# Findable pencils



## RossJarvis (19 Nov 2016)

After all the discussions I have settled on Staedtler red pencils. The biggest problem is that they disappear. I have lost the same pencil up to 20 times in a day and more than 5 different pencils in a day. Unfortunately my ears are not capable of retaining a pencil which I think exacerbates the problem. On one occasion when marking out on the floor I literally spent 15 minutes looking for a pencil which could not have vanished as I'd not moved. It wasn't in any of my pockets, it wasn't under anything, I wasn't kneeling on it, however when about to ask the client if she'd seen it I found it had somehow got stuck crosswise in my mouth, secured between my lips. On one job, the groundworkers tied a piece of chord round my neck and gaffer taped the pencil to this. This seemed to be fairly findable.

Does anyone know of a make of pencil which performs like the Staedtler red which is also findable?


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## dzj (19 Nov 2016)

You could designate an ear for this purpose. 
Also, keep a few extra pencils in an easy to reach place that has no obvious use. 
A miter slot on a band saw for instance.


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## doctor Bob (19 Nov 2016)

I suffer from false pencil syndrome, I always have a pencil behind my ear at work, even though its removed at home time, when I get home I'm convinced it's still there. 
Because of the habit of a pencil ear, I find it difficult to stop myself putting pens and pencils behind the ear, hence at a recent wedding I signed the wedding book with a swanky pen and then wandered around with it behind my ear for 10 mins.


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## RobinBHM (19 Nov 2016)

I like staedtler pencils, the red ones not yellow. I find they suffer much from broken leads. I buy 2 or boxes at a go as staff constantly lose them.

I wonder how much time is lost in construction each in the UK due to lost pencils  It could run into £billions. I think its the underlying reason for the UKs housing shortage.

I had one jojner that used to snap his pencils in half always kept 6 or so in his overall pocket, it was great working with him, no pencil to mark something?......1 sec later he'd pass one over.

I find a pencil behind the ear doesnt work if you wear glasses sadly.


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## Woodmonkey (19 Nov 2016)

Behind the ear works for me, although i must've spent 10 minutes looking for my pencil yesterday only to find I'd put it behind the wrong ear.


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## nev (19 Nov 2016)

remember when you had mittens as a kid joined with a piece of elastic up and down the sleeves? maybe it'd work with pencils


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## Fitzroy (19 Nov 2016)

It's since I've started wearing glasses my issues have begun, can't wear them and get a pencil to stay in place. It's even a double whammy as I now often misplace the glasses as well as the pencil.


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## RossJarvis (19 Nov 2016)

Woodmonkey":1i7lu0tt said:


> Behind the ear works for me, although i must've spent 10 minutes looking for my pencil yesterday only to find I'd put it behind the wrong ear.



:lol: :lol: :lol: Boy did that make me laugh, glad I wasn't drinking coffee.

I think the problem for me as a glasses wearer is the pre-designed pencil holder is already taken up. I need to be like captain Kirk and have an extra ear for the pencils. (the left ear the right ear and the final front ear).

Robin's comment about lost time is very pertinent, I've been ashamed at how much time pencil loss has cost me.


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## owsnap (19 Nov 2016)

Do as I do, buy a pack of 20+ pencils for £1 and just scatter them around , whenever you can't find any just take a next bunch and scatter them around again


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## Sawdust Sam (19 Nov 2016)

Get contact lenses, sorted.


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## dzj (19 Nov 2016)

http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:173386


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## marcros (19 Nov 2016)

I have heard that £50 on average is spent on pencils for each project. Not budgeting for this is where the newcomer to the trade often goes wrong.


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## No skills (19 Nov 2016)

I have (inadvertently) developed a hand grip that allows me to measure or cut with circular saw or jigsaw with pencil still in hand - so for lots of things I don't actually put the pencil down to loose it. 

That's apart from when I forget that the pencils in my hand and I'm looking for it on the table or floor.

