Pilot S20, Elegance In Wood

 

The first experience that I had with the Pilot S series was a pleasant surprise!  I really enjoyed my experience with the Pilot S10.  I liked it so much that I ended up buying an S3 and an S5 in 0.3 mm and an S3 in 0.4 mm.  But circumstances would not allow me to buy an S20.  But recently I was gifted an S20, the only one in the series made of wood.  There is no material more naturally elegant than wood.  And the Pilot S20 is nothing if not elegant! 

 

The other pencils in the series are made of plastic with either a plastic grip (S3), rubber grip (S5), or a metal grip (S10) and have a straight grip where the grip of the S20 is nicely curved near the tip.  The over all look of the shape of the pencil adds to it's elegance.  With the satin finish metal components the dark wood with it's satin finish gives the S20 a very sleek and elegant appearance.

 

But appearances alone do not make the pilot S20 such an elegant pencil.  The feel of the pencil is also elegant.  The shape along with the satin finish allows for a good grip and a good feel.  Writing with the S20 is a pleasant experience in part due to it's satiny smooth finish and shape, but the balance point is approximately 65 mm from the tip, just 6 mm shy from center.  This combination for me makes for a nice writing experience.  The pencil is not hard to hold and the wood feels so good in my fingers.

 

But enough gushing over the appearance and feel of elegant wood, let's get down to some stats.  Over all the S20 is approximately 146 mm long and 11 mm in diameter at it's widest.  it weighs 17.5 grams making it a semi heavyweight.  But I like a  weighty pencil, but then again I like a lightweight pencil as well.  Come to think of it, I like drafting pencils of all kinds and weights. Each delivers it's own experience.

 

 

Unlike the rest of the series, with the exception of the S3, the S20 breaks down into only 5 major components, the grip/body along with the metal pocket clip, the tip/end cap, the eraser with clean out rod and the lead indicator/push button.  I am sure that the pencil can be broken down further, but probably at the cost of breaking the pencil.  Besides there is no need to break the pencil down further in order to clear a lead jam.

 

The S20 is a ratcheting/clutch pencil which takes just two presses of the push button to advance enough to write with.  The mechanism is not loud enough to be a bother and the the mechanism is tight.  The lead reservoir is  cavernous enough to hold a tube of lead or more but works best with a tube or less.  To change the lead grade in the lead grade indicator window the push button must be removed so the tube can be held as the top is turned to the desired lead grade.  The pocket clip is removable but I would never do so for fear of damaging the wood. 

 

Weather you use the S20 at home or at the office, it will defiantly make a statement.  It's design, It's juxtaposition of wood and bright metal, both satin finish make the S20 the most elegant of the Pilot S series drafting pencils.  The entire series is available from our friends at JetPens.com.

Rhodia dotPad

Some time ago I received a small pad and 2 wooden pencils in the mail.  This was not unexpected as I had been approached and ask if I would review what is called a dotPad by Rhodia as well as a Rhodia wooden pencil.  I agreed.  Once the package arrived I examined the contents and fully attended to do a review quickly.  Well, I got sick just about that time and failed to do a quick review as promised.  Time passed and my illness came and went and the review was not forgotten, just put aside.  Recently the sender contacted me again about the review, I explained my situation and promised a timely review.  Once again my illness befell me and the review was again put off until now.  It is my hope that the sender will forgive me and accept this honest opinion of the items sent.

The dotPad I received was a 5.8" x 8.3" pad with a heavy backing.  80 sheets per pad of 21.3lb high grade vellum paper.  The pad is microperforated at the top so the sheets are easily removable.  The grid is composed of light lilac dots spaced 5mm apart.  The 2 pencils are of Linden wood painted orange and black, the Rhodia colors, with black erasers.  Surprisingly the black of the wood goes all the way through.  The lead grade is HB, comparable to a #2 pencil.  All in all the black covered dotPad and the orange and black pencils look striking nice!  Oh, yeah, the pencils are triangular in cross section!

I do not use wooden pencils at all, having gone completely over to drafting pencils years ago.  But I did find the triangular shape of the pencils afforded a comfortable grip.  Like any grade HB lead, it's soft.  Being soft it lays down a dark line that widens as the point dulls.  No surprises here.  The black erasers perform as one would expect erasing clean as long as the user isn't heavy handed.  The pencils sharpened cleanly when I used a Steadtler open type metal sharpener, the kind that I use on my colored pencils (oops!  I guess that I do use wooden pencils after all!  Just not to write with!).  All in all the Rhodia black and orange pencils are only exceptionable in their color, shape and solid construction.

The dotPad I found to be exceptional!  The heavy weight vellum paper is very forgiving when erasing heavy lines.  While it will smudge, it does not easily tear as lesser quality paper.  It's sizing accommodates a wide variety of writing instruments from fountain pens to rollerballs to gel pens to pencils, even a 0000 rapidiograph pen!  All seemed very smooth despite the fact all were fine to extra fine points.  My test pencil was a 0.3mm with HB lead and it felt exceptional smooth!  I really like the writing surface, especially when using a pencil.

I had a small project going when I took these pics so I used the dotPan and Rhodia pencils to do my calculations.  The smoothness of the writing surface proved to be a blessing as I did all the lines freehand.  I especially like that fact that unlike a standard quad pad the dots almost disappear  beneath the dark lines of the pencil.  With ordinary quad pads, even with the ones with light lines, the graph line often get in the way, especially when freehanding a "straight" line.

All in all I think that The uniqueness of the Rhodia triangular black and orange pencils will win over a lot of wooden pencil fans while the dotPad has already won me over!  I wish all "graph" paper were like the Rhodia dotPad!

To find out how and where to purchase the entire Rhodia line of products click this link.