HOUSE OF GRAPHITE

Microban is an antimicrobial additive built into the pencil's lacquer finish, marketed to inhibit the growth of odor- and stain-causing bacteria; it is applied across Ticonderoga's #2 (HB) wood-cased range rather than sold as a separate grade. The flagship is the classic hexagonal yellow No. 2 pencil with its green ferrule and pink eraser, while the same finish also appears on the chunkier learner barrels — the Laddie and the My First (formerly Beginners) pencils, made in round and triangular versions for developing writers. The casings are cedar (the maker describes it as "unspecified American cedar"), production runs in Mexico and China, and Microban remains a current, standard feature of the line. This specimen: Ticonderoga Microban in grade #2 (HB).