sharp longer, but this would be contrary to what Integra was saying about the higher number being a softer pencil.

At any rate, I've passed the info along to her. Thanks for the responses guys, much appreciated.

[integra22t]

the only time i seen number like that where for mechanical pencil .. 0.7 or 1.0 .. strange


ok i just gogled it and the 2.5 and 2.7 refers to the size of the lead in the pencil not the hardness ... cant see why it would keep its tip longer

[Charlie don't surf]

Mechanical pencils are generally 0.5-0.7mm wide...#2 HB hardness. (Take a lot if scantron tests, tutor a lot of math). I dated an artist way back, she said that the number in reference to h is hardness, the higher the # the harder the graphite. The B is the blackness, same direct relationship. But you can't get a 9 HB because you can only balance so hard and so dark into the same graphite. Prob why charcoal was so dark...and left such a mess.


This was also 15 years ago...so who knows what's changed in pencils lol

[THEYTOOKMYTHUMB]

I dated an artist way back, she said that the number in reference to h is hardness

You sure she was talking about the pencil??

[MelvinsArmy]

I are artist!

Buy a mechanical pencil Halgar. It's always sharp. I use them almost exclusively when I'm making a drawing. Much better control. I usually use .7 thickness lead, and for fine stuff .3. At the art supply store you can get get a whole variety of soft and hard lead, or graphite I should say.

[trkneller]

As mentioned, "B" and "H" denote hardness. "B" is very soft lead. "H" is a hard lead.
http://www.walmart.com/search/search-ng.do?_rel=2b+pencil&search_query=2b+drawing+pencil

I've never notice 2.n or anything, but 2, 4, and 6 were always common.