Pacific Arc Chromagraph Metal Mechanical Pencil .7 mm Silver Barrel Mechanical Pencil with Built In Adjustable Pencil Grade, Lead Pencil Holder fo...

I love this pencil! It is heavy and fits nicely in my hand, but be warned that if it is dropped on the tip, it will break. I had this pencil for over a year and it fell onto the tiled floor. I scooped it up and was disheartened to see that the tip had bent. I tried to bend it back, carefully and slowly, but alas the tip broke off. I eventually purchased another to replace the broken piece of my writing kit. So even though I had a self-inflicted accident, I still hold this pencil in high regard!

This is a solid durable pencil. The only reason for the 4 vs 5 is the components that screw together (the metal grip, and the portion beyond it where the lead comes out) seem to come loose more frequently than other brands of pens/pencils I have (rotring, and koor-i-noor). It's not a big deal, just something to be aware of.

This pencil is great to write with. It's heavy but not too heavy to where it is tiring to use. The only negative I have is the threads. They come undone fairly easily and you have to screw back in parts while using it.

First off, the pencil lead support came bent. Straight out of the foam packaging. In 0.3mm, it's really precise and pretty difficult to bend back to a functional point again. Second, the pencil is balanced towards the back. For some, that's what is wanted, but with such a fine point it's preferable, for me at least, to have the weight towards the point so you don't need to apply any added pressure. The rotring that this is trying to mimic is balanced much better, I chose this because 0.3mm is smaller than the 0.5 offered by rotring and the 0.35 is largely inaccessible. Honestly, it's a good alternative, after I bent the tip back to a usable form, I still rather enjoy this pencil. The lead is very visible, common of drafting pencils, and the metal grip is rather nice. The rigid body makes it harder to roll in your hand and the grip doesn't slide around. 3/5. Edit It has been several weeks. I no longer have any complaints. The tip bent back into alignment and has had no issues since, even surfing my pocket-something I rarely do with a fixed tip pencil. The weight less on the tip of the pencil is alright, replicating more that of a Rotring 600 than the 500 I own and use frequently. My only gripe is that each click brings out very slightly too much lead for me, but honestly not a big enough deal to even change. This pencil started out as something I didn't appreciate, but as time continues, I find myself drawn to using it more and more. 5/5 Very impressed

Updated Review: Included a picture to compare with a Rotring. Pacific Arc's is a nice, weighty mechanical pencil and I enjoy using the 0.3mm one for fine details on sketches and drawings. I've decided against using the 0.7mm for drawing based on my previous reasons but I find it highly suitable as a travel pencil for writing, once you get over the fact that adding more lead to it is a hassle that should be done at home. Once again, if you don't want to finagle with the "disappearing tip" mechanism, stick with the 0.3 or go for a different brand of 0.7. Old Review: I'm giving the 0.7mm one 4/5 stars compared to the 0.3mm's 5/5 stars. This is because they are, effectively, two very different mechanical pencils aside from design. For the 0.7mm, Pacific Arc attempted to mimic Rotring's 800 series mechanism where the pencil tip "disappears" from the front of the pencil by holding down the button and applying enough pressure for it to retract into the barrel. I wish it didn't have that mechanism and was only a solid piece instead because putting additional leads inside the barrel becomes an absolute struggle which requires taking the whole pencil apart, making sure the additional springs are in the right spots, and then keeping it secure while putting it back together. Too much hassle for a mechanism that shouldn't be included at this price range. I highly recommend going for Rotring's 600 series at just about double the price. Similar design though solid but much higher quality. Or go for any other 0.7mm out there. Just not this one unless you want the disappearing tip mechanism for this price. I honestly didn't even realize that it was a feature until I thought that I somehow broke the pencil simply by using it.