Hello,
I don't use either of the options that you have proposed, pencils that are always breaking and needing to be sharpened so often it makes your hair curl, and making such inconsistent lines, starting out thin and crisp at the one side and then getting fatter and blurry by the time you get to the other side - and I'm talking about drawing one line - and even though they are getting better, or I'm wising up to the cheap ones, it seems they went through a time when they were of such poor quality they weren't even worth using for kindling. Knives, good if your cutting dovetail in a mahogany chest of drawers but the lines can strain the eyes on such a scale as house building.
Here's my set-up for marking:
if you don't mind a bit of ink on your fingers from time to time. Bamboo pens can be had commercially but I prefer making my own. Stays sharp a long time and makes a good line on end grain to boot, lines remain easily seen even outside even after the rain.
Since getting a handle on using ink, I'll never go back. Still, I keep a pencil stub in my pocket just for jotting down.
Greetings,
Don Wagstaff
