Mechanical pencil CONTINENTAL Proteus oak 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 fine lead system is designed for leads with a diameter of 0.5 mm. The grip sleeve is turned from solid oak wood. Throughout history, oak wood has earned a reputation for its almost proverbial durability and hardness. In fact, it is one of the most resilient and robust types of wood in Europe. It is weather-resistant, water-repellent, bend-proof, and elastic. While these properties may not be fully utilized as a grip sleeve for a ballpoint pen or pencil, they certainly make themselves known over years of use, in its appearance and handling: You can feel that you are holding something organically grown and exceptionally enduring in your hands.