Ah, pencil memories...
My first memory of using a pencil was about 1952 or so in grade school. I think the "teach" had a crank sharpener on her desk and we little ones would have to raise our hand and ask permission to use it. I used to use it on in conjunction with a run to the boys room. (efficient little lad was I) (we had crayons too)
Then in junior high school, I had a small wooden hand held one and used that a lot. I remember Mom buying us kids pencils to take to school in our "pencil case". (remember those?)
I went to technical high school in Connecticut and my major was Drafting, where we (9 of us drafting students) were in drafting class two weeks "on" then two weeks in regular subjects for four years. No wonder I have less than respectable use of the English language (and spelling) because we only got about 1/2 the courses in traditional subjects that were taught in "normal" high schools!
In Drafting class, we used mechanical pencils and I really got to like those! We had a plastic shirt pocket insert for holding our mechanical pencil! Very cool in 1957! Ahead of the "crowd" and coupled with a belt carried slide rule, you were envied!
Once graduated, I worked as a draftsman for a couple of years, using, of course, a mechanical pencil! When Uncle Sam called me, I turned in my mechanical pencil for a Colt 45 side arm! Lots of "lead" in that baby!
After the war ended and I was back home in Connecticut, I went to engineering college in 1968 using the G.I. Bill which at that time provided me $222/month. That money, and a part time job in a drug store, paid the tuition, books, some beer money and about 1/3 the rent of a flat in Oakville, Ct. I used mechanical pencils throughout college. Once in a while, I did revert back to the good old wooden ones when in a pinch!
Mechanical pencils followed me through a career and marriages (3 actually-- I was good at picking pencils, but not women) and now that I am retired, my "go to" pencil is a wooden No. 2 with a hand sharpener bolted to my workbench.
There's more to tell here, but let's just say that in a pinch, any sharpener will do!