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This page started as a result of my search for a Norma four color pencil to replace one that I lost back in the 1950's. As my curiosity continued, I learned there had been more than one kind of Norma pencil sold. To my knowledge there is no other information on the web about the history of the Norma Multikolor pencils. Any additions, comments or corrections are welcome.

What's On These Pages?

Norma was in business in 1939, and perhaps earlier. At that time it was known as Norma Multicolor, Inc., New York, NY. In the 1950's, the address was: Norma Pencil Corporation, Norma Building, 137 West 14th Street, New York 11, N.Y. They went out of business in 1967. They made 4-color and 3-color pencils. There was also a combination model with three different leads and a ball point pen. Several Norma advertisements were found in the National Geographic magazine from 1949-1951 and Fortune magazine Oct. 1951. The name Norma also appeared on several German 4-color pencils called Fend Super Norma.

The Fend Company was founded Pforzheim, Germany in 1889. Fend was the largest maker of gold and silver overlay works in the 1920's and 1930's. All Montblanc overlays during that period were done by Fend. Fend also produced a few fountain pens and rolled gold overlay pencils. This information came from the book Fountain Pens of the World by Andreas Lambrou, page 214.

Norma MultiKolor Pencils

 

This #104 four color pencil is from the 1950's. It retains a cylindrical shape and then gradually changes to a conical shape. Length with leads retracted is 5-11/16". Barrel diameter 3/8". Weight is 26 grams, or just under one ounce. The finish is shiny chrome. There is no spring in this model to pull the color guide back in place. This sold for $4.50 in the late 40's to 1950's.

The color guide has a rounded shape with serrations. The color indication is on the slider and can be seen through the slot. Here's some excerpts from the instructions.

 

 

Three different versions of gold Norma pencils have been advertised in the December 1952 issue of Fortune magazine. There is rolled gold plate, 1/10 14k Gold filled and 14 Karat gold. The picture at the right is a model #504. In the November 1948 issue of National Geographic, a #504 was advertised for a retail price of $100. Although I have found several of these ads, it's surprising this pencil actually sold for such a high price considering the price of gold at that time. See my Gold Reference Page for more information about gold terminology and uses.

The Norma 3-color #103B is the same as the #104 in chrome except there's only three slots and color guides. The upper body is of this pencil is black but was also available in chrome. There is no spring in this model to pull the color guide back in place. Weight is 22 grams, or just over 3/4 of an ounce.

Earlier Versions

In an earlier version, The color guide slides forward until it locks in a single position. It can only be released by pushing on a tab that appears in a single hole in front of the guide when it locks. A spring automatically pulls it back in place after the tab is pushed in to release it. The color guide has a rounded shape with serration. The color is indicated between the individual serrations. Length with leads retracted is 5-1/2". Barrel diameter 3/8". Weight is 26 grams, or just under one ounce.

The pencil retains a cylindrical shape and then abruptly changes to a conical shape for the last 5/8". The finish is shiny chrome. The eraser cover is rounded.

An even earlier version requires the color guide, after sliding forward, to be shifted to the left into a shoulder to lock in place. When it is pushed to the right to release it, a spring pulls it back in place. Each color guide is smooth and has an inlay of the corresponding colored material.

This pencil also retains a cylindrical shape and then abruptly changes to a conical shape for the last 5/8". A design pattern is repeated four times along the cylindrical length of the pencil. The eraser cover has two ridges. Color is silver that is very slightly yellow. Length with leads retracted is 5-3/8". Barrel diameter 3/8". Weight is 28 grams, or one ounce.

Still older, is another pencil that has a short top with a fancy design. It contains no eraser. The top unscrews and then the clip comes off as well. Extra leads are stored inside. There is no barrel release button under the clip as found with the other pencils. Instead, to dismantle the pencil, the barrel can be pulled directly off.

This pencil also has a color guide that slides forward until it locks in a single position. It can only be released by pushing on a tab that appears in a single hole in front of the guide when it locks. A spring pulls it back in place after the tab is pushed in to release it. The color guide has a rounded shape with serration. The color is indicated between the individual serrations. Color is a dull silver. It also retains a cylindrical shape and then abruptly changes to a conical shape for the last 5/8". Length with leads retracted is 5-1/16". Barrel diameter 3/8". Weight is 27 grams, or just under one ounce.

