Since the 0.7 mm pencil was designed for a 0.7 mm lead, the 0.5 mm lead would slip through the tip. The more H’s you have, the harder the lead and the lighter the lines.Ĭan you use 0.5 lead in a 0.7 pencil? No, you can’t. According to this system, pencils are graded on a continuum for “H” (hardness) and “B” (blackness), with a number to say how hard or how black it is.

Generally, a #2 pencil is about the equivalent of an HB pencil. Popular brands include BIC mechanical pencils and Pentel mechanical pencils. Mechanical lead pencils use standard #2 lead, which is made from graphite, so it’s able to be used for standardized tests and other uses that require this type of lead. The softest lead that is available to fit in a pencil is 120 /a3 0.7 mm. For drawing,use 0.5mm leads, because they’re more precise than the 0.7mm leads. The 0.7mm leads are thicker, which is better for people who tend to press hard on the pencil when writing. Do you? Yes, it’s equivalent to a #2 pencil. The #2 refers to hardness of the lead, so it depends on the lead you use in the pencil – if you buy HB leads – whether 0.5 mm or 0.07 mm or 0.09 mm – that is equivalent to #2 there are other designations such as B or H which are different. How can you tell the hardness of a pencil core?Ī standard, hexagonal, “#2 pencil” is cut to a hexagonal height of 1⁄4-inch (6 mm), but the outer diameter is slightly larger (about 9⁄32-inch (7 mm)) A standard, #2, hexagonal pencil is 19 cm (7.5 in) long.How big of a lead do you need for a 0.5 mm pencil?.

Number 2 pencil 3