You asked about the pencil shown in this post?
This handy tool is called a drafting lead holder or clutch pencil. It contains a thicker core of lead (2mm) than a mechanical pencil (0.05mm to 0.09mm) and must be sharpened with a specialized device called a lead pointer.
Pencil lead is manufactured in a range from soft to hard, with "B" representing a soft lead and "H" representing a hard lead. B stands for "Black" and H stands for "Hardness." As such, a soft lead produces a darker, thicker line and a hard lead produces a lighter, thinner line. The full spectrum is represented below in an image from Dave's Mechanical Pencils. The more B's a lead has, the softer it is, the more H's it has, the harder it is.
Your typical school pencil or mechanical pencil uses an HB lead, which is dead in the middle between soft and hard. (A "#2 pencil" is the same as an HB pencil.) However, for my artwork, I prefer a harder lead which is less dusty and won't smear as readily. A harder lead keeps its point longer as well. However, with a hard lead, artwork isn't as black on the page as with a softer lead. For me, this is an easy trade-off. I use a softer-leaded pencil to lead up the back side of tracing paper in prep for transferring a design, but for all other pencilly purposes, I prefer a hard lead.
I'm a huge fan of mechanical pencils as well and I use them plenty, especially when I'm on the go. Most stores carry the standard HB leads for mechanical pencils. However, it takes some planning to procure those ultra-thin leads in a harder variety. You can find them online or at nicer art supply stores. When I'm at the studio or at home, however, I tend to use a lead holder. It's not great for travel because the lead pointer gets filled with graphite dust and can make a real mess if you tip it over. You can track down a lead holder online or at your local art supply store. My nearby Michael's carries a Staedtler brand lead holder, as well as HB lead cores. Hobby Lobby, however, has a variety of lead cores.
Perhaps this helps some of you out? I thought lead ratings were relatively common knowledge till I saw the light bulb go off behind Isaac's eyes when I explained these terms to him a couple of weeks back. I guess I'm in my own little world. Me and my pencils.
