Prismacolor Turquoise Non-Photo Drawing Leads - 2 mm - Blue - Pack of 12

While researching for sketching supplies I noticed a lack of reviews everywhere I went. So hopefully this helps someone! Review your purchases people!

I use this lead several times a week when sketching. I then refine the sketches using black lead or ink. I have no experience with other blue/turquoise leads.

Pros: Great for quick concept sketching (makes even sloppy sketches look good). Non-photo lead is magical. Black lead and ink applies easily and shows nicely when applied on top of blue. Convenient case.

Personal Cons: I burn through this lead... a sharp point turns dull in seconds flat. Soft like a colored pencil.

TL;DR - Great non-photo lead that does it's job well.

I'm a high school English teacher, and I use a 2 MM lead holder, as my preferred method, when using a pencil. I bought these leads to help with an issue that's just part of teaching: making copies isn't something you can do every day, and when a student needs a copy of an assignment to complete work, your last "clean copy"--without writing--goes to the kid and not into your files, to make more for the future. After using these leads for about a month, my "teacher copy" of assignments--with all of MY writing, notes and ideas--now becomes my "clean copy." It saves me time, and it keeps me from jockeying with another reality of school: sharing a printer to produce another "clean copy"!

Additionally: The leads erase pretty cleanly, with any pencil eraser. They're easy to see on the page, not unlike a lighter, hard pencil lead. In other words, the color isn't as dark as a standard, softer pencil lead, but it's not unreadable. The writing is most readable when you keep the non-photo blue lead sharp. As the fine point wears away, it becomes more like a colored pencil lead, with a dull/blunt tip. I keep a lead sharpener handy to freshen it up, and I do have to freshen it more frequently than standard graphite lead. When you photocopy, you may need to tinker with the setting on the machine. In my school, I need to scale down the exposure. The black print, from the computer, photocopies like a dream, and the non-photo blue disappears like magic. I've since shared my pack of leads with another teacher, and she loves them, too.

This is something I'd highly recommend to all educators!

This is so-so because the clay content in this lead means that it doesn't really work with some kinds of lead holders. The best bet is one with a clamp mechanism, not one designed specifically for 2mm lead. I have one for 2mm lead and this lead just slips in the mechanism to where you can't use it. Works fine in a simpler, more universal lead holder with a clamp / claw mechanism to hold any size lead.