This is the 800 Super Norma. It's silver or silver plated and some tarnish can still be seen. The color guide has a slanted shape with serrations. The color is indicated between the individual serrations. The color guide can be pushed forward and it will lock in place. There is no release tab or sideways shift, as in other Normas. To release it, a new selection must be advanced. The previous selection will then automatically spring back in place. An internal cylinder with angles can be seen in the slot of each color guide and this constitutes the automatic release mechanism. Any color guide can be slid forward halfway to withdraw all colors.

It has a short top with a fancy design. It contains no eraser. The top unscrews and then the clip comes off as well. Extra leads are stored inside. There is no barrel release button under the clip as found with the other pencils. Instead, to dismantle the pencil, the barrel can be pulled directly off. The Norma 900 is almost identical to this one. Length is 5-1/4". Barrel diameter is 3/8". Weight is 32 grams, or about 1.1 ounces.

I was even more surprised to see a Norma 6-color pencil for sale. It was described as 1/2" in diameter, 5-1/4" long and being very heavy. It was made, perhaps, in the 1940's.

It sold for $46.00 and was obviously a collector's item.

 

 

Norma Leads

The Norma pencils I have found all use the larger leads, as in the early Scripto and other pencils. The leads were identified as standard diameter (.047 inch). This size is now known as 1.1mm and is very hard to find, except in black. If you have ever tried colored leads in the newer 0.5mm or 0.7mm pencils, then you know how easily they break. I have found colored leads in the small sizes to be impractical because of this. The 1.1mm leads never seem to break.

The tubes of leads containing individual colors came in gray cardboard cartons containing 12 tubes. The tubes measured 3/8" in diameter and were 1-3/4' long. Each tube contained 12 leads and sold for 15 cents. Norma leads were all 1-3/8" long and 1.1mm in diameter. The carton labels were white with red, green or blue printing depending on the lead color. The carton label for the yellow leads was yellow with red printing. The tubes were white with colored end caps depending on the lead color. Printing also corresponded to lead color except for the yellow tubes. That was in red. It was obviously done for better visibility. I used a black & white picture here for better detail.

Norma No. 3 and No. 4 Tubes contained a mixture of leads. These tubes measured 1/2" in diameter and 1-3/4" long. The tubes and caps were white with black lettering. They contained a total of 24 leads and sold for 25 cents.

 

Norma Ink Cartridges

Norma ink cartridges were available for the Norma Combination pencil/pen. Each cartridge came in a white paper envelope 3-1/2" by 2-1/4" with an ungummed flap at one end. The writing was in black except where the RED was stamped in red.

 

It contained an instruction sheet, measuring 5-1/8" by 2", printed on heavy paper. The sheet was folded and had two slits in the upper portion of the paper where the cartridge was inserted to hold it in place. The cartridge was 2-1/4" long and 0.10" in diameter and was made of brass. Cartridges were available in several colors. I have only identified red and green, but it is likely that blue and black existed and were the most popular. They sold for 49 cents. The instructions read as follows:

Norma Erasers and Replacements

There were also Erasers sold by Norma. They came in gray cardboard cartons containing 12 smaller boxes of erasers. Each of the smaller cardboard boxes contained three erasers in holders. The individual eraser boxes measured 1-5/32 by 1-3/8" by 1/2" thick. The boxes were either white or yellow with red printing. The erasers were colored pink and measured 5/16" in diameter and 1/2" long. They sold for 10 cents per box.

 

It seems that we have all been looking for exact replacement erasers for our Norma pencils. I have found a few that are close but not exactly the same. The original erasers, used or not, have become hardened over the years and are no longer effective.

Norma erasers come with a metal holder. I have found several different holders. The one at the left is common with the more recent pencils. It has two metal sides. Each side has a small triangular piece that is pushed toward the inside. This helps to hold the eraser in place, This side has a circular piece that is pushed out. The pencil barrel has a single L shaped cutout. The circular piece in the holder is pushed in the slot and then rotated to keep the eraser in place.

The new Scripto eraser is white and the holder that comes with it has four metal sides. It will fit into this barrel almost as well as the Norma eraser. However, because there is no circular locator in the holder, the entire eraser assembly slides almost completely into the pencil barrel. A solution to this might be to remove the eraser from the Scripto holder and put it in the Norma holder. This will work ok but bear in mind that the Scripto eraser is about 1/16" shorter to begin with.

This is a new Scripto Classic Refill package containing four erasers with metal holders and a tube of six 4" HB leads. These erasers and leads fit both new and old Scripto pencils. I have these available for $6.00 each plus shipping. Email to rogerr4@earthlink.netfor more information.

