This pencil I find interesting for a few reasons. First is the model number, 5617. The American company, Koh-I-Noor Rapidograph (as it would have been known at the time of this pencil’s manufacture) had long used this model number for its 5617 Select-O-Matic drawing leadholder; while the Czech L&C Hardtmuth had used this number for its Versatil “Technicolor” 5617 series of colored lead leadholders. The US and Czech instances of the original L&C Hardtmuth company had operated with near total isolation from one another during the cold war years, but as a rule, they seemed to have avoided overlapping model numbers. So, in a effort to be succinct, the model number is an odd choice.

Another interesting thing about this model is the similarity in details to the Koh-I-Noor Rapidomatic 5630 series of thin lead drafting pencils. The grip and even the typeface of the imprint are similar, but more significantly, the shape of the nose is formed to fit into a Leroy style lettering scriber just as the Rapidomatic’s is.

There is no country of origin markings on this pencil but I acquired it from a seller in the Czech Republic.