Faber-Castell Pitt Matte Graphite Pencils: A Review of the Anti-Shine Graphite

Introduction

Matte graphite pencils sound like a niche idea until you realize how much glare ordinary graphite throws back at you. Draw anything with a standard graphite pencil and, if the light hits it right, the marks catch a noticeable sheen. Faber-Castell’s Pitt Matte line is specifically developed to reduce that light reflection, and in use it does exactly what it promises. This review looks at how they behave when you sharpen, erase, smudge, and actually draw with them.

What Makes Matte Graphite Different

The defining characteristic of these pencils is the near-total absence of shine. Lay down graphite with a normal pencil and you will see reflectivity when light rakes across the page. With the Pitt Matte pencils, there is very little to no shine in the marks.

That matters more than it sounds. Artists are always chasing deep, rich blacks in graphite work, and the usual alternative is charcoal, which brings its own headaches: smudging, fragility, and the need to fix the drawing with spray to protect it. These pencils deliver deep darks while behaving like a regular pencil, which keeps the workflow simple.

A quick side-by-side swatch test makes the difference obvious. Against a standard Faber-Castell 9000 and another well-known brand’s HB, the regular pencils throw off plenty of sheen under light, while the Pitt Matte swatches stay nearly reflection-free. One caveat: if you use a blender or blending stump, the burnishing action can introduce some reflection, so careful layering is the way to keep the matte effect intact.

Sharpening and Build Quality

These pencils sharpen cleanly and reliably. Faber-Castell characterizes the graphite as break resistant, which addresses a familiar frustration with cheaper pencils: sharpen them and part of the tip snaps off, wasting the point and the pencil.

The cedar casing is responsibly sourced through sustainable forestry, the pencils are manufactured in a carbon-neutral fashion, and the finish uses an environmentally friendly water-based varnish. They are hexagonal rather than round, a small but practical detail: left on a tilted work surface, they stay put instead of rolling off the edge.

Drawing Feel and Versatility

In the hand, these pencils strike a good balance. They are not overly lightweight and not heavy; they simply feel right, which makes extended drawing sessions comfortable.

The softer grades in the line offer a pleasing softness at the edges of marks, and the pencils remain versatile enough that sharp, photorealistic renderings seem entirely achievable as well. Faber-Castell, the German company behind them, is well respected in the art materials industry, and that quality shows here. The 8B, 10B, 12B, and 14B grades, with the 10B, 12B, and 14B being new additions to the entire Faber-Castell line, make it hard to find a softer pencil, especially one with this matte characteristic.

Erasing and Longevity

On the practical question of clean-up, erasability performed about the same as a standard graphite pencil, which is exactly what you want from a matte variant. Nothing about the matte formulation makes corrections harder.

Because the graphite lays down without the fragility of charcoal, finished work should also be easier to live with over time, without the same pressure to spray-fix everything. For artists who want deep blacks without switching to a messier medium, that is a genuinely useful combination.

Buying Advice

Faber-Castell sells the full Pitt Matte line in individual pencils as well as sets. If your graphite drawings tend to live under gallery lighting or get photographed, the anti-shine quality alone justifies trying at least one softer grade. Start with an 8B to experience the deep matte blacks, and explore the 10B, 12B, or 14B if you want the softest marks the line offers. They are also sold in open stock, so you can fill gaps in an existing set without buying everything at once.

Conclusion

The Faber-Castell Pitt Matte pencils do one thing unusually well: they deliver rich, deep graphite marks with almost no reflectivity, while sharpening cleanly, erasing normally, and feeling good in the hand. For any artist frustrated by the glare of standard graphite, they are an easy recommendation.