Pilot Mechanical Pencil Lead Neox Graphite 0.5mm, HB, 40 Leads (HRF5G-20-HB)

Oh how I wish they still carried this on Amazon. This lead is amazing. It’s perfectly soft, very dark, and smooth as butter but barely smudges. Using in a Kuru Toga is almost a perfect combination. This was a great purchase for the price and I highly recommend and I have ordered more from a third party but am hoping they will restock at some point

Lead quality and feel is great. Nice and bold and writes super smoothly. The mechanism for the case is also super nice. However, as a lefty this lead smudges too much. Not the fault of the lead, just the nature of 4B lead which leaves more graphite behind as you write. Stick to 2B or lighter if you are left-handed :)

Smooth, dark and strong. Noticeably darker and stronger than my Pentel 3B lead. This is my third attempt at purchasing a darker lead and the most satisfying so far. I really like it and I have no need to go any darker. The darkness of the line fluctuates quite a bit between using firm pressure vs using soft pressure. I’m left handed and I’ve had no issues with smudged lines. Erases fairly clean.

Writes great, stays on the paper without too much smudging. I use it for my final lines and for my rough -drafts since it's easier to erase.

nice bold and smooth. 2b is my go to and this is a great brand for it. difficult to erase though, had some issues on tests :-(

This lead is so smooth and dark you will think you are writing with ink. So great. I fluctuate between this and the Uni smudge-proof. I like them both, but this one is smoothest and is what I have in all my pencils.

I'm an artist with a strong preference for pen and ink but these graphites have me picking up my pencil a lot more these days. They are butter smooth and very dark for a pencil. You still have to contend with that unfortunate graphite shimmer but that can be corrected by a matte finishing spray, and you'll definitely want to spray it because it's extremely prone to smudging. If Faber Castell can put their matte black formula into a mechanical lead, even of 2mm diameter, they might supercede these pilot neoxes for me. But until then I'm more than content to keep buying and sketching with these. I'm feeding them into a Staedtler 925-35-05 and have not experienced any breakage or jams. They are more expensive than other leads but money is really no object here; mechanical leads are all extremely cost efficient. This one tube has at least a book worth of sketches in it. If you're going to spend hundreds of hours drawing use good tools. Edit 1-23-2022 I'm taking an anatomy course right now. Added a foot sketch.

I purchased this lead simply because I need 4B in varying sizes for a project. I was not expecting to like this lead much less use it after the project was finished. But I find myself reaching for it a lot more. The lead is smooth and buttery, without any dust. The strength is so-so. Being so thin, it's bound to snap with my heavy hand. But that's my fault not the lead. So if you have a heavy hand like me, try to go easy with this lead. The lead's container is okay too, I haven't broken it yet at least. (I'm rough on my supplies)