How Are Mechanical Pencils Made?

The Design Process

Before the first piece of plastic is manufactured, a mechanical pencil must go through the stages of the design process. In this process, the pencil manufacturer must decide how to make the pencil, so as best to serve the needs of the customer. This includes looking at possible new features, reviewing customer feedback on previous builds, and deciding on basics such as color. When all the decisions have been made, detailed schematics are made, outlining how the pencils should look and function once they are finished. With these plans in place, the packaging department can already begin working on their end, wholly basing their packaging on a pencil design that hasn't even been manufactured yet.

Planning the Pencil

From the design firm, the pencil plans head out to the various points of the manufacturing process. Often, a mechanical pencil is not made in a strict assembly line. One department will work on a certain part of the pencil while another works on a different part. These parts can then come together at a later time. This is the kind of thing that is planned out in this stage of the process.
The details for each section of the pencil are poured over, and plans are made regarding how long it will take to make the pencil, as well as how much money it will cost. It is in this back-and-forth process that the company learns what kind of time frame it's looking at, and the actual assemblers learn the requirements such as lead size and the budget they have.

Making a Mechanical Pencil

When making a mechanical pencil, the manufacturers must ensure that the barrels are long enough to accommodate at least five pencil leads. Typically, these barrels are made from plastic, though sometimes rubber is used. First, a mold is created, and from there machines are used to duplicate this mold as many times as the manufacturer desires.
Included in the making of a pencil is the mechanical action itself. Sometimes called the "advancing mechanism," this action is designed out of metal, working on a spring system. When a button is pressed (either from the side or the top of the pencil), this spring pushes the lead forward, and then settling back so the lead is locked into place.
The finishing touches are then added to the product, with the lead, eraser, and any design flourishes being integrated into the pencil before it is placed in packaging and shipped off to retail stores.