Metal holders have been found in earlier Norma pencils that have three sides. Each side has one indentation to hold the eraser in place. The barrel has a single slot that allows expansion when the assembly is pushed in place. It will slide down until it hits a shoulder inside and leave about 1/4" of eraser protruding. The barrel also has ridges to help keep it from slipping out. The Scripto eraser assembly will also fit in this pencil.

The barrel in this older Norma has no slot but has a slightly smaller inside diameter than the other Normas. Three ridges on the outside hold the cap in place. Here, a slightly smaller Pentel eraser is put in a Norma holder. It will slide down until it hits a shoulder inside and leave about 1/4" of eraser protruding. The Pentel holder that comes with the erasers is smaller in diameter and may not stay in place. The Scripto erasers and holder can be used but the eraser protrudes only about 3/16". The Scripto eraser can be put in the Norma holder but the fit will be very tight in this particular style of Norma.

As of Janyary 2002, the Pentel erasers are available at office supply stores. The package is labeled Pentel Automatic Pencil Refill Erasers, Large Non-Abrasive Eraser, #PDE1BP-K6 80014.

For comparison, I have made a chart using some rough measurements of each of the erasers to give an idea of how they differ. The sizes are for the eraser only and don't include the metal holder. Although the differences in diameter are small it can make a noticeable change between a loose fit or tight fit. A little tape wound around the bottom of the eraser could make the fit a little better in the holder.

Patents

Patent number 1,889,550 MAGAZINE PENCIL
Issued to Albert Hirth, of Heiden, Rosenberg, Switzerland on Nov. 29, 1932. Application was filed Feb. 26, 1932, Serial No. 595,675, and in Germany Dec. 19, 1930. It describes a multiple lead carrier pencil having a return coil spring for each carrier. The carrier can be slid forward where a small block locks in place in a small hole forward of the carrier slot. By pushing the block back in the hole, the carrier will spring back and the next selection can be slid forward and locked in place. A feature of this design is that all these functions can be accomplished with one finger of the writing hand. A magazine with four compartments is illustrated. A threaded knob at the top of the pencil can be unscrewed for storage of extra leads.

Patent number 2, 067,455 PENCIL
Issued to Hans Maucher, New York, N.Y. on Jan. 12, 1937. Application was filed for on Sept. 12, 1935, Serial No. 40,221. It also describes a multiple lead carrier pencil having a coil spring return for each carrier. The carrier can be slid forward and then to the side to engage a shoulder to hold it in place. By pushing the carrier to the other side, it disengages the shoulder and springs back in place. The internal mechanism for accomplishing this and advancing the lead in each carrier is different from the earlier patent. A magazine with four compartments is illustrated. The top has a compartment for extra leads and an eraser.

Patent number 2,170,761 MECHANICAL PENCIL
Issued to Hans Maucher, New York, N.Y. and assigned to Norma Multikolor, Inc., New Your, N.Y. It was issued on Aug. 22, 1939. Application was filed for on Jan. 7, 1939. This describes two methods of controlling the lead carriers, neither of which use an automatic spring return. A feature of this design is a minimum number of parts and ease of assembly resulting in substantial savings in the cost and labor to manufacture. Magazines with three and four compartments are illustrated. A cap at the top can be removed for lead storage and a clip can be added that is held by the cap.

In the first version, the carrier is formed by a bent metal piece that keeps it pushed outward. It has a small section bent outward at the end. The carrier can be pushed in, releasing it from a lateral slot at the rear, and be advanced to the forward position. The metal at the end of the carrier then locks in a lateral slot in front of the carrier slot. Instead of pushing the metal in the slot to release it, the carrier can be pushed in to release it and the carrier can then be pulled back to the locking position. A different carrier can then be selected.

In the second version, there is a small lateral rear and forward slot in one side of the main carrier slot. The carrier can be pushed in to release at the rear and move forward to the front slot. It can then be released to lock in place at the front slot. When the process is reversed, a different carrier can be selected.

Leads For Sale

Colored leads for Norma and other 1.1mm pencils are extremely hard to find. You can now purchase 1.1mm (.046") leads 1-3/8" long in red, blue, green or black (2B grade). Personally, I prefer the black 2B instead of the HB leads because they require less pencil pressure. Each color is 10 pieces for $5.00.

If you are looking for hard to find 0.9mm (0.036") leads, I have 2-3/4" black leads in the medium grade. The minimum order is 30 leads for $5.00.

First class shipping is in a padded envelope for only $2.00 and for any quantity. Orders can be combined.
email to rogerr4@earthlink.net for more information.

