Mechanical pencil CONTINENTAL Proteus Lignostone® 0.5

The "Proteus" by CONTINENTAL - a shape-shifter.
While this pencil can't predict the future, it can change its form just like its namesake, the sea god from Greek mythology. The grip sleeve can be easily and quickly exchanged for a completely different material (both visually and tactilely). This variability, highly unusual for the stationery market, is a natural consequence of our constructive guiding principle: We don't create black boxes. Instead of gluing, riveting, and pressing as is common today, we screw, plug, and connect in a way that allows all parts to be repeatedly detached, exchanged, and repaired. By changing the grip sleeve, our "Proteus" transforms its appearance in seconds. For those who find this "superficial" changeability insufficient: With a few simple steps, the pencil can also become a ballpoint pen and vice versa.

A word about the ballpoint pen's inner workings: The base frame is made of solid brass and houses a German premium fine lead system, the DSM 2007 from Schmidt Technology in St. Georgen in the Black Forest, driven by the world's only push mechanism made entirely of nickel-plated brass, the SKM88 DS from the same company, and filled with two Mars® micro carbon leads from Staedtler in Nuremberg in HB hardness. Other degrees of hardness and refill packs are also available from us.

In this case, the grip sleeve is made of Lignostone®, a material that originates from the cellulose chemistry of the early 20th century. Wood, in this case copper beech veneers, are bonded together with hardenable synthetic resins (a type of thermoset) under pressure and heat. The finished product has surprising mechanical and insulating properties, which is why it has been used as a high-performance insulation material in oil-filled power transformers since its invention in 1915. Röchling in Mannheim, Germany has since taken over the patent rights to Lignostone®. The material thickness is 3 mm.