Sharpie Pen Retractable - in Medium! (blue of course)

I've decided that I'm going to make a strong effort to review some of the more "over the