@jack I know I have a few other Hi-Uni’s somewhere that are already sharpened, but I couldn’t find them by the time I wanted to take the picture. I still haven’t found them, so I sharpened the one in the pic, to give it a go.
I can see why you like it. It’s a big step above the Tombows and Camels. Feels good in the hand, with a diameter closer to a Blackwing, and the graphite is smooth and firm, but dark like a B grade. Nice.
@rnv One contrarian opinion I have about pencils is that I don't like the Blackwings. They're too long and that eraser is sharp and ugly. I saw the ends/erasers off of the harder-graphite Naturals, which helps :).
@jack @cheri I’m with you. My wife loves them as long as they’re the Pearls. And yes, I do have a bunch of them, but my early ardor has cooled. They’re just too dark and soft and, yes, slippery. I’ll have more to say when the tour gets around to my Blackwings. Maybe tomorrow, just to deal with that particular elephant in the room.
@jack I am with you on Blackwings, I do not like them they are too long and feel unbalanced. I do have quite a few though, because people kept going on with how good they were.
@klandwehr Same here. I'm a sucker for recommendations and often buy things sight unseen because someone told me to :). They're fine pencils, just not my style.
@jack In that case, might I recommend Musgrave's new Tennessee Red? They're great (and check about every visual box I have for a wooden pencil). Bonus, I think their new Harvest 320 might be an even better pencil, though it looks very much like an ordinary, albeit high-end, yellow #2 pencil.