Customer Reviews

Fantastic!! this and the HB are both of my favorite pencils for writing. What can be said that hasn't already been said. Smoothe, point retention and non-scratchy are on my list or requirements which both pencils meet. And of course, Thank you to JetPens for having these pencils availble.

I'm a little surprised how little love the Mono 100 has gotten in reviews.

I've been using high-end Japanese pencils for a while, and while I do like the Hi-Uni a lot, I find myself gravitating more toward the Mono 100 for writing. The real-world differences are pretty negligible unless you are obsessively comparing the two back and forth on a variety of surfaces (guilty), and even then the differences are small. They are both smooth as far as HB pencils go, but I find that the Hi-Uni is slightly more slippery on a Rhodia page, while the Mono feels a bit more viscous. Both qualities can be very desirable, and my feeling is that the Mono gives a very slightly superior degree of control and precision for writing. When moving the pencil a lot faster, in sketching for example, the slightly lower resistance of the Hi-Uni might be more appealing. I also have had fewer point breakages with the HB Mono 100 than with the HB Hi-Uni, though both are rare.

Both pencils are excellent, probably deserving of being called the best pencils in the world today. If you're struggling to decide which to get (and can't afford both), flip a coin or choose by aesthetics or brand identity and you won't be disappointed.

While a lot of folks are fawning over the Hi-Uni, I have to say these are among my new favorite pencils. For a while I've been looking at darker pencils to use for writing heavier text (headers, etc) in my notes. At first I gave the Hi-Uni B a shot, and then the Uni Penmanship Pencil in 4B (carried by JetPens at the time of this writing), then this one. While the 4B Mitsubishi is quite an impressive instrument and is exceedingly smooth and dark with minimal pressure, it wears down quickly and the marks are rather smudgable. I was a bit surprised at how fragile the Hi-Uni B was; almost every time I wrote a "ping na" stroke in a Chinese character, the tip would snap from the extra pressure. It was getting really maddening, and I didn't have much hope for the Mono 100 in 2B. However, my fears were misplaced as the Tombow has excellent point durability, and did not break a single time in dozens of characters. It does of course wear down faster than an HB, but is quite dark and rather smooth. I think perhaps it gives up a little bit of the slipperiness of the Hi-Uni on some papers, but then it seems equally smooth or even a little smoother on some other papers, and the gains in precision and point durability are nothing to scoff at.

Truly a marvelous writing implement, and I think I'll need to get more of them.

Tombow Mono 100 are one of the best wooden case pencils for writing, sketching and drawing, which many artists and animators truly appreciate and love. When you lay the graphite on a piece of paper, it makes your work look like a true masterpiece. Japan makes some of the highest quality and top notch pencils in the world today,especially their graphite. These pencils are a true craftsmanship and they are absolutely beautiful. A work of art and a true masterpiece. These are world class quality pencils that I will always cherish and love for the rest of my life. Jetpens,you are truly amazing and remarkable. I will always be a lifetime customer. Thank You, M. Keith Brummett

Have now purchased a range of Mono 100s; 2B, 3B, and 4B. They are all of very high quality and used principally for writing. Having perused this range I've been able to zero in on the 3B as the preferred sweet spot because: dark and clear lines, reasonably smudge free, and while they do require more sharpening than compared to say, an HB, there's a nice, strong cedar aroma reminding you why you like cedar pencils. Thanks Jetpens.

Fantastic Pencil! I buy the normal mono, but I like the idea of buying in bulk and the variety. I can't tell a huge difference between the 100's and normal mono. I feel these 3B's are darker and smoother than the a 5B derwent. I do notice the lead is smear resistant.

THE BEST PENCIL!!! The lead is smooth and so id the wood, yes i know its a little pricy but still, its worth is TRUST ME!!! 100/100

Oh yeah, jetpens has now Tombow Mono 100 pencils in stock. Awesome pencils.
Love the 3H, HB and 3B grades. Along with Mitsubishi Hi Uni easily the best pencils in the world.

Go get them.

ps. I wish jetpens would also get blue and red Tombow and or Mitsubishi pencils used for preliminary drawing, sketching, marking in books/newspapers, etc. Here is a link how they look;
http://www.penciltalk.org/2009/03/red-and-blue-pencils-vii-tombow-and-mitsubis hi

Beautiful pencils. I've had issues with the quality of other wood pencils before - either the lead is too fragile or the wood is too cheap and splinters or breaks. It holds a good tip, the lead won't break unless you put quite a bit of force on it, and while the lead can still smudge it won't ruin your paper like most B type pencils will. The case is actually pretty high quality and I can see myself using it long after the pencils have been whittled down to nubs.

I've found the 2bs might be a tad too soft for general sketching while being a little too hard for animation clean up, so you'll probably want to buy the variety pack first if you don't have a specific use in mind. However, despite these small issues, they've already replaced all the pencils (mechanical and wooden) in my pencil case. I would highly recommend that any hobbyist or professional artist should get a chance to try these out once.

Love Tombow!! Great pencils, you sharpen these to a perfect point without worrying of the lead cracking or chipping. Very smoothe. I will also be trying the Hi-uni's, just to expand my collection.

I think that I should have gotten 2H rather than H; it's quite smeary. I was wanting a pencil that wrote a bit darker, so I took a chance on the H.

Do these come in 12 packs of 6 or 2 packs of 6?