About ten years ago I bought some pencils extenders from a German craftsman and asked him to make a wooden leadholder for me. He came up with the following.
It’s as simple as it’s clever: The lead sits firmly in the slotted tip but can still be moved. When the tip is inserted into the barrel, its conical end ensures that it is pressed together and the lead is clamped. – The barrel is hollowed out to five millimeters at the rounded end and can therefore hold replacement leads.
Reminds me of the Cleo Skribent “Der Gessner”, only in a much thinner diameter. Very neat design.
By the way, @Gunther and other fellow Knockologists, do you happen to know whether there exists a Minfix with reference number 50/62 somewhere? Over the years I got many 50/65 pieces, one 50/61, one 50/63, and one 50/64, each one with its own quirks — different size holes, holes for left-handed people together with holes for right-handed users.
But the 50/62 seems just as elusive as a ghost, and I don’t remember any reference on scanned catalogues. My question now is: does it exist, or not?
I haven’t seen a 50/62 yet, neither live nor in a catalogue. Where did you get this item number from?
By the way, there was also a 50/50 which was as odd as the 50/61 in the sense that only one edge of the double-edged blade was used, even after a 180° rotation. However, I don’t have a source for the 50/50; I came across it in 2009 when I showed the 50/65 on my blog.
By the way, the 50/65 was available in two variants, once with one opening at each end and once with both openings at the same end.
I will ask Faber-Castell about the 50/62 and the 50/50 when I get the chance.
Pure natural numbers, plus the well-known German love for uniformity and consistency: since I know there are all the codes 50/61 through 50/65, somehow I know there must be a 50/62. Or at least I feel there ought to be a 50/62; to maintain my sanity in the face of a chaotic Universe.
Your words ringed a bell: indeed, in my stash of 50/65, I found the one with the two openings on the same side of the brass slate. Two admittedly different sharpeners with the same product code. Seriously wild move, Faber-Castell! I did not expect anything like this by the aforementioned Germans.
Maybe this compensates the lack of the 50/62 on this plane of reality…
Also, now I have to see and find the 50/50. Are we still talking about a classic Minfix design, or is it something different, like the plastic-encased MG11 (if I got the name correctly)?
