Grease pencil

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Two grease pencils Grease pencil.jpg
Two grease pencils
Historical diplomatic usage MPK1-426 Sykes Picot Agreement Map signed 8 May 1916.jpg
Historical diplomatic usage

The grease pencil, a wax writing tool also known as a wax pencil, china marker, or chinagraph pencil (especially in the United Kingdom), is a writing implement made of hardened colored wax and is useful for marking on hard, glossy non-porous surfaces. This pencil is usually made from non-toxic opaque wax (such as paraffin, beeswax, ceresin, carnauba or spermaceti wax) [1] that is similar to a crayon but stronger.[ citation needed ] Marks made by grease pencils are resistant to moisture and can usually be removed by rubbing the marked surface with a paper towel.

Grease pencils are available in several forms. The outer casing may be made of wood (like an ordinary pencil) and sharpened with a knife or pencil sharpener. Other types are covered in paper and sharpened by pulling a string to peel off the paper, needing no additional tools to remain functional. More recently, it has been produced in propelling form, essentially similar to a mechanical pencil, this type in particular being associated with knee boards employed by NATO aircrew.

Surfaces used with grease pencils include porcelain, glass, rock, polished stone, plastic, ceramics, acetate, and other glazed, lacquered or polished surfaces, and metal, as well as the glossy paper that is used for photographic printing (particularly for contact sheets), x-rays, maps, and for marking edits on analog audio tape and film. It is also used to label theatrical lighting gels. It is often used as a construction or handyman's marking tool as it rarely scratches the surface it is used on. It may be used to mark a wet surface. They are also favored among some traditional artists. They were also used to mark glassware, during production (the original Chinagraph is so-named for marking porcelain during manufacture) and in medical or scientific applications.

Grease pencils were also widely used during the mid-20th century in aircraft control centers, military radar defense system stations on land and in aircraft carriers in particular. As information came in from radar and radio operators, technicians would take details of aircraft locations, vectors, weapons and fuel status and other information and write it in reverse on a large, clear panel of glass, which was readable to the officers on the other side of the panel. The information would be continuously updated as the situation changed. They have largely been replaced by digital displays in the modern era.[ citation needed ]

In the days when broadcast studios had a library of LP records, a track which was prohibited from public performance could be defaced by a wavy white or yellow chinagraph line, giving a visible warning to the presenter as well as making that track unusable.[ citation needed ]

Grease pencils are also commonly used by fire brigades in the United Kingdom. Entry Control Officers who monitor firefighters wearing SCBA use them to write information such as their location on a control board. [2]

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Engraving</span> Incising designs by cutting into a surface

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Identification friend or foe</span> Command or control enemy distinction through radio frequencies

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whiteboard</span> Surface for nonpermanent markings

A whiteboard is a glossy, usually white surface for making non-permanent markings. Whiteboards are analogous to blackboards, but with a smoother surface allowing for rapid marking and erasing of markings on their surface. The popularity of whiteboards increased rapidly in the mid-1990s and they have become a fixture in many offices, meeting rooms, school classrooms, public events and other work environments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pencil sharpener</span> Tool for sharpening a pencils writing point by shaving away its worn surface

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eraser</span> Stationery item used for erasing marks on paper

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scriber</span> Hand tool for making marks on workpieces

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polishing (metalworking)</span> Abrasive process for creating smooth finished surfaces

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This is a list of pottery and ceramic terms.

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Parchment paper, vegetable parchment, or, baking paper is a cellulose-based composite that has been processed to give it additional properties like non-stickiness, grease resistance, and resistance to humidity. It is commonly used in baking as a disposable non-stick, grease resistant surface. It should not be confused with waxed paper, which is paper that has been coated in wax.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colored pencil</span> Type of art medium

A colored pencil, coloured pencil, map pencil, pencil crayon, or coloured/colouring lead is an art medium constructed of a narrow, pigmented core encased in a wooden cylindrical case. Unlike graphite and charcoal pencils, colored pencils' cores are wax- or oil-based and contain varying proportions of pigments, additives, and binding agents. Water-soluble (watercolor) pencils and pastel pencils are also manufactured as well as colored cores for mechanical pencils.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charcoal (art)</span> Form of dry art medium

Artists' charcoal is charcoal used as a dry art medium. Both compressed charcoal and charcoal sticks are used. The marks it leaves behind on paper are much less permanent that with other media such as graphite, and so lines can easily be erased and blended. Charcoal can produce lines that are very light or intensely black. The dry medium can be applied to almost any surface from smooth to very coarse. Fixatives are used with charcoal drawings to solidify the position to prevent erasing or rubbing off of charcoal dusts.

References

  1. Holben, Ellis, Margaret; Brigitte, Yeh, M. "Categories of Wax-Based Drawing Media". www.cool.conservation-us.org. Retrieved 2018-09-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. London Fire Brigade (2006-11-17). "Respiratory protective equipment - breathing apparatus – operational procedures" (PDF). WhatDoTheyKnow. Retrieved 2022-08-24.