Model number or name?

Here is a recent addition to the pile.

The body is not quite flat but has more of a satin texture. Despite looking very newish the cap has some inexplicable bite marks on it.

With the tip extended it is 123mm and 120 mm without.

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@pearsonified has these in black, red, and yellow. I do not know the model number but you can sell it to me before you find out. :wink:

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I don’t know the model designation on these double knocks, but Mitsubishi released at least 3 different “cheap” double knocks over the years (not to mention their absolute cheapest double knocks, the „300 BOXY variant):

  • Fluted “metal” grips with colored barrels; available in red, blue, and black (there may be others)
  • Frosted grips with colored barrels (seen here); available in red, yellow, and black (again, unsure of other colors)
  • Mono-colored bodies with silver “rings” to separate grip and barrel sections; available in black and red (unsure of others); these were white-labeled designs that were also available under the “Castell XF” sub-brand of Faber-Castell
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I have all three types. By “cheap” do you mean lower sticker price or contains plastic components?

From my perspective, most pencils made in the 70s and 80s are cheap—both in terms of price and components—when their original sticker price was under „1000.

Of course, we’re talking about specific pencils, so here are my critiques of these Mitsubishi double knocks:

  • The fluted grips have extremely cheap plating, and the entire package is pretty lightweight compared to something like a Pilot H-2005. These pencils are extremely cool, but in the hand, you can tell they’re not particularly special.

  • The “frosted” grips give off a slightly more sophisticated vibe, and the entire pencil comes off as being more elevated (stylistically) than the fluted grip model. With that said, these pencils are difficult to grip, and the barrels still evidence an overall cheapness in the manufacturing process.

  • The mono-colored body double knocks are undoubtedly the cheapest of the three under consideration here. As mentioned earlier, this style was also white-labeled by Faber-Castell, and I mostly regard white-labeled pencils as generic and cheap.

Metallized fluted grip w knock - M5-53
nada for the rest :stuck_out_tongue:

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Floored by the M5-53 designation! I’ve also seen the W-knock referred to as the M5-57, which was also used for the executive with chevron clip and 1:1 ring joint. Maddening!

The Metalized fluted grip came in at least black, red, dark blue and light blue. Cheap or not, they are beautiful. I had a bit of an infatuation with them over the last couple of years. Though I do admit to being worried about the stress the monster spring will cause to the other components over time. Mine are all kept in a loosened state.

I have them cataloged as M5-53

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Would you mind posting pictures of both blue colors? I think I’ve only seen one, and if there were any aberrations, I probably attributed them to sun exposure.

M5-53
Family:

Blue

Green?

Nope! Just the other side of the light blue sadly

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Magnificent! I didn’t know the dark blue existed, and now my life will be incomplete until I track one down.

Yours are all in great condition. Recent YAJ/Mercari purchases?

I have been slowly building this part of the collection since early 2021. But most of them came from YAJ.

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That ‘light blue’ or ‘aqua’ model reminds me of a similar blight on my vintage Staedtler Mars Micrograph 770 0.3mm. When I got mine on eBay I really thought it was a pale green body.

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