I also sharpen my pencils both ends, shorter pencil life perhaps but it's always the correct way round when I pick it up or grab it from a pocket - now that's a time saver.


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## petermillard (19 Nov 2016)

As a short-haired spectacle wearer, I can happily tuck a pencil behind my ear and under the arm of my specs; yes, it's as uncomfortable as all f*** but I always know where the pencil is...


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## tomatwark (19 Nov 2016)

I buy pencils by the box and keep them in the desk drawer, the problem was, when I was taking one into the workshop it will and go and answer the phone it would disappear, what I did was to buy some strange colour ones and the problem was solved over night as my machinist then started to stop picking them up, he was using the same make as me and thought he had left his on my bench.

The other thing I find is after the in frequent cleaning out of the my van I always end up with lots of pencils and I have a habit of putting them on the dash, I also used to have collection in the bathroom as I would find them behind my ear when I was having a shower.

Pesky little blighters are pencils, they are everywhere except when you want one.


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## RobinBHM (19 Nov 2016)

I wonder how many pencils are down a wall cavity, Ive certainly knocked a few tools down one.


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## Homers double (19 Nov 2016)

I've just emptied the multiple pockets of my work trousers, 5 pencils, 1 long nib market and 1 permanent marker.
I had the mickey taken last week when my client came home to go through some details, I was wearing a woolly hat with a pencil sticking out either side.
I have a feeling my labourer supplements his diet with pencils due to the amount he gets through.
Just like Doctor bob posted above I've also popped a pen behind my ear at a wedding and wandered around with it there untill my wife noticed it,


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## skipdiver (19 Nov 2016)

Bought a pack of 5 HB Staedtler Yellow pencils today in Wilko-£1.50. Was also in the Range, where the red ones were 60p each, so they are obviously better for some reason that escapes me. I'm a behind the ear guy and often get in the shower with it still there and find it when i shampoo my hair. I also have the habit of putting all things pen and pencil behind my ear like the other poster and sometimes i have done it with 4 inch nails and not realised until i try to draw a line with a nail.


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## timbo614 (19 Nov 2016)

Are pencils like paper clips - millions on the planet that are not actually in use or are "lost"? From where I'm sittting in my shed/office I can see 5 pencils The one I was using today is not amoung them, I don't think. They migrate here by stopping work for tea for instance with a pencil in my back pocket. Which then sometimes sticks in my ar.. posterior so I take it out and put it on the desk. Then of course leave it there. Otherwise I'm in the scatter a box of 10/20/50 pencils all over camp.


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## No skills (19 Nov 2016)

Pencils escape when your distracted, I've found they like to escape from my pocket when driving the works van - I heard one fall to the floor once, pulled over and had a look and found 7 or 8 in the door pocket - they must of bounced on the van floor and into the door pocket.


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## Andrewf (20 Nov 2016)

I have the same problem always losing pencils. The issue is added to by a dog who sneaks into my shed and steals them to chew up, and a teenage daughter who has her own workbench in my shed, and then steals my pencils as well.


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## RogerS (20 Nov 2016)

Pencils have the same ability as tape measures to disappear into another dimension in time and space. Occasionally they will 'pop' back into our space-time.
I buy my tape measures by the box.


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## Alexam (20 Nov 2016)

THis may work for you http://www.arm-adillo.com/


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## owsnap (20 Nov 2016)

Andrewf":22ncqe4b said:


> I have the same problem always losing pencils. The issue is added to by a dog who sneaks into my shed and steals them to chew up, and a teenage daughter who has her own workbench in my shed, and then steals my pencils as well.


I thought my dog was the only (Mod edit, please remember not everyone has the same industrial language as some of us and may find it offensive) to do that..
Specially it hurts when it was a nice pencil and you see it all chewed up #-o


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## RossJarvis (20 Nov 2016)

Alexam":1rrmab6q said:


> THis may work for you http://www.arm-adillo.com/



That's an idea. However I wonder how long it would take to lose one of them?

