Greetings to all,
In my first entry, I will do a direct comparison between two of Staedtler's lower-end mechanical pencils, the Graphite 777 and the Noris 763. Both are available at leading bookshops nationwide. I got both from Popular, the Graphite 777 costs $1.55 and the Noris 763 costs $1.30. On first glance, the Graphite 777 looks nicer aesthetically, and the Noris 763 is designed to match the Staedtler Noris pencil line, with the familiar black and yellow strips. For these two pencils, there are other colours available and you can view them here -> Graphite 777 / Noris 763. One thing I noticed about the Noris 763 is that rather than the same model, the different colour versions are given different model names. The red version is called the Tradition 763 and the other colours are labelled as Graphite 763. Not sure what this means but if they are the same thing but just different colour, it only serves to confuse.
Specifications
Graphite 777:
Available in 0.5mm only
Length: 14.5 cm
Balance point is about 9cm from tip.
Non-retractable sleeve
Lead advance mechanism: Ratchet (push top)
Materials: All plastic, mechanism may be made of plastic too given the price (unable to determine as I am unable to dismantle to examine)
Noris 763:
Available in 0.5mm only
Length: roughly 14.3cm
Balance point is just below 8cm from tip.
Retractable sleeve
Triangular barrel
Lead advance mechanism: Ratchet (push top)
Materials: All plastic, mechanism may be made of plastic too given the price (unable to determine as I am unable to dismantle to examine)
About Graphite 777,
The eraser is uncapped. Staedtler provided a big piece of eraser. Lead chamber is accessed by pulling out the entire clip and eraser component. The lead chamber is quite thin, and can only hold about 8 leads comfortably. The lead advancing mechanism sounds quite reliable and so far I have not had any lead jams. 10 clicks give about slightly more than 7mm of lead and 2 clicks is required to advance enough lead for usage. The body of the Graphite 777 has this rubbery feel about it. While I like it initially when it looks and feels nice, after a while it seems to become sticky. I am not quite sure what is the reason behind it, but when I just left the Graphite 777 in my pencil case to use the Noris 763 for about 2 weeks, it became sticky. However, it returned to the way it was with increased usage.
About Noris 763,
The eraser is also uncapped but it is white in colour. I like white erasers as to me they seem to be able to erase better. However, this was not the case with the Noris 763. The eraser provided poor erasing power and smearing when applied to pencil markings. Again the lead refilling is done by pulling out the entire clip and eraser component. The lead tube inside is similar to the Graphite 777. Lead advancing mechanism is good so far with no lead jams. 10 clicks give 7mm of lead and 2 clicks is required to advance the sleeve as well as enough lead to start writing with. What I liked about the Noris 763 is the retractable lead sleeve and the sustainability of the eraser provided. It is replaceable. Staedtler does not sell the erasers (I'm not sure if you would want to buy the eraser they provide anyway), but they can be easily replaced by erasers refill like the Omni frozen eraser and the Pentel clic-eraser refills. Both are easily available at bookstores nationwide. I bought one and just used a razor blade to cut off a small portion and it fits perfectly into the eraser holder, as shown here.
Comparison:
1) Noris has a retractable sleeve which I appreciated.
2) The coloured erasers provided by the Graphite 777 erased pencil markings better.
3) The Graphite 777 was equiped with a larger piece of eraser than the Noris 763. However, Noris eraser could be replaced with some slight modifications, which I really liked. Currently, I replaced mine with the Omni Frozen Eraser Blue refill and it not only looks better, but erases much better than the Graphite 777.
4) Rather than a round barrel, the Noris had a Triangular Barrel which is more comfortable to hold.
I would prefer the Noris 763 to the Graphite 777. Not only it is cheaper it is more fun to use :)
Other comments:
1) Being budget mechanical pencils, I have some concerns about the quality of the pencil. I am unsure how long the pencils would last, but so far using the two pencils for about a month, they are still in top condition.
2) The pencils are light. I don't really mind this but some of us dislike this. They feel much lighter than the standard Pilot Super Grip pencils, but the plastic feels more flimsy than Pilot, as the plastic would bend when I clutch the pencil too tightly.
3) The pencil is slightly unbalanced towards the top, due to the large pieces of erasers. Because of the lightweight, it didn't really pose much of a hinderence to me.
Get these Staedtler pencils if:
1) You don't want to follow the crowd using Pilot mechanical pencils.
2) You use the eraser provided with the mechanical pencil extensively as other brands don't provide a eraser as big.
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