Tombow Mono 100, Mono R and Mono J pencils are coming to PencilThings.com

PencilThings.com is going to offer Tombow pencil varities not otherwise available in the United States, or anywhere outside of Japan. for that matter. They are: Mono 100; Mono R; Mono J; and 8900 HOP. In addition, we will offer Tombow colored pencil sets and erasers. We are beginning with the Mono 100, Mono R and Mono J, each in HB lead degree.

Tombow MONO 100. This pencil is designed for the widest range of professional writing, drafting and drawing uses. It is Tombow's flagship model. Tombow says that this pencil shares the same lead as the Tombow MONO, which is currently available in the United States. The body of the MONO 100 looks quite different from the current MONO pencil. You can see a picture of it at and read comments at the "paper and pencil" BLOG.

The MONO 100 is manufactured in 14 degrees: 6B 5B 4B 3B 2B B HB F H 2H 3H 4H 5H 6H. The pencils are boxed one dozen per degree, and the pencils and box are printed and packaged for sale in Japan. Our initial supply will all be HB. We think we will be able to sell this pencil for about $2.25 each.

Tombow MONO-R. This pencil is designed for professional drawing and writing.

The MONO-R is manufactured in 7 degrees: 4B 3B 2B B HB H 2H. The pencils are boxed one dozen per degree, and the pencils and box are printed and packaged for sale in Japan. Our initial supply will all be HB. We think we will be able to sell this pencil for about $1.25 each.

Tombow MONO-J. This pencil is designed for professional drawing, drafting and writing.

The MONO-J is manufactured in 9 degrees: 4B 3B 2B B HB H 2H 3H 4H. The pencils are boxed one dozen per degree, and the pencils and box are printed and packaged for sale in Japan. Our initial supply will all be HB. We think we will be able to sell this pencil for about $0.75 each.

If you have facts, anecdotes and/or personal knowledge about these pencils, please share them by posting a comment.

The acquisition of the made-for-Japan Tombow pencils and accessories is a major step for PencilThings.com. It ranks right up there with our decision to bring Mongol pencils back to the U.S. market and to offer the Helix Oxford pencil. While our commitment to Tombow is substantial and aggressive, we will pay very close attention to the comments and suggestions our U.S. and International customers make.

For example, among the three pencils we are starting with, there are yet 27 more degrees of hardness to consider! What should we do next? We are thinking that we should next bring in the Tombow 8900 HOP in HB, some erasers, and the Mono 100, Mono R and Mono J pencils in either 3B or 2B lead degrees. We lean towards 3B. We will appreciate reading your suggestions.

The quantity of these three pencils we will have on hand will be limited. If you are interested in reserving one dozen of one or more models, please send an email stating your non-binding intent to sales@pencilthings.com.

Anticipated arrival date is October 15, 2007.   |  Don Bell, Proprietor, Pencil Things