Reading about the role of vans in pencil escapes rings very true, The leg pocket on my work trousers is angled backwards at the top, so when I get in the van the pencil is deliberately aimed down the side of the seat (I believe there may be a spring loaded ejector at the bottom of the pocket). The van also has a useful pencil tray on the dash, about the same size as an A4 clipboard. It can hold enough pencils for a morning's work. The side of the seat is also cleverly designed with a side panel and pencil sized slot at the bottom, designed I believe so that pencils are directed where you can't see the hundreds of them stored underneath it. I'm sure I'm beginning to see signs of a conspiracy :? 

The baffling thing is though, that after a pencil drought there is often a sudden moment when all the lost pencils appear at once, from nowhere. Is it an escapology conference?


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## davin (20 Nov 2016)

They are probably in the same black hole that 3mm drill bits and countersinks go to, If I dangled a magnet around the back of our washing machine I am sure they would all be there, wouldn't work for pencils though.
I was going to patent my pencil idea, I taped a piece of Velcro around a pencil, then glued a corresponding piece to my ear defenders, worked for about two minutes then I put my pencil (with Velcro) down and never found it again.


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## skipdiver (20 Nov 2016)

davin":3xaidy0y said:


> They are probably in the same black hole that 3mm drill bits and countersinks go to, If I dangled a magnet around the back of our washing machine I am sure they would all be there, wouldn't work for pencils though.
> I was going to patent my pencil idea, I taped a piece of Velcro around a pencil, then glued a corresponding piece to my ear defenders, worked for about two minutes then I put my pencil (with Velcro) down and never found it again.



They will be happily nestling behind the washer with all those lost odd socks.


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## Bm101 (20 Nov 2016)

davin":3gui77by said:


> They are probably in the same black hole that 3mm drill bits and countersinks go to, If I dangled a magnet around the back of our washing machine I am sure they would all be there, wouldn't work for pencils though.
> I was going to patent my pencil idea, I taped a piece of Velcro around a pencil, then glued a corresponding piece to my ear defenders, worked for about two minutes then I put my pencil (with Velcro) down and never found it again.



This thread is great value for chuckles. But actually that's a great idea. Superglue a reusable velcro collar. I'm going to write that down on my to do list. Now.... where did I put my pencil..... 

Also. Which psychopath at Screwfix HQ decided on making the pencils in camouflage? We'll steal them anyway. Might as well go the extra customer service mile. Paint them with radioactive paint. When you lose it just turn out the lights. Bingo. Millions saved in stolen pencils.
I'm in the wrong line of work. Possibly.


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## RogerS (20 Nov 2016)

Found it !


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## JWLeaper (20 Nov 2016)

Nothing to do with pencils but I once cycled to work in a pea-souper of a fog and found once I'd arrived and took my glasses off to clean them I'd forgotten to put them on that morning! Cycle home in the same pea-souper and once glasses recovered it had turned into a lovely day. Pencils sit nicely between glasses arm and face to bring this back on topic.


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## lanemaux (20 Nov 2016)

My problem is less with finding pencils , but , finding one with unbroken tip. In the shop this presents no trouble as sharpening up takes little effort and a sharp knife. These I have got. No , it is always when I need to take down a phone number or address and the pens won't write (whole 'nother topic that). 4 or 5 pencils and not a writing ready one in sight. I know I didn't break them, my son can't seem to use anything without a keyboard and my wife simply doesn't use pencils (she doesn't take notes either) . As this is all of us in the house , who is busting my leads , and why? Keeping a close eye on the dog.