I also have Scripto Classic pencils, leads and erasers for sale on my Scripto Pencil Page .

 

Pencil Lead Grades

Many black pencil leads in the stores today range from the softest 4B to the hardest or firmest 4H. The letter H indicates the hardness of the lead. The letter B indicates the blackness made by the lead. The letter F indicates that the lead sharpens to a fine point. Leads sold many years ago were graded only by numbers. Wood cased pencils may be graded by number and/or words. The words may vary from manufacturer to manufacturer. There is no grading system that I know of for colored pencil leads. The chart below is an approximate comparison between the grading systems.

 

Of course, we know that the leads are really made with graphite, a form of carbon. You can't get lead poisoning from a "lead" pencil. Real lead hasn't been used in pencils since the days of the Romans but the term stayed on. The "leads" consist of a mixture of graphite and clay. The proportion of graphite to clay can be adjusted to vary the hardness of the lead. More clay makes a harder lead, uses less graphite and makes a lighter line. More graphite makes a softer lead, uses less clay and makes a darker line.

Recently Discontinued 1.1mm pencils and leads.

The Itoya "The" pencil is made to look like a wooden lead pencil. Lead is retractable and refillable. It's 6-3/8" long and 5/16" in diameter. It weighs only 7.8 grams, or about 1/4 ounce. Made in Korea. This is model PC-10. Now discontinued

There's also the Spike made by Sanford. It has 1.1mm HB No.2 heavy-duty lead with a shock absorbing tip as well as a brass clutch mechanism. Lead is retractable and refillable. The barrel is translucent black. It's 5-3/4" long and 11/32" in diameter. It weighs 8.5 grams or 0.3 oz. Made in Japan. The address is Sanford Corporation, Bellwood, IL 60104 Retail price is $1.89. Now discontinued.

Lead refills are no longer available from Sanford for the Spike. They were listed as HB 1.1mm No. 2 mechanical pencil lead #64713. There was six in a tube. The leads are 4" long and came in a tube 5/16" in diameter. Now discontinued.

Pentel 1.3mm Metallic Lead Pencil "Milky"

Here's a new pencil I found at Office Depot in July 2001. It features sparkling metallic lead and is acid free. The pencils come in colors that match the lead color. There is red, blue, gold, silver, pink, purple and green. Black is not available.

The package pictured has four different color pencils of gold, pink, blue and red and sold for $4.99. Other packages have two color pencils and two packages of extra leads together and are also priced at $4.99. Extra leads are available separately.

The pencils have the push and click lead advance. There is no eraser. The top comes off to add more leads. The transparent barrel is 5/16" in diameter. Length is 5-1/2" without the snap-on cap and 5-11/16" with it on. Weight is 7.2 grams or about 1/4 ounce.

The back of the package says:
"1.3mm extra-thick lead produces varying line widths depending on angle applied.
Ultra-smooth lead spreads easily for coloring and shading
Writes on both light and dark colored paper.
Perfect for scrapbooks, invitations, cards and more
Refillable--uses Pentel's CH213 refill lead."

Faber -Castell 1.4mm Pencil

In late 1999, an odd shaped pencil has appeared for sale. It's 5" long and 9/16" in diameter at the widest point. The top comes off to expose an eraser. A spring-loaded clip is on the side.

The front can be unscrewed to access spare leads. Action is very smooth for all operations. The body color comes in various barrels like real maple or white, blue, yellow red or black polycarbonate. The front and back covers are black. A matching white and black zebra stripe or maple ballpoint pen has also been available. It is made by A. W. Faber-Castell GMBH & Co., D-90546 Stein/Nurnberg, Germany. The only spare leads I have seen are Faber-Castell super-polymer 1.4 B-grade black (Made in Brazil). Weight of the pencil is 13.7 grams or about 1/2 ounce.

Although a few are still described on the Faber-Castell web page, I have been unable to find these in stores or mail order catalogs. However, I understand there are sources on the internet.

6mm Koh-I-Noor Pencil

Here is an unusual pencil set I purchased in late 2006. It is a 6mm lead pencil made by Koh-I-Noor. It comes with five extra leads that are 4-5/8” long. The pencil operates as a drafting pencil and pushing on the metal cap releases the lead from a six-prong grip. Inside the removable cap is a lead sharpener that is part of the cap. Length is 5-5/8” and the widest dimension of the metal barrel is 1/2”. The pencil with a lead weighs 42 grams or about 1.5 ounces. It has eight flat sides to prevent rolling from a table, etc.

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