You want #2 pencils for everyday work, but the other styles could come in handy for art projects, home improvement, and so much more! Why Do We Use No. It's worth knowing the types of pencils out there before you go shopping for your next one. This is because more graphite is used in a #4 pencil than in a #1 pencil.

For example, #1 pencils are darker than #4 pencils. The different types of lead for a pencil include:Īs you can see, each type of pencil produces a different mark. This system was invented by famed author Henry David Thoreau in the 1820s. The #1 pencils are the softest, while the #4 pencils are the hardest. 4 based on how much graphite is inside the core. Lead pencils are graded on a scale from No. What Are the Different Types of Pencil Lead? Pencils made from rifle cartridges were mass produced in the 20th century and were used as advertising items by big companies like John Deere. This is what's found inside the pencils we use to this very day! A French painter named Nicolas-Jacques Conté completely saved pencils from going extinct by cutting down the amount of graphite used inside and mixing it together with water and clay instead. Isaac Newton, Ernest Hemingway, and Thomas Edison are just a few of the many great thinkers who brainstormed with a graphite pencil in hand.Īll this popularity, however, caused graphite to quickly became a scarce commodity. Pencil makers thrived on this mineral all throughout Europe, with the industry really booming throughout the 16th and 17th centuries. Hundreds of years ago, raw graphite was the only ingredient used inside of pencils.

It's mostly a non-toxic mineral called graphite, which is in a powdered form and mixed together with water and clay. It's time for a complete, 'on point' look at pencil lead! What is in Pencil Lead?Ī pencil's core, aka the 'lead,' isn't actually lead at all. While #2 may be #1 in our hearts, let's not forget about all the other types of lead out there.

Thanks smart kid - you helped so many people pass 6th grade algebra! It was a must to have a few around for standardized tests in school, and if you didn't, you borrowed one from the smart kid in class.

Pencil lead