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## Adam9453 (20 Nov 2016)

I got so fed up of not being able to find a pencil, I bought several hundred (literally not exaggerating) and put bundles of them all round the workshop.
Saves masses of time as there's always at least one useable one in each bundle 8) 
My main frustration now is finding the pencil sharpener as I've only got one!!!!
I'm not keen on sharpening them with a knife as I can never find the bleeding knife either :lol:


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## thick_mike (20 Nov 2016)

Adam9453":2p0clhc8 said:


> I got so fed up of not being able to find a pencil, I bought several hundred (literally not exaggerating) and put bundles of them all round the workshop.
> Saves masses of time as there's always at least one useable one in each bundle 8)
> My main frustration now is finding the pencil sharpener as I've only got one!!!!
> I'm not keen on sharpening them with a knife as I can never find the bleeding knife either :lol:



You just need one of these...

[youtube]Bvr2PvLqnYY[/youtube]


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## dc_ni (20 Nov 2016)

Something like this:

http://www.duluthtrading.com/store/product/duluthflex-fire-hose-cap-with-pencil-sleeve-41714.aspx (hammer) (hammer) (hammer)


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## thetyreman (20 Nov 2016)

thick_mike":1kp0fizl said:


> Adam9453":1kp0fizl said:
> 
> 
> > I got so fed up of not being able to find a pencil, I bought several hundred (literally not exaggerating) and put bundles of them all round the workshop.
> ...



you've no idea how much I want this pencil sharpener! that's amazing


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## thick_mike (20 Nov 2016)

thetyreman":39gw204n said:


> thick_mike":39gw204n said:
> 
> 
> > Adam9453":39gw204n said:
> ...



Yup, it's been on my bucket list since I saw one at Woburn Abbey.


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## graduate_owner (20 Nov 2016)

I find the pencils acquired from Screwfix fit nicely in my back pocket (come on, admit it, we all have some Screwfix pencils). I keep about 3 there so there is nearly always one which is still sharp enough to use. They don't last long because they are short to start with, but are easily replaced.

Edit - 144 half size pencils for £4.39 carriage free on ebay - if you don't happen to be passing a Screwfix outlet.

K


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## DrPhill (21 Nov 2016)

thetyreman":297ajehs said:


> .......
> you've no idea how much I want this pencil sharpener! that's amazing



Me too, and I bet that someone here could get better shavings off those blades........


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## RogerP (21 Nov 2016)

I get full length pencils from a the local car-boot, 50 for a quid, and they've erasers on one end as well! Another source is the auto ones included with a sudoku magazines that my wife gets. They do a nice fine line and never need sharpening.


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## transatlantic (21 Nov 2016)

Remember those whistle beeping finding devices you'd see in the pound shop that you attach to your keys?

..perhaps pull out the gubbons from that and attach to your pencil, tapemeasure, wife etc


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## sawdust1 (21 Nov 2016)

Rounded up all the stray pencils in my workshop earlier and had a mammoth sharpening session 32 in total.
I have 4 tape measures in the workshop and its amazing how one minute i have one in each pocket and the
next i'm scratching about trying to lay my hands on one.
Once the other half commented " how many tapes does a bloke need" never enough was my reply.


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## novocaine (22 Nov 2016)

I'm writing rules to go on the back of the workshop door for leaving.
1. empty your pockets
2. replace all pencils in pot above workbench
3. put all screws back in right place
4. check tapes are on the wall
5. check pockets again
6. switch lights off
7. check pockets again.

it's getting easier to find pencils these days. 

(oh and sticking a pencil in the drill and running it on the belt sander is a wonderful way to sharpen)


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## Jonzjob (25 Nov 2016)

Cracked it for you

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=afric ... dKMG3zM%3A

Ther'll be loads of places you can get yer nose bored out. Or a 6mm drill shold do it :mrgreen: :mrgreen:


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## davin (25 Nov 2016)

Have been trying to think of a witty reply, but I cant. You have definitely solved the problem.


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## NazNomad (25 Nov 2016)

Hang on.... What's ''AUTOMATIC'' about a pencil sharpener you have to hold with one hand and crank with the other hand?

