#rotring 500

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Beauty shots of my current favorite mechanical pencils in my collection. 😍 They make me a better artist. 😏 … Just kidding. But they sure do look pretty and feel nice + premium to hold. 🤩

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Traces of graphite – Massimo Fecchi update 2020

Traces of graphite – Massimo Fecchi update 2020

I have a small update for my 2016 blog post about Massimo Fecchi, the Italian artist who draws comimcs with the, in my opinion, best proportions, shapes and lines with beautiful variations.

Fecchi with his Rotring (Image © Massimo Fecchi)

When I asked Massimo about his pencils in 2016 he used a Rotring Tikky II for his initial drawings. Recently, he posted a photo of himself drawing for…

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Pencil Review: Rotring 500

Rotring 500, Black, 0.5 Pencil Lead Diameter

The Rotring 500 is part of Rotring’s line of drafting pencils, and appears to be designed as a ‘younger sibling’ to the Rotring 600. Bear in mind that the Rotring 600 is widely considered the holy grail of mechanical pencils. The 500 has a tough reputation to follow.

Can be purchased for about $17.

In short: The Rotring 500 serves its purpose relatively well as a mechanical pencil with a comfortable weight distribution near the grip of the pencil However for the price at which it’s being sold, there are other competitive models which should first be considered.

In depth: From the top down, the Rotring 500 has a typical, tiny drafting pencil eraser, housed in a plastic cap. Just below is a lead indicator with a metal shell around it. The lead indicator doesn’t swing around, nor does it get stuck, so the lead indicator is a plus. It goes from 2H to 2B. There is a metal clip just below that, which appears to be movable, but it doesn’t seem easy to move. The word ‘Rotring’ is embossed within the clip.

The plastic body has the red words ‘Rotring 500, 0.5 mm’ on it – other than that, there don’t appear to be any particularly special features.

The grip is a standard knurled drafting pencil grip, and is made out of metal. It leads down to the 4 mm lead shaft, where the lead is dispensed. However, users should be wary with the entire Rotring line [minus the 800] – the structure of the pencil appears to give the tip a little more shaky structure. The lead does not actually move within the lead sleeve, but the lead sleeve isn’t supported well by the rest of the tip of the pencil, therefore one should be very careful not to drop this pencil.

Overall: I would say that the Rotring 500 is a reliable pencil, with no bells ‘n’ whistles minus the lead indicator.

In terms of other options, I would first consider the weight of the pencil. In drafting pencils, weight is the primary factor, so before you go ahead and buy the 500, make sure you know exactly what you want. A heavier pencil at the same price: Graphgear 1000 [also reviewed on this website]. Both pencils are great, but the Graphgear is slightly more comfortable to use, and is moderately heavier in comparison.

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