What makes Blackwing's iconic pencil so special?

The legendary Blackwing is not just any pencil; it's an experience. Loved the world over for its quality, iconic shape, quality of graphite and replaceable eraser, it has inspired the creative work of many throughout the ages. In this article we share the history of the Blackwing, some of the special Volumes Limited Editions and a quide to the lead and shade variations in the classic Blackwing range. So why is the Blackwing so special? Introduced in the 1930's, some of the world’s legendary Grammy, Emmy, Pulitzer and Academy Award winners were users of the original Blackwing 602 pencils. The list of known fans includes John Steinbeck, Stephen Sondheim, Leonard Bernstein, Truman Capote, Quincy Jones, Vladimir Nabokov and Chuck 'What's Up Doc' Jones, who used his Blackwing pencils to create Bugs Bunny and countless other Looney Tunes characters. Image Credit: Chuck Redux. In 1998, after several corporate acquisitions, the Blackwing was discontinued...but not forgotten. In fact, fans began paying as much $40 on eBay for a single Blackwing pencil! Artists from across the world soon began to notice that Palomino’s range of premium pencils provided a comparable performance to the Blackwing and asked them to consider reviving the iconic brand. Palomino Blackwing Reborn In 2010, President and CEO of California Cedar Products Company and Palomino brand, Charles Berolzheimer II, whose family’s roots in the pencil industry date back to the mid 19th century, used his unique supply relationships to re-introduce the Blackwing pencil, both in its original form: 602 Blackwing for devotees, writers and everyday users, as well as a modified version with a slightly softer and smoother lead for artists: Palomino Blackwing. Charles Berolzheimer is also responsible for creating ForestChoice, the world’s first FSC certified brands of pencils, and is the founder of Pencils.com. "What’s the allure? Well, just look at it! It’s the DeLorean Gullwing Coupe of the pencil world. And not only beautiful, but adept." Alex Beam, Boston Globe Blackwing pencils are made in Japan with genuine incense cedar, which comes from the forests of California and Oregon. It is amazingly smooth and beautiful, a performance you won’t find anywhere else. Every Blackwing pencil is hand shaved to fit their unique eraser/ferrule design. The shaved pencils are then sent to the headquarters in California where the eraser assembly is attached and the pencils are carefully packed by hand. Blackwing Volumes: Limited Editions Building upon the popularity of Blackwing pencils, Palomino recently released a Volumes series: four limited edition pencils per year where the model number and design of each pencil honours and celebrates cultural icons and events. Blackwing Classics Blackwing: For illustrators The Blackwing is ideal for illustrators and musicians who prefer a soft, dark line. It boasts a sophisticated matte black finish with pearl white erasers. If you love to draw and sketch this is your go-to due to the range you get from light to hard strokes. You also get a similar ‘charcoal’ effect from the pencil. The one downside is if you apply too much pressure, it can get blunt quickly. Blackwing 602: For writers Praised in the New Yorker, The Boston Globe, and Boing Boing among others, the Palomino Blackwing 602 features a firm and smooth graphite core that helps it deliver on its promise of “Half the Pressure, Twice the Speed.” The 602 is faultless. You don't have to press too hard to achieve readable handwriting. It's super comfortable too, most suitable for writing, but would also still work nicely for drawing too. Blackwing Pearl: For writing & drawing The Blackwing Pearl features a pearl white finish, black imprint and eraser, and a balanced and smooth graphite core that is softer than the graphite found in the Palomino Blackwing 602, but firmer than the graphite found in the Palomino Blackwing. The Pearl is great for writing while still being great for drawing as well. There is a certain fluidity you get from having smooth strokes, which would look really nice for any type of drawing. It is a lot more smoother to write with than the original Blacking, as the ‘charcoal’ texture does not translate as much. The blackness you get from high pressure stokes is toned down a notch in this pencil. Comparing the classic Palomino Blackwings: Lead and shade variations Here's a comparison of the three classic Blackwing pencils. The lined images illustrate how fluid the pencils are and the gradient from high to low pressure. And, of course, we couldn't let up the opportunity to try out the latest limited editions. Previous Limited Editions Blackwing Volume 725 The first in the “Volumes” series of limited edition Blackwing pencils, the Blackwing 725 pays tribute to the Newport Folk Festival and their impact on the landscape of folk, rock and roots music. The pencil features a sunburst finish, white imprint, black eraser and balanced graphite. The unique lacquer is inspired by the sunburst finish on the Fender Stratocaster that fuelled what Rolling Stone Magazine called one of “50 Moments that Changed Rock n’ Roll”: Bob Dylan’s first plugged-in performance. The model number is taken from the 25th day of the 7th month, which marks the date of Dylan’s memorable set. Blackwing Volume 1138 The Blackwing Volume 1138 honours 20th-century filmmaker Georges Méliès, who is credited with making the first sci-fi film. image The number '1138' pays tribute to the science fiction genre. Using a process known as movie barcoding, Palomino condensed the entirety of Georges Méliès's film 'A Trip to the Moon' into individual bands of colour and applied it to the barrel of the Blackwing pencil. The manufacturing process utilises an intricate and unique high-quality printing method called roll-on printing, and this is the first Blackwing pencil with a silver ferrule and silver imprint. A new generation of fans Blackwing pencils have been used by some of the most influential creatives in the world, who do everything they can to inspire a new generation of innovators. The 'new' Blackwing has a new generation of fans, including creatives like jazz musician and composer Christian Tamburr, Ren & Stimpy animator and creator Bob Camp and comic writer and penciler Sal Abinnanti have already become members of this new generation. Check out this interesting talk from technology writer and Blacking Pencil enthusiast, Clive Thompson who explores the topic of ‘writing vs typing'. Did you know?: In addition to their pencils, Blackwing has also introduced a unique line of luxury notebooks, sketchbooks and folios that help inspire your ideas from pencil to paper, from cultivation to culmination. Sources: Blackwing602.com Blackwingpages.com Shop the full range of Blackwing at Milligram.com.

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