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Through casual use I have noticed from time to time differences between what I would call “vintage” Blackwings and those manufactured more recently (i.e. the 90s). The older pencils seemed a bit softer, a little darker, and more quickly lost their point. But I thought there must be some mitigating factors as well, such as the type of paper I was using and perhaps any affect aging might have on the leads.
Though the older versions were still great pencils, for some applications they were a little too soft, whereas I didn’t have any problems with the newer pencils. So, I decided to compare them side-by-side:
On the left is one of the oldest Blackwings, corresponding to version 2; to the right, version 3; and last, version 6. All of the pencils were sharpened several times with a Carl Decade sharpener to be sure the resultant shapes were consistent. The longest section of the lead is facing the camera.
Compared to the far right you can see the leads are slightly larger, suggesting that they are also slightly softer. The size of the lead on the far right is comparable to what you would see with a standard No. 2 pencil.
click to enlarge
I am convinced that the lead formula has changed over the years. I have read where others have compared the Blackwing to a 4B pencil, but I always thought that was absurd—they were never as soft or as dark as any 4B pencil I had ever tried. But using the older Blackwings helps me to better understand the comparison.
There is one thing in common with all of the versions: the smoothness. This is the one quality that is almost impossible for other pencils to match; it’s the sui generis of the Blackwing. Sure, the Palomino and the Black Polymer come very close, but there’s just something about the Blackwing that makes it so special, so singular, so irreplaceable. If it were feasible, it would be interesting to chemically analyze samples from each of the pencils and compare the results. I’m not sure what that would tell me, but the results of my informal and unscientific comparison lead to only one conclusion: I desparately need to prioritize my free time.
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Do you think the smoothness within the same pencil is the same all the way from the beginning to the end? I am just wondering, because with some pencils, not Blackwings, I sometimes feel that the smoothness can differ in the beginning and in the end (I never followed this up).
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I’ve had the experience you’ve mentioned, but so far, not with a Blackwing.
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I find it interesting that you think the Blackwing isn’t a 4B as some have suggested. I’ve fallen into the assumption that it, as a 4B, would be of very limited use to me. Now I’m intrigued, but unfortunately not $40 intrigued.
Lately I’ve been using a Mitsubishi penmanship pencil in 4B with a wide diameter lead for some of my headers, and I have to say I enjoy how smoothly it writes for a pencil. I merely wish it weren’t so prone to smudges and smearing (I suspect it’s good for 4B, but that’s not really saying much), and that it wouldn’t wear down so quickly.
What grade would you guess the older and newer Blackwings compare to in terms of lead wear and breakage? I guess that might not be too fair, as some HB are downright brittle, and some 2B are remarkably resilient. I’m merely curious as there’s a well-known quote about Blackwings wearing down quickly, but I haven’t seen it or point strength really assessed or compared in much detail. Seems there aren’t any Blackwing reviews in Japanese, where such an attribute would likely be discussed.
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My reaction to the 4B comparison stems from the lightness of the Blackwing. Even the Castell 9000 3B seems darker to me than a Blackwing. But the older pencils are different. I find myself writing with them more gently and more hesitantly. The darkness of the Blackwing has been overrated I think. Perhaps the reaction people have is something akin to “this sure is a dark line compared to what little pressure I’m using“, instead of simply thinking of it as a dark pencil per se.
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