These are some metal lead holders (2mm) which was before the Criterium era.
While I was deep in the hunt for lost Criteriums, I found some even older lead holders, one of them was Baignol & Farjon. They were popular in the 1950s & 1960s, then being grouped with Blanzy-Conté-Gilbert in mars 1979, and soon after acquired by BIC.
Like those ancient lead holders of the same era, they are metal, super sturdy, and have some special “aura”. Pretty cool to use. The grip is an interesting aspect, on the edge of the hexagonal barrel, instead of on vertex like the Criterium. They’re built like tanks, and after all those years, the paint still stay shiny, much better than any Caran D’Ache I’ve known.
These Baignol et Farjon n°234 were the long version, while there was also n°235 which is shorter. The Criteriums 2603/2613 and 2403/2413 adopted this same approach years later.
Came across this Criterium by BIC in mint condition this summer, even in its original unsealed package. Back then they made these lead holders in aluminium (Gilbert & Blanzy-Poure, Conté… and some campaigns for S.N.C.F, Baignol et Farjon etc.), adored by french artists. There were 2403 (short) and 2603 (long) ones.
Then, Conté was acquired by BIC in 1979. For a short period, BIC continued the aluminium model, among them was this Criterium 2603, till the year 2001. It was the last time this lead holder was made in metal. Since then the BIC 2mm Criterium has been made in plastic. While Conté à Paris is still there, it now belongs to the group ColArt, but the name Criterium is still in BIC possession.
Though the current plastic version is not bad, decent even, holding this aluminium Criterium in hand, I was amazed at its quality, but also a bit sad about what happened to the fate of this iconic lead holder. Nothing lasts forever, but what could have been.
Sharing a photo of some auto-advance pencils I’m lucky to have. Generally among the in-use pencils I prefer the lousy clicking noise/action ones but having some high tech mechanical pencils is nice. After a few months of using each of them, some annoyed me, some made me fascinated and completely changed my mind.
Left to right
Faber Castell alpha-matic : my favorite, ergonomic weight distribution, classic design, sadly they don’t make MPs like this anymore. The clip is unique. One of the best auto advance MPs I’ve ever tried, available in other materials such as titanium. If there is one word I could use to describe this pencil, it would be Magnificent. 0.5mm. Early 1980s, discontinued.
Rotring Altro : found the black and white versions at the same time last year and use them usually since. Mostly plastic, lightweight, sophisticated design but easy to open and see what is inside, weird clip like the Rotring 900. The auto advancing feature work smoothly. They feel much more comfortable than they look. 0.7mm. Early 1990s, discontinued.
Ticonderoga Sensematic+: Don’t remember why I have 2 of them, maybe they were sold in a pack of two. Easily affordable. The auto advance just works. Cannot click to advance so a bit frustrated to use when one wants to manipulate the lead manually (for whatever reason). Somehow I feel this pencil won’t be broken as easily as other pencils in this group (especially you guys, Orenz Nero and KT Dive). This Ticonderoga has a BIG compartment that can hold a lot of spare lead in the back when unscrewed, pretty neat. 0.7mm.
Pentel Orenz Nero and Orenz AT
De nos jours pencils, we have enough reviews here already so I don’t need to say more. Just one thing, I appreciate the Orenz Nero and AT because they have a drafting tip, my favorite type of pencil. Especially Orenz Nero, the only auto-advance pencil supports 0.2mm (I use 0.5mm though) from what I know. The AT has some color variations, which is why I have two.
Kuru Toga Dive : Well it’s the Kuru Toga Dive.
Use it often but for other reason : expensive so I have to make it worth. I had it last year with half the price as it is now, but it was still overpriced at time. Amazing engineering, futuristic nib design, the ‘click’ sound when capping is satisfying. The only auto advance mechanism who doesn’t require the sleeve to touch paper.
That’s it. Pilot Automac and Faber Castell Tk-Matic were what I’m interested in as well, but for now these pencils are more than enough, I’m loving them. There are also lots of other amazing auto advance MPs I see experts here posting before. But searching for them? Maybe another time.
