Can you put a grind on a Rapidograph? 🤣
Damian Alomar from All in the Nib joined me this week to discuss fountain pens, nib grinds, and you. This was a fun conversation, and I’d love to hear your feedback on what else you want to know about this ever-expanding topic.
This episode of The Pen Addict is sponsored by:
Factor: Healthy, fully-prepared food delivered to your door.
Kanilea Pen Co: Choose your Aloha today!
(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)
Every now and then, I get my hands on a writing instrument that is so far outside of my normal wheel of interest. Sometimes it's a delightful surprise, and other times it ends up being a short-lived interest. Either way, trying new things is the ultimate goal. In the case of this mechanical pencil, I've been grinning so much while using it to jot notes and doodles.
The Staedtler 771 mechanical pencil is a bold, playful pencil that features 1.3 mm HB lead that lays down thick, smooth lines of graphite. The 771 is comically large, and I really giggled when I first grabbed it. Despite the loud yellow and black color scheme, it's incredibly comfortable and easy to use. After using it a few seconds, it reminded me of the large diameter (10mm) pencils students were given in kindergarten and first grade while we learned to write our alphabet. The large diameter is easier to hold and control for little hands, and the same is definitely true for this mechanical pencil.
If I had to guess, one of the main business cases for this pencil is for school children who are learning to write. It's a robust, ergonomic pencil that doesn't require sharpening. Plus, it comes with a substantial eraser that will last quite a while since you can extend more as you wear it down.
The 1.3mm lead size isn't unheard of, but it's not common in mechanical pencils. This lead is wide, and it wears down to a flat surface in just a few strokes. If you continually rotate the pencil while writing to prevent a flat side, you end up with a wonderfully stubby round piece of lead that makes roughly 1mm lines when writing. For me, I don't really enjoy rotating this pencil as I write since it has a clip and a three-sided body that messes with how the pen feels in my hand.
While this pencil is great for young people who are learning how to write by hand, this is also a great choice for artists that want a wide line that maxes out at just 1.3mm. Graphite and pencils have a larger diameter core that eventually gets ruined by the necessity of sharpening the pencil or graphite stick. You can do a lot of shading with this 1.3mm pencil, and you never have to sharpen it or constantly determine how the line is changing as the lead wears down closer to the wood casing.
And you can also compare this to the more engineering-focused lead holders, though those typically use large lead sizes as well. Still, the perk of the Staedtler 771 compared to a lead holder is ease-of-use. Need more lead? Just click the back of the pencil to extend some more. Want to retract the lead so you can safely stow it in a pocket or bag? Easy. Not so much with a lead holder.
Along with the large body, triangular grip, and wide lead, there's also a lead cushioning system built in to the pencil to protect the lead from excessive pressure. Again, a great feature for people that are learning how to write. In my testing, it works well at preventing lead breaks.
Whenever I see a pencil with a tiny eraser, I mumble and complain about how pointless it is. If you're going to put an eraser on a pencil, make sure it's a useful one. The erasers you find a woodcase pencil are great, but when they're gone, they're gone for good. The 771 features an extendable eraser that should last for many mistakes, and does a great job at disappearing the wide 1.3mm graphite marks. And if you need more erasers, they're easy to replace and don't cost much either (about $2 for a 3-pack).
Writing with the pencil is comfortable thanks to the wide body, triangular shape, and rubber grip section, but this isn't a pencil that I reach for when I want to write notes. The large lead size just doesn't pair well with my relatively small writing style — the letters are hard to read. But, this has been a go-to for drawing and doodling since you can get a lot of different line widths from different sides of the lead, and it also does a great job at shading.
At $9.75, the Staedtler 771 1.3mm mechanical pencil is a lot of fun, and I think it meets its purpose beautifully. It looks silly, but that's okay. It's supposed to be fun because learning to write and drawing is fun. If the school-themed yellow/black colorway isn't your thing, there are other colors too (white, black, and blue)! Just be sure to pick up some extra lead with your order since you'll go through it quickly while rediscovering your inner child.
(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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The Pilot Juice is one of the best pens you aren’t currently using, and what better way to tempt you to try them out than adding a few Pokémon to the lineup? I have the 4-Color Set A to give away this week, so read the rules below and enter away!
