This may actually be my first official post about Baron Fig products here on The Clicky Post although I've tried and own several...
A little bit of history: Baron Fig is a small design/creative firm out of NYC that hit the stationery scene in 2013 with a wildly successful Kickstarter campaign for their flagship notebook series called The Confidant. Since then, BF has run two additional Kickstarter campaigns as well as grown their brand into a more household name within our community.
One of their signature products is a pen called The Squire, a small-ish, teardrop shaped rollerball pen machined from aluminum and fitted with the ever-popular Schmidt P8126 refill.
Their main line of Squire pens comes in either silver or charcoal grey, but every quarter or so they've been releasing limited editions of the pen in various colors and themes.
Today's review is for one such limited edition, a spooky, Halloween time themed pen called The Insightful Spectre.
I actually really liked their metaphoric product description of this ghostly pen:
Whether you're in a fog or in good spirits, the Spectre will guide you on your journey.
Baron Fig was kind enough to send me a sample of The Insightful Spectre for review, so special thanks to them.
The pen comes in a nicely designed, grey cardboard tube with the limited edition's name inscribed on the top, a graphical representation of the pen's silhouette, and the pen safely nestled in a foam insert standing upright and ready to be plucked out.
Being an all-aluminum pen, it has a sturdiness to it and slight heft (although actually quite light due to it's size), but feels like a well made product. The price tag on the Squire pen line (regardless of edition) has been at $60 and I feel this is a fair price based on the quality you receive.
To maintain the spooky theme, the "Spectre" the pen is named after appears as a small little ghost logo engraved just below the knock. The body and floating waves underneath match the color of the pen, but the little eyes are a stark white which shows up in contrast to the barrel. The only thing missing is glow-in-the-dark eyes...
From a branding standpoint, the pen has a pronounced BARON FIG name laser engraved on the side which runs parallel with the barrel. It is tastefully done in their thin lined font which blends with the aesthetic nicely.
The Insightful Spectre edition color is a bit of a tricky one which Baron Fig is calling "Phantom Black" which they've described as a dark grey, but with some sheen. In some lighting it does appear to be a dark grey color, but in brighter lighting or held up against other colors it can have a more purple hue. Very mysterious, and fun for this type of edition.
Where this gets confusing I think is in most of Baron Fig's marketing materials they used black and white photos which made the pen appear...well, like dark grey or black. But in person it has the more colorful hue at times which may throw some folks off. I took a photo next to their Alphabet edition Squire which is black to show the comparison.
The pen silhouette on the cardboard tube is an obvious grey color as well which contrasts the pen when you open it up which surprised me some.
Now, I don't think that BF was trying to intentionally mislead anyone into thinking this is an all black/grey pen, but I imagine some customers will feel like that was what they were getting. I wouldn't call this a criticism of the color at all as I really enjoy it, just the way it was presented may not have been super clear.
Regardless, it is an extraordinary color and picks up the light in so many different ways!
The Squire has a twist mechanism system that is smooth, easy to execute, and has a "snap" into place assisted opening once you get it far enough. Once extended, the tip is extremely sturdy while writing and I haven't run into an movement or play which is a huge plus.
In appearance, the Squire could seem like a somewhat small pen, but in hand it is excellent. It is just about the perfect length for me where the end of the pen only hangs over the fleshy part of my hand about an inch so there is zero chance of being top heavy.
To replace the refill is pretty neat. You simply twist the knock mechanism backwards a few times (well, several actually...) and it unthreads allowing the refill and spring to pop out. I like that they did this instead of creating an additional break in the barrel so that it was solid and seamless.
With the pen taking the Schmidt P8126, this refill is about a perfect match in size with your standard Parker style refill and is interchangeable (which I've tested) if you like a ballpoint instead of the roller.
I really, really like the Squire and could see myself recommending it to people due to its overall feel, quality, and performance. Aside from the possible confusion in color, The Insightful Spectre is a fun and solid addition to the Squire lineup.
Special thanks again to Baron Fig for sending it for review! Do you have any Baron Fig products you love (or would like to try?).