+ding174 hey, sorry about that. The instructions should have been in there - thank you for pointing out our mistake. Where did you purchase your pencil from?
Sorry about that. Yeah it's a little complicated, but I hope that you shouldn't have to change leads very often at all. Our leads are made to be tough and long-lasting. Glad you found the video and I'm sorry you had trouble at first!
Autopoint has made a great pencil like this for many years. A durable pencil with larger lead that won't snap while writing like the thinner leads in some mechanical pencils. Maybe a bit old school, but so am I.
This was extremely helpful! I had no idea how to do any of these things. Now I am happy! Sad, that I only have 3 leads and like another comment..... pretty unfortunate that those of us with this fabulous pencil will have to buy something else and where does the old pencil go? Right! Into a landfill........ grrrr!
Does anyone have any good suggestions for how to make the most of the erasers? Once they get worn, there’s no way I’ve found to “advance” the eraser from the metal grip. It doesn’t bite hard enough to stop it from being pushed back in the body of the pencil. Trying to fill the void space underneath didn’t help either. Thanks in advance for any advice!
Is it easy to break the pencil if I twist the tip off the body the wrong way? I'm not sure what I did but I removed the led from the plunger and can't seem to put the lead in the plunger properly.
While I understand that supply chain issues necessitated the discontinuing of the BK99. I am very disappointed that even the lead has been discontinued. I would've expected a company to continue to support legacy users.
Thank you, Sean. This pencil uses an HB-grade lead, or a "number 2" grade of hardness. This is a very standard experience as most pencils are HB/#2. You'll find that the smoothness and feel of this pencil will be very familiar.
Reassembling the pencil will not work apparently. I put the lead in the tip and screw the plunger back on the tip. But there is no way the plunger on the reassembled tip wil slide into the barrel of the pencil. The plunger finds a position and screwing the tip back on forces the lead out completely. Any suggestions?
Hey Robert! The tip is not threaded, so there's no need to screw the tip back on. I'll try to follow along with your process. 1. Put the lead into tip and screw in plunger. You have that right. 2. Both the plunger and the barrel have oblong dimensions, just make sure to insert the plunger like a key into the barrel's matching hole. 3. Now just press in the tip. No screwing required. All twisting does is extend or retract the lead - it does not have an effect on the security of the tip to the barrel. I suspect that should solve your issue but let me know if not. Jim@riteintherain.com
I just put one together for the first time, after watching the video about 15 times and wondering how it all seamlessly and effortlessly went back together I decided brute force was the answer. I definitely absolutely had the plunger and lead installed correctly so let that go, it was getting the plunger back into the housing that was a problem. I ignored the crackling and breaking noises and literally forced it in place as hard as I could, then beat on it with a blunt object to seat it the rest of the way, works fine now and assembly and disassembly are no problem. I'm going to say I rearranged some incorrectly installed parts from the factory. This was a brand new out of the package YE99 pencile.
On my pencil the plunger is stuck in the barrel and won't come out with the tip, I've tried screwing the tip onto it in the barrel but it just won't catch the threads. Any help would be appreciated
If you have enough of the plunger to gasp, pull it out from the barrel while twisting it. Once the plunger is out, screw the plunger into the tip’s shaft and reassemble the barrel and tip. If the plunger doesn’t twist from the barrel or it doesn’t screw into the tip’s shaft, you may have a faulty/damaged plunger.
I really like this Pencile. But What if to much lead comes out. it looks like the way You retract the lead back in the Pencil. That You would have to start all over again every time You had that problem come up. Is there no way to retracted the lead back in the Pencail so just the right amount of lead is showing. Thanks.
Hey @S&Tguy. I explain extending/retracting lead at 1:25 in the video. When you rotate the tip to extend the lead, it moves slowly so that you can get just the right amount of lead out. I think you'll find that it is quite precise and intuitive once you get the hang of it.
