DerwentGraphic Drawing Pencils, Medium, Metal Tin, 12 Count (34214)

I do a lot of pencil drawing and usually keep it simple; most of my work is done with a #2 or HB pencil, and final dark shading is done with 2B and 6B. However, as I continue to improve my drawing ability, I decided that it would be helpful to have a few more pencil options for shading work.This Derwent set is perfect. At first, I figured I would just use a couple of the pencils and buy the entire set merely for the convenience. However, in my most recent piece, I found myself using about 2/3 of the different hardness values during my shading process. I usually just lay down some graphite and use a Q-Tip to spread it around each area, with the downside being the lack of precision afforded by this method. With the harder pencils, though, I could merely use the pencil to shade thoroughly, allowing me to get into tight corners without making things too dark. This is probably just basic drawing practice, but for me it was a new approach and one made possible by this set.The Derwent pencils are very high quality and this set includes all hardness values from 9H to 9B; there are a few duplicates as well for the total count of 24 (19 different hardness values). If you need a range of pencils for any kind of pencil art, look no further than this excellent set.I have attached a photo of my most recent piece (a 1969 Camaro), drawn using these pencils, in the product images above. I hope this gives a good idea of the potential of this set.

These are the best set of pencils I own. They draw on any medium beautifully. The tips are strong and has a comfortable grip. My Faber's and staedtler are nothing compared to these. It's now my favorite pencil set. As a beginner artist I still have a lot to learn about pencils and mediums so maybe in the future another one will take my attention but for now these are the best Iv come across.

Great pencils however one of them was very bowed and is hard to draw with if you’re not holding it just right but there are doubles of some so it’s not a huge deal.

Perfect pencils for architecture drawings. The variety of B/H helps line weights be clear and concise. Great for art drawings too, high quality lead is easy to use and manipulate for shading. Tin arrived a little dented but that’s expectable, pencils were still fine.

The pencils are fine. My review is mainly about the packaging. I assumed that with a pencil set in a tin box, that it would have a lid, but my set came with the bottom only and it was shrink wrapped so the pencils stayed in place in the thin cheap plastic tray in the bottom. But there was no lid with my set so I was mildly disappointed. If the shrink wrap would have torn in the shipment, then the pencils would have been tossed about in the box and in the past I have had some items fall out of the box through the minimally taped ends. Many delivery people will handle the boxes by either puncturing the sides for a finger hold or grabbing the ends of the lids to move the boxes so the lid ends are bent and elevated. Sometimes the paper tape holding the lid closed will fail and the lids are partially open. so I have lost items that way. Not sure how this pencil set was packaged that way, at Derwent factory or at Amazon, but it bugs me to get items shipped with unexpected surprises like that. So that's my 2 cents. Pencils are fine. People have mentioned grittiness, and yes I have felt that sometimes the pencil will have a gritty drag and won't produce a clean line until the grit particle wears away after a couple of strokes. But they are otherwise good enough pencils. I can't say they blow away some lower priced pencils I have. The Castle pencils seem to have a really nice feel and were a very good value in comparison. Staedler pencils are equally priced and I do not notice any gritty feel.

I have tried nearly every brand of premium graphite drawing pencil: Caran d'Ache, Staedtler, Faber-Castell, Koh i Noor, Tombow, Generals, Cretacolor, Conte' and Derwent. I like them all, and it would be difficult to say one brand is "best" because they're all good; just different users will subjectively prefer one for their personal style over others. Having said that, the Derwent pencils just feel 'right' in my hand and seem to fit my style the best. The leads are smooth, and the hardness grades are spaced well. They feel most similar to the Faber-Castell 9000 pencils, just a touch softer (grade for grade of course), and come in a larger range of hardness values (20 vs 16). I also like the Faber-Castells, but still I slightly prefer Derwent.Overall, Derwent are my favorite brand of drawing pencil, and I'll definitely be ordering more as I use these up.

I love the quality of these pencils. I am taking a drawing class for the first time this semester and the range these pencils give me is great. I've had my teacher tell several other students that their supplies weren't adequate but has always just focused on showing me how to use mine. I don't know too much about pencils but if you're looking for a great starter range I would recommend this set.The only down side I have for the pencils is that the case doesn't allow for easy viewing and the pencils fall out fairly easily. However, I didn't really consider the case a huge deal because it stores them perfectly in transit. I just think it would be nice if the pencils snapped in and had a label along the bottom (not on the pencil) to know which pencil you're grabbing (because the pencils will rotate in the case).