What types of pencils are there? The hardness of pencils. How to choose pencils Pencils of different hardness

IN Everyday life and work, each of us, to one degree or another, needs pencils. For people of such professions as artists, designers and draftsmen, the hardness of a pencil is important.

The history of pencils

In the 13th century, the first prototypes of pencils appeared, made of silver or lead. It was impossible to erase what they had written or drawn. In the 14th century, they began to use a rod made of black shale, which was called the “Italian pencil”.

In the 16th century, in the English town of Cumberland, shepherds accidentally stumbled upon a deposit of a material that looked very similar to lead. They couldn’t get bullets or shells out of it, but they were great at drawing and marking sheep. They began to make thin rods from graphite, sharpened at the end, which were not suitable for writing and became very dirty.

Somewhat later, one of the artists noticed that drawing with graphite sticks fixed in wood is much more convenient. This is how the body of simple slate pencils appeared. Of course, at that time no one had thought about the hardness of a pencil.

Modern pencils

The form in which pencils are known to us today was invented in late XVIII century French scientist Nicolas Jacques Conte. IN late XIX and the beginning of the 20th century. Several important changes were made to the design of pencils.

Thus, Count Lothar von Fabercastle changed the shape of the pencil body from round to hexagonal. This made it possible to reduce the rolling of pencils from various inclined surfaces used for writing.

And the American inventor Alonso Townsend Cross, thinking about reducing the amount of material consumed, made a pencil with a metal body and a graphite rod that could be extended to the required length.

Why is hardness so important?

Any person who has drawn or sketched something at least a couple of times will say that pencils can leave strokes and lines that differ in color saturation and thickness. Such characteristics are important for engineering specialties, because first any drawing is made with hard pencils, for example T2, and then final stage- softer, marked M-2M, to increase the clarity of the lines.

Pencil hardness is no less important for both professional and amateur artists. Pencils with soft leads are used to create sketches and outlines, and harder ones are used to finalize the work.

What types of pencils are there?

All pencils can be divided into two large groups: simple and colorful.

A simple pencil has this name because it is structurally very simple, and it writes with the most ordinary graphite lead, without any additives. All other types of pencils have a more complex structure and the mandatory introduction of various dyes into the composition.

There are quite a few types, the most common are:

• ordinary colored ones, which can be either single-sided or double-sided;
• wax;
• coal;
• watercolor;
• pastel.

Classification of simple graphite pencils

As already mentioned, simple pencils have a graphite lead. An indicator such as the hardness of a pencil lead is the basis for their classification.

IN different countries Various markings have been adopted to indicate the hardness of pencils, of which the most widely used are European, Russian and American.

Russian and European markings of black lead pencils, as simple pencils are also called, differ from American ones in the presence of both letter and digital designations.

To indicate the hardness of a pencil in Russian system markings it is accepted that: T - hard, M - soft, TM - medium. To clarify the degree of softness or hardness, numerical values ​​are introduced next to the letter ones.

In European countries, hardness simple pencils also denoted by letters taken from words describing hardness. So, for soft pencils the letter “B” is used from the word blackness (blackness), and for hard pencils the letter “H” is used from the English word hardness (hardness). In addition, there is also a marking F, coming from the English fine point (subtlety) and indicating the average type of pencil. It is the European system of marking hardness with letters that is considered the world standard and is the most widespread.

And in the American system, which determines the hardness of pencils, the designation is carried out only in numbers. Where 1 is soft, 2 is medium, and 3 is hard.
If there is no marking on the pencil, then by default it is of the hard-soft (TM, HB) type.

What does hardness depend on?

Today, graphite is also used to make graphite pencil lead. From the proportions of these substances mixed at initial stages production, the hardness of the pencil depends. The more white kaolin clay is added, the harder the pencil turns out. If the amount of graphite is increased, the lead will be softer.
After mixing all the necessary components, the resulting mixture is fed into the extruder. It is in it that rods of a given size are formed. Then the graphite rods are fired in a special furnace, the temperature in which reaches 10,000 0 C. After firing, the rods are immersed in a special oil solution, which creates a surface protective film.

Simple pencils for the artist

Any person who has ever written, drawn or drawn with a simple pencil is familiar with graphite.We are accustomed to considering simple pencils to be made of graphite, and do not think about what, but in realityThe lead of a graphite pencil is made from a mixture of graphite and clay, and is packaged in a body, most often wooden. Exactly toThe amount of clay determines the degree of hardness or softness of the pencil.

Graphite is a mineral that is a form of carbon. It is mined from various rocks, and its artificial analogues are also produced. The raw materials for this, for example, can be carbides, which are exposed to high temperatures, or cast iron, which, on the contrary, is gradually cooled to obtain artificial graphite.