I'd want it to find the damn pencils, sharpen them, then place them strategically around the garage... Now THAT is automatic. :-D


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## rafezetter (29 Nov 2016)

davin":2znvh52l said:


> They are probably in the same black hole that 3mm drill bits and countersinks go to, If I dangled a magnet around the back of our washing machine I am sure they would all be there, wouldn't work for pencils though.
> I was going to patent my pencil idea, I taped a piece of Velcro around a pencil, then glued a corresponding piece to my ear defenders, worked for about two minutes then I put my pencil (with Velcro) down and never found it again.



Pencil's I'm ok with - I tend to always put them in the same few places, so I've got one in each 

3mm drillbits are an entirely different matter - I now buy these 20 at a time, far easier than succumbing to FFS syndrome. Cheap chinese ones from ebay - they don't hang around long enough to go blunt, and seem to be made just well enough that they don't snap either while they are in this plane of existence.


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## rafezetter (29 Nov 2016)

thick_mike":39ws6u6e said:


> Adam9453":39ws6u6e said:
> 
> 
> > I got so fed up of not being able to find a pencil, I bought several hundred (literally not exaggerating) and put bundles of them all round the workshop.
> ...



There was a thread a while back about pencil sharpeners, but that is a thing of engineering beauty - I wonder what angle is on those blades? *ducks for cover*


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## thick_mike (29 Nov 2016)

rafezetter":2ljzx8pu said:


> thick_mike":2ljzx8pu said:
> 
> 
> > Adam9453":2ljzx8pu said:
> ...



And now I have one on the way...thanks for tipping me off!


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## SteveF (29 Nov 2016)

no pictures it never happened
jealous ...never

Steve


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## thick_mike (1 Dec 2016)

It happened...

[youtube]wDvvIVmCANc[/youtube]


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## skipdiver (3 Dec 2016)

Today was a good day. I got to open my new packet of pencils. I love new pencils more than is normal for a grown man.


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## Sheptonphil (3 Dec 2016)

thick_mike":8e9wbfmp said:


> It happened...
> 
> [youtube]wDvvIVmCANc[/youtube]



How do you sharpen the blades on one of these? Wet stone or dry, pro edge perhaps? and obviously more important do it free hand or use jigs? 

Could be a good debating point! ](*,) 

Phil


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## Homers double (4 Jan 2017)

I received a late crimble pressie today, I've not lost it yet !


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## RossJarvis (4 Jan 2017)

Homers double":1np4yivt said:


> I received a late crimble pressie today, I've not lost it yet !



I got 12 Staedtler red pencils. It took me about 8 hours to lose the whole box!!


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## Bm101 (5 Jan 2017)

Homers double":1cbxugpn said:


> I received a late crimble pressie today, I've not lost it yet !



I know you put a real pencil in there for scale but which one? I'm not sure if you got a _massive_ pencil or a _sub atomic size pencil fitted with a fiendishly clever tracking device_. :|


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## bugbear (5 Jan 2017)

thick_mike":137codp1 said:


> It happened...
> 
> [youtube]wDvvIVmCANc[/youtube]


That's not only awesome to watch, but it does a very nice job.

Imagine how well it would work with _really_ sharp blades.  

BugBear


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## Gary (10 Jan 2017)

Well I had a successful day and only lost one pencil but did manage to lose a screwdriver bit and holder. 

What's the difference between the Staedtler red and yellow pencils?


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## NazNomad (10 Jan 2017)

Gary":1zikaw0d said:


> What's the difference between the Staedtler red and yellow pencils?



One is red and one is yellow. :-D I believe they are named differently too - 'Traditional' and 'Noris', respectively.


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## Gary (10 Jan 2017)

NazNomad":1umcfd6w said:


> Gary":1umcfd6w said:
> 
> 
> > What's the difference between the Staedtler red and yellow pencils?
> ...


And the difference between them is?


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## NazNomad (10 Jan 2017)

The Noris isn't available in F hardness.

The Noris is cheaper (slightly).


