Overall: This is a great introductory set of student-grade colored pencils for anyone interested in trying oil-based pencils over wax-based ones. The color palette is well-rounded and the bonus portrait/skin-tone colors make it a great choice for most standard coloring needs. If you're not fond of oil-based pencils, I believe the Prismacolor Scholar line would a comparable wax-based line in terms of price and pigmentation, but not build quality. Colors: There are 30 colors in this set: 24 base colors including white and silver, plus 3 double-ended/duo-color pencils which add an excellent range of 6 skin tones to the mix. I wish the skin tones were 6 individual full sized-pencils. The white pencil makes an okay burnishing/blending pencil, otherwise, it seems kind of pointless. A Prismacolor colorless blender pencil also works to some degree. The lime and gray-green colors do not lay down as nicely as the rest. They feel similar to a Crayola colored pencil by comparison. The silver is softer, almost creamy compared to the rest of the pencils, but lays down nicely. I would have liked to see more separation between the Orange and Yellow Orange, and the Violet and Plum colors. I also would have preferred a medium grey over the dark grey. On a similar vein, the silver is fun, but I would rather have a goldenrod/yellow ochre type color. Otherwise, the color selection is pretty well appointed. Leads: The leads are strong enough to sharpen to fine points and write without breaking. They rarely chip, fracture or shatter as I've experienced with other similarly priced brands. I've carried them around in a binder pencil pouch in my purse for months now with only one tip breaking. I found that they were easier to write with (for color-coded notetaking) than using harder Verithin pencils or softer pencils which chip or lose their points quickly. They seemed to require less pressure to put color down than many other cheaper and some more expensive pencils I've used, which helped prevent fatigue with prolonged use. Build & Quality: The base set of 24 colors are hexagonal in shape to prevent rolling. The 3 bonus duo-colored skin tone pencils are round. The pencils are all about the same thickness as standard #2 school pencils and/or Crayola colored pencils. The wood the pencils are made of is very strong and more resistant to cracks, splits or breakage than probably any other pencils I've tried, from cheap Crayola pencils to more expensive Prismacolor Premier. I believe both the leads and wood would tolerate old-school crank-style sharpeners with little to no issue. These are probably the best overall quality pencils I've encountered in this and even some higher price ranges. Labelling: Each pencil in the base set of 24 has a color name printed on it (not always the case with Faber Castell sets). The duo-color skin tone pencils just have Alphanumeric references (T1-T6). The laquered body of each pencil is a fairly accurate represention each pencil's output. Grade: These pencils perform similarly to the Polychromos line, though not as well. Considering they're not professional-grade pencils it would be unreasonable to expect as much, especially at this price point. The difference between a student/hobbyist-grade pencil, like these, and a professional-grade pencil, such as Polychomos, is in that higher quality pigments, higher pigment loads, and better quality binders go into their formulation. For their price point and grade, these pencils perform well and have better build quality compared to other name-brands. Layering/Blending: The benefit of an Oil-based pencil is that they layer well. I easily put down half a dozen to a dozen layers with these pencils without an issue. After a few layers with a wax-based pencil, you're likely to develop a filmy/cloudy residue called wax bloom. This may not be an issue, depending on your art or coloring style. Oil-based pencils have harder leads which cause minimal dust and residue compared to wax-based pencils. As a result, they don't blend the same way that wax-based pencils do. Oil-based pencils require layering to achieve a blended effect. They can also be blended with the application of oil-based paint thinners or mineral spirits like Gamsol, but be mindful of what paper you use as spirits/thinners can bleed through or leave an oily residue, something akin to a greasy napkin. Wax-based pencils blend into each other a little more naturally for two reasons: they're a little dusty when laying down color and the waxy buildup they form with use catches the pigmented dust causing it to smudge and blend together. Some wax-based pencils will even blend with water or alcohol. Colorless blender pencils are just made of wax binders without the addition of any pigment. Erasing: On cheap notebook paper with only 1 or 2 light layers of color and a bold outline, I was able to erase most color with a Pentel Click Eraser. On sketchbook paper with swatches built up from several layers, a Factis Black 18 eraser yielded decent results. As expected, areas that had been laid down heavily or where either colorless blender was applied or burnished with the white pencil did not erase well. Highlighting: As highlighters, these worked best over pre-printed materials like pages of a book or planner. The worked okay over ballpoint pen ink on notebook paper. They were fair over graphite pencil on notebook paper as the graphite got a little smudgy. On sketchbook paper, which isn't as smooth as notebook or printer papers, they tended to pull the ballpoint pen ink away from the page. If you write with a liquid ink pen, porous point or felt-tip pen on sketchbook paper, they work fine as long as you let the ink dry first. Hopefully, I covered the most common aspects to help other shoppers with their selection. I quite like this set. In fact, I've bought the metallic set and plan to buy the 60 color set because I like these pencils so much. I keep this set in my purse with a cheap scratch pad as a travel activity. It's nice to break them out for a spot of adult coloring, doodling/Zentangles, or similar screen-free activities in restaurants, waiting rooms, road/camping trips, and the like.
