Doing further research, I see that Darrel Tank, of five pencil method fame says he uses 4b but only as a "secret weapon" and uses it sparingly.

Thanks so much Mike. Really appreciate your response.

Hi all.

I've had Faber TK9400 lead holders for years now and up til now they have had only limited use as the softest lead I had was 3B. I've recently been using Derwent Graphic up to 9B.

I stumbled across Mike's tutorials and am blown away by the YouTube videos and the quality of his work. The ...

I don't stretch watercolour paper at all and only use 140lb. I have read that Arches have had sizing issues. Although I have used without issue, although it is not my main paper.

First, I don't use "normal" art papers. And second, I've never stretched any paper. So, I'm really not qualified to ...

I don't stretch watercolour paper at all and only use 140lb. I have read that Arches have had sizing issues. Although I have used without issue, although it is not my main paper.

If I'm working really wet, I just wet the back of the paper which gives you more time to work and the paper remains flat ...