The main line of dividing pencils by hardness is as follows: “H” pencils and “B” pencils.“H” pencils are hard, and the higher the number (it is placed next to the letter designation, for example: 1H or 2H), the lighter the lines. TOA 6H pencil, for example, will be much easier to draw than a 2H pencil."B" pencils are soft and the higher the number, the darker the lines or strokes it will make. Which corresponds to the Russian markings “T” (hard) and “M” (soft).For drawing, pencils of softness “B” or “M” are usually used - if in our opinion.

Below diagramshows the full range of hardness of graphite pencils, accepted in the West, which we also have to deal with all the time.“NV” means in Russian and corresponds in properties to the marking “TM” - hard-soft - and is the middle of the scale. The “F” marking corresponds to “TM”, it is just less common.

Hardness scale for imported pencils

The blackest (and most expensive) graphite still lacks the intensity of blackness; in addition, it, like graphite in general, is characterized by shine. A drawing made with graphite (especially hard) shines. Therefore, in some artistic works it is replaced by drawing, which gives an intense thick blackness and has no shine. That is why graphite is suitable exclusively for small, mainly landscape drawings, which are well preserved without (unless the graphite used for the drawing is too soft).

Other forms of artistic graphite

Two other forms of graphite that are commonly used in drawing are: woodless pencil And graphite bar(or sticks).

Wood-free graphite pencil. It is also known as “graphite in varnish”.

Bwood pencil(as you can guess) it is graphite without a wooden body. It is often sold under the name “graphite in varnish” or “graphite rods” (then they will not be varnished). Basically, the lead has a round shape. Woodless pencils need to be sharpened with a regular sharpener.They are made for drawing and painting and are usually on the soft side of the hardness scale, often in HB, 2B, 4B, 6B and 8B. Again, different manufacturers offer different degrees of hardness. With a wood-free pencil you can make both very thin and wide strokes, which are made with the beveled side of the writing tip.

Graphite bars (sticks)

Graphite drawing stones

Convenient for large images and for quickly covering large areas.They are also available in different degrees of hardness, and some manufacturers, such asCaran d'Ache(pictured above) make them in different sizes.

Decide what you need pencils for.

• What are you going to do with a pencil? Will you be writing a lot? Or do homework? Or maybe solve crossword puzzles? Or make sketches and paint full-fledged paintings?
• How hard do you press your pencil when you write or draw?
• Do you prefer a thin line or a thick one?
• Do you regularly lose pencils, give them to others, chew them, or ruin them, or do you try to save your pencils and store them exclusively in your pencil case?
• Do you carry pencils in your pocket and risk cutting yourself from the tip of the lead?
• Do you try to keep the eraser on your pencil, or does it tend to get lost? Do you rarely use your eraser and it just dries out?

Pay attention to what you like and don't like about the pencils you use. Perhaps some are very comfortable to hold in your hand, while others, on the contrary, find it difficult to move along a sheet of paper.

Think about what you like best: mechanical pencil or traditional.

• Mechanical pencils do not need to be sharpened, but they do require replacement leads of the correct thickness. As a rule, when about 1 centimeter remains of the stylus, it can no longer be used.
• Mechanical pencils produce fine, even lines, which may be preferable when creating technical drawings or fine drawings.
• The length of a mechanical pencil does not change over time.
• Mechanical pencils are usually more expensive than traditional ones, especially high-quality ones designed to last for a long time. Most often, mechanical pencils provide the ability to replace the lead and eraser, which allows you to use them for a very long time.
• Regular pencils are generally cheap. The thickness of the line may vary depending on the angle of inclination and the degree of dullness of the lead.
• Advantages regular pencils lies in their cheapness, availability and ease of use. Many people also like the feel of using a regular pencil.

Today I will talk about the marking of simple pencils, the most famous companies that produce them, and also how to choose them.
Pencils are completely different - wax, graphite, colored, charcoal, pastel, mechanical and even watercolor. Since childhood, we have been attracted to these art supplies, but over time, many people have a question about how to choose pencils.

Marking of simple pencils by hardness

The markings of the pencil are directly indicated by the letters on the wooden part. A coefficient is placed before the letter of the hardness designation - the larger it is, the softer or harder the pencil. In Russia, rigidity is indicated by letters T And M.
Pencils range from very hard to very soft. There are also HB pencils - a transition of hardness H to B. There is also a transition form from H to HB, which is designated by the letter F.

Colour pencils

The best pencil companies

How to choose a pencil

Using pencils