There are about 20 grades of pencils from 9H the hardest, to F being the softest
The darkness of pencil lead is determined by its graphite-to-clay ratio. The higher the graphite content, the darker the lead. Therefore, a pencil lead labeled as "HB" or "B" will be darker than a lead labeled as "H" or "F." The darkest pencil lead commonly available is typically labeled as "6B" or "8B," indicating a high graphite concentration.
In pencils, "F" stands for "fine." It indicates the hardness of the pencil lead, with an "F" pencil falling in the middle of the hardness scale between "HB" and "H." A "F" pencil produces lines that are somewhat fine and have a moderate level of darkness.
Numbers and letters on the sides of some pencils (Art & Drafting pencils) is used to signify the type of lead that it contains, or more specifically the hardness of that lead. The higher the number/letter combination, the harder the lead. Conversely, the lower the number/letter combination, the softer the lead. The typical pencil (#2 pencil) contains HB Grade lead. PencilPages.com notes (from The Pencil Hardness Test); "The hardest is a 9H, followed by 8H, 7H, 6H, 5H, 4H, 3H, 2H, and H. F is the middle of the hardness scale; then comes HB, B, 2B, 3B, 4B, 5B, 6B, 7B, 8B, and 9B, which is the softest. Another grading method uses numbers; the equivalents would be #1=B, #2=HB, #2-1/2=F, #3=H, and #4=2H." The H represents hardness and the B represents blackness.
In order, the leads are (from softest to hardest): 9B/8B/7B/6B/5B/4B/3B/2B/B/HB/F/H/2H/3H/4H/5H/6H/7H/8H/9H HB is the most commonly used lead for general purposes. The softer leads are used for art drawing, the harder for fine ledger work.
The "lead" in a number two pencil is graphite. Because it is the color of lead, it is called that...but it's actually graphite, a lubricant. So if you get your zipper stuck, draw on it with a number two pencil..it works!
The grade of pencil that is easiest to erase is typically a harder pencil, such as an H or F grade.
pp-->p-->mp-->mf-->f-->ff
ppp-->pp-->p-->mp-->mf-->f-->ff-->fff
ruler pencil ballpen
Many pencils across the world and almost all in Europe are graded on the European system using a continuüm from "H" (for hardness) to "B" (for blackness), as well as "F" (for fine point). The standard writing pencil is graded HB.
A pencil will start to burn at around 700°F (370°C). This is because the graphite in the pencil is flammable and will ignite when exposed to high temperatures.
Many pencils across the world, and almost all in Europe, are graded on the European system using a continuum from "H" (for hardness) to "B" (for blackness), as well as "F" (for fine point). The standard writing pencil is graded HB. According to Petroski, this system might have been developed in the early 20th century by Brookman, an English pencil maker. It used "B" for black and "H" for hard; a pencil's grade was described by a sequence or successive Hs or Bs such as BB and BBB for successively softer leads, and HH and HHH for successively harder ones.9H8H7H6H5H4H3H2HHFHBB2B3B4B5B6B7B8B9BHardest→Medium→Softest