Pilot automatic has an automatic advance, but not an automatic feed. Right?
What’s the difference? To me, “automatic” simply means you never have to knock.
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It’s this fully automatic thing, that new leads are auto-feeded from the reservoir and you never need a knob (and don’t have it), like staedtler micromatics or pilot automacE…
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I see—I’ve never distinguished between knock vs. no-knock on automatic pencils. To me, if you don’t need to knock to advance the lead, then it’s an “automatic feed” pencil.
Personally, I must have knocking ability as a fallback, even on an automatic pencil. Redundancy makes sense if the primary mechanism fails.
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It always seemed a little pedantic to me. Maybe if you need a way to classify certain kinds of autos?
Regarding the 0.3 Pilot Automatic, it is an automatic and was available well before the Orenznero.
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yep, and something like HAT-8R-05-B, released in 1987, which didn’t have a button to knock and it requires user to “insert” 1 lead into the head by hand since it has no lead reservoir though.
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which one is this?
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The Japanese markings say ‘automatic enpitsu’ (automatic pencil), followed by 0.5 and an indication for the lead grade, e.g. ‘B’ or ‘HB’. It looks like a 100-yen hexagonal pencil but does not come with a knock button. Instead you have to tease the cone off the body, revealling a VERY LONG piece of lead threaded thru the clutch.
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I think these were intended to be single use disposable pencils. No one in their right mind is refilling that thing regularly 
Also, the mechanism is pretty awful. There’s plenty of these really cheap automatics and none of them are usable.
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In Taiwan, local stationery stores often “teach” young students to save on re-using disposable pencils and lead casettes. I can share a few popular stories in a seperate thread though 
back to the topic, the first 0.3mm automatic pencil (leads advance automatically, regardless of feeding mechanism) is probably the HAT-300-S (pilot automatic availble in 0.5 and 0.3mm) mentioned above. (which later evolved into automac series)
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Part of the recent @Thomas inventory reduction, I scored a 101 Pencil which I learned today was the first knock type pencil.
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I got one too. One of the things I love about the oldest Pentel pencils are that the chuck unscrews from the lead shaft; it isn’t just crimped on. The (PS-)350 series are the same, and this also carried into some of the earlier metal reservoir pencils like the Eleven for a generation or two.
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Any idea which was the first half / partial slide mechanical pencil?
Possibly Staedtler Micromatic?
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I guess that Staedtler Micrograph HS or/and Microfix, maybe both at once (one era/year of production).
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Not sure that the E ROLAND “Fall-Stop 1.8-2.2” did not come out before the Tru Point…the German patent dates were 1959/60… the last / common version of the TP was, I think, first out in 1967.
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Is it possible that Berol had two firsts?
Automatic with cushioning
Casette, with lead casette
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I think the cassette was first done by Sheaffer, but I’m not 100% sure.
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A subscriber has asked me to make a video on the first automatic pencil. From what I can tell the first was the DS75, followed close by the TK-Matic. I do have some TK-Matics (green, black and L models) that I bought from @DarkwingDuck Allen for a bargain. Would this be “close enough” to a first?
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I gues we can argue that the TK-matic was the one that really gained a popular awareness with its more distinctive design (especially the grip) and also some of the hyperbole in the advertising. This clipped scan of an ad from 1981 claims it is “the world’s only non-stop pencil”… so… can’t blame the gen-pop from thinking this was true!
1981-01 - Faber-Castell TK-matic - Introducing the world’s only non-stop pencil (bad scan).pdf (510.1 KB)
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Thank you!