The early models were made by inserting a pencil and propelling mechanism into the bullet casing. The user could advance the graphite in increments in a method similar to modern mechanical pencils. The next generation of bullet pencils, included in Christmas care packages to soldiers from Her Royal Highness The Princess Mary in 1914, were much simpler and contained no moving parts. They were essentially a short pencil stuck into a bullet casing. They were also smaller and ideal for carrying in a pocket on a battlefield.

The mass commercial appropriation of the bullet pencil occurred in the United States beginning in the 1930s and continuing through the 1950s. The U.S. versions most closely resembled the Princess Mary version, half pencil half bullet, except that they didn’t use real bullet casings. Rather, manufacturers fashioned pieces of aluminum, brass, or other metals into a bullet shape resembling a .30/06 cartridge. Cheap and plentiful though they were, pencils from this era nonetheless were constructed with such durable materials that many have survived to this day, and are still available for purchase through private collectors.

In the late 1950s, “bullet pencils” were manufactured with cheap, flimsy plastic and included erasers and pocket clips. Many also boasted advertisements for every kind of business under the sun, including sports teams and food brands. While they were popular with golfers and umpires – folks for whom their size and lightweight construction made them ideal writing instruments – they barely resembled the original bullet pencils of the nineteenth century. Their shape became the merest suggestion of a bullet, and they were produced and handed out on a grand scale.