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## RossJarvis (10 Jan 2017)

Gary":siekt0q3 said:


> What's the difference between the Staedtler red and yellow pencils?



The yellow ones tend to be cheaper, they are classed as writing pencils and come in fewer grades, 2H to 2B. The red ones are 10p more and classed as drawing pencils and go from 6H to 6B. beyond that I can't find any other difference. Yep your question has now turned me into a pencil geek .

I think the 10p difference is the most important factor, I may now be converted to the Yeller ones.

I get them cos the lead breaks less than most other makes, though the whole thing breaks as often when I put them in my pocket. I have a large amount of 2" staedtler pencils, or would have if I could find the b*****s.


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## Andrewf (11 Jan 2017)

I used to work for a company where if you wanted a new pencil, you had to take the old stub back to the storekeeper. Quite often rather than get a new pencil he would give you a length of copper pipe to stick the stub in so that you could use more of the pencil. Never understood the logic as the piece of pipe probably cost more than a new pencil.


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## bugbear (11 Jan 2017)

I just bought a "set" of classic Pentel P200 mechanical pencils in 0.3, 0.5, 0.7 lead sizes.

Simple, functional, and under a tenner the lot. Lovely.

(too expensive to lose though)

http://davesmechanicalpencils.blogspot. ... encil.html

BugBear


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## Keith 66 (15 Jan 2017)

Back when i had a 1500sq ft workshop i used to lose lots of pencils, when after 15 years i moved out & cleared it i think i found two?
I still lose them today, since i started wearing glasses i cant stick them behind my ear any more.
I think that there must be a hole in the space time continuum where pencils get sucked into then leprechauns build log cabins from all the lost pencils, or something like that!


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## marcros (15 Jan 2017)

bugbear":20bklayd said:


> (too expensive to lose though)
> 
> http://davesmechanicalpencils.blogspot. ... encil.html
> 
> BugBear



I think that there is something in that- have something nice, you always put it back in a known place and take care to do so. Take a decent rollerball or other pen compared with cheap biros, pencils etc which are put down wherever and easily lost.


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## Bm101 (15 Jan 2017)

marcros":6m4ekxut said:


> bugbear":6m4ekxut said:
> 
> 
> > (too expensive to lose though)
> ...



:wink: 

“Somewhere in the cosmos, he said, along with all the planets inhabited by humanoids, reptiloids, fishoids, walking treeoids and superintelligent shades of the color blue, there was also a planet entirely given over to ballpoint life forms. And it was to this planet that unattended ballpoints would make their way, slipping away quietly through wormholes in space to a world where they knew they could enjoy a uniquely ballpointoid lifestyle, responding to highly ballpoint-oriented stimuli, and generally leading the ballpoint equivalent of the good life.

And as theories go this was all very fine and pleasant until Veet Voojagig suddenly claimed to have found this planet, and to have worked there for a while driving a limousine for a family of cheap green retractables, whereupon he was taken away, locked up, wrote a book and was finally sent into tax exile, which is the usual fate reserved for those who are determined to make fools of themselves in public.”


― Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy


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## xiphidius (21 Jan 2017)

I to suffer from phantom pencil (behind the ear syndrome) as this is a daily thing for me even on Saturday shopping trips to the supermarket you will always find a pencil or pen behind one ear hahahaha..anyways how about a piece of velcro on your work garment and another round the pencil itself or a proper pair work pants with the elephant ears pockets, best pair I've ever bought yet Snickers brand..expensive but well worth the investment
Regards
C


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## MrTeroo (21 Jan 2017)

Keith 66":18mbxqk7 said:


> I still lose them today, since i started wearing glasses i cant stick them behind my ear any more.



Fear not, help is at hand.....

http://www.pencil-mate.com/


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## xiphidius (21 Jan 2017)

Woohoo... thanks MrTeroo..now I can wear my perscribed safety glasses and still have my pencil...Brilliant...thanks for that.


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## MrTeroo (21 Jan 2017)

You're welcome


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