Recently, I was assembling a number of drawing instruments to show my students what I considered good design tools. In doing so, I pulled my old Caran D’Ache Fixpencil 22 (Swiss Made!) from an old box of tools. I keep that pencil since my days as an architecture student in Buenos Aires. Since I did not have any 2B lead refills, which is the hardness I recommend to young designers, I set to the Internet to order some.
While looking at various websites, I discovered Caran D’Ache had recently released a commemorative version of the fabulous pencil. To mark its 100th anniversary, and among other commemorative pieces, the Maison Caran d’Ache issued a limited edition of the iconic Fixpencil 22. Designed and first released in 1929, the Fixpencil is the first mechanical pencil ever equipped with the Maison’s patented unique clutch mechanism.
Just like the original model, the new Fixpencil 22 comes equipped with a lead sharpener. The commemorative edition also sports architectural scales in inches and centimeters, and comes with a tube of extra colored leads.
With renewed enthusiasm, I will use both—new and old at every opportunity!