We usually do a distance test where we position a pen in place to write on a roll of our paper as it is processed so that we may measure the distance written. We weren't able to do a distance test with this utensil - the pencil tip changes length as lead is used/extended so applying even pressure is not possible the same way it is with a pen. Now, that said, this pencil does write for at least an average length. This is anecdotal, but we've had a few employees just replacing their first leads after nearly two years of use. I find that extreme, but I will say that because your lead is less likely to break due to our design, you will use lead at a considerably slower rate than with a normal pencil.
+DCN2010 unfortunately we've had some supply issues with this pencil, though we do have some yellow pencils in stock right now. - www.riteintherain.com/yellow-mechanical-pencil
Just following up - our supply is back at full strength and all of our pencils are now widely available. If you never got the chance to try it out, they're back and tough as ever.
Hi Wanda. To clarify, when you rotate the tip, the lead does not extend? It is possible that you may have to replace the lead. Remove one from the eraser reservoir. Remove the tip from the body. Unscrew the pin-like "plunger". Insert a new lead. Screw in the plunger pin. Replace tip back onto body. Rotate again; after a few turns, a lead should extend. If this does not work, call us at 253 922 5000 - we'll help over the phone or replace the pencil if defective.
Hi Tony, I'm not sure why that would be. Are you experiencing a defect? If so, please do reach out and we'll take care of you. social@riteintherain.com
Sorry for the slow reply - 5 3/4" is the length of the pencil. Let me know at social@riteintherain.com if you need any more information - happy to help.
How to retract the lead was not in the instructions of the package I'm glad this video exists
+ding174 hey, sorry about that. The instructions should have been in there - thank you for pointing out our mistake. Where did you purchase your pencil from?
ding174 Same here couldn't figure it out for the life of me. Lol
Sorry about that. Yeah it's a little complicated, but I hope that you shouldn't have to change leads very often at all. Our leads are made to be tough and long-lasting. Glad you found the video and I'm sorry you had trouble at first!
I purchased them from DSS a drafting & surveying store located in Fredericksburg, VA
Perfect tone, clear spoken, easy to understand, slow enough to follow. I don't even own this pencil but I love the instructions lol
Thanks. Good video and super simple explanation of lead replacement. I'd forgotten the plunger!
Couldn't figure out how to replace the lead, thanks for posting!
Autopoint has made a great pencil like this for many years. A durable pencil with larger lead that won't snap while writing like the thinner leads in some mechanical pencils. Maybe a bit old school, but so am I.
These pencils are a goal!!! I have several in yellow and red colors. They're easy to find in the field, very sturdy.
This was extremely helpful! I had no idea how to do any of these things. Now I am happy! Sad, that I only have 3 leads and like another comment..... pretty unfortunate that those of us with this fabulous pencil will have to buy something else and where does the old pencil go? Right! Into a landfill........ grrrr!
That was very helpful,especially how to relead
Glad to hear that, James. This pencil is definitely a little different - glad this video helped!
Very helpful tutorial. The best mechanical pencil. Thanks
Does anyone have any good suggestions for how to make the most of the erasers? Once they get worn, there’s no way I’ve found to “advance” the eraser from the metal grip. It doesn’t bite hard enough to stop it from being pushed back in the body of the pencil. Trying to fill the void space underneath didn’t help either. Thanks in advance for any advice!
Is it easy to break the pencil if I twist the tip off the body the wrong way? I'm not sure what I did but I removed the led from the plunger and can't seem to put the lead in the plunger properly.
Thank you. Clear and so helpful!!!
It is really helpful. 🙏 It taught me how to retract the lead, I will try it later
Helpful video. Thank you
You bet - glad it helped.
While I understand that supply chain issues necessitated the discontinuing of the BK99. I am very disappointed that even the lead has been discontinued. I would've expected a company to continue to support legacy users.
I would like to see a writing demonstration of how well it glides. Still a great review.
Thank you, Sean. This pencil uses an HB-grade lead, or a "number 2" grade of hardness. This is a very standard experience as most pencils are HB/#2. You'll find that the smoothness and feel of this pencil will be very familiar.
Reassembling the pencil will not work apparently. I put the lead in the tip and screw the plunger back on the tip. But there is no way the plunger on the reassembled tip wil slide into the barrel of the pencil. The plunger finds a position and screwing the tip back on forces the lead out completely. Any suggestions?
Hey Robert! The tip is not threaded, so there's no need to screw the tip back on. I'll try to follow along with your process.
1. Put the lead into tip and screw in plunger. You have that right.
2. Both the plunger and the barrel have oblong dimensions, just make sure to insert the plunger like a key into the barrel's matching hole.
3. Now just press in the tip. No screwing required. All twisting does is extend or retract the lead - it does not have an effect on the security of the tip to the barrel.
I suspect that should solve your issue but let me know if not. Jim@riteintherain.com
I just put one together for the first time, after watching the video about 15 times and wondering how it all seamlessly and effortlessly went back together I decided brute force was the answer. I definitely absolutely had the plunger and lead installed correctly so let that go, it was getting the plunger back into the housing that was a problem. I ignored the crackling and breaking noises and literally forced it in place as hard as I could, then beat on it with a blunt object to seat it the rest of the way, works fine now and assembly and disassembly are no problem. I'm going to say I rearranged some incorrectly installed parts from the factory. This was a brand new out of the package YE99 pencile.
On my pencil the plunger is stuck in the barrel and won't come out with the tip, I've tried screwing the tip onto it in the barrel but it just won't catch the threads. Any help would be appreciated
If you have enough of the plunger to gasp, pull it out from the barrel while twisting it. Once the plunger is out, screw the plunger into the tip’s shaft and reassemble the barrel and tip. If the plunger doesn’t twist from the barrel or it doesn’t screw into the tip’s shaft, you may have a faulty/damaged plunger.
I really like this Pencile. But What if to much lead comes out. it looks like the way You retract the lead back in the Pencil. That You would have to start all over again every time You had that problem come up. Is there no way to retracted the lead back in the Pencail so just the right amount of lead is showing. Thanks.
Hey @S&Tguy. I explain extending/retracting lead at 1:25 in the video. When you rotate the tip to extend the lead, it moves slowly so that you can get just the right amount of lead out. I think you'll find that it is quite precise and intuitive once you get the hang of it.
How long can you write with these before you have to typically refill on lead? Im a college student who takes notes daily.
We usually do a distance test where we position a pen in place to write on a roll of our paper as it is processed so that we may measure the distance written. We weren't able to do a distance test with this utensil - the pencil tip changes length as lead is used/extended so applying even pressure is not possible the same way it is with a pen.
Now, that said, this pencil does write for at least an average length. This is anecdotal, but we've had a few employees just replacing their first leads after nearly two years of use. I find that extreme, but I will say that because your lead is less likely to break due to our design, you will use lead at a considerably slower rate than with a normal pencil.
thank you!
Did this product get discontinued? I don't see them on the website... only the refills.
+DCN2010 unfortunately we've had some supply issues with this pencil, though we do have some yellow pencils in stock right now. - www.riteintherain.com/yellow-mechanical-pencil
+RiteInTheRain Thanks for the reply, I see they're back on the site. I placed my order today.
Just following up - our supply is back at full strength and all of our pencils are now widely available. If you never got the chance to try it out, they're back and tough as ever.
When the tip is rotated the barrel does not glide on smoothly like in the video. What should I do?
Hi Wanda. To clarify, when you rotate the tip, the lead does not extend? It is possible that you may have to replace the lead. Remove one from the eraser reservoir. Remove the tip from the body. Unscrew the pin-like "plunger". Insert a new lead. Screw in the plunger pin. Replace tip back onto body. Rotate again; after a few turns, a lead should extend. If this does not work, call us at 253 922 5000 - we'll help over the phone or replace the pencil if defective.
Why is the plunger on my pencil much shorter?
Hi Tony, I'm not sure why that would be. Are you experiencing a defect? If so, please do reach out and we'll take care of you. social@riteintherain.com
What is the height of the pencil?
Sorry for the slow reply - 5 3/4" is the length of the pencil. Let me know at social@riteintherain.com if you need any more information - happy to help.
Basically an Autopoint pencil
Sadly no longer available…
I have your pencils
Just the tip
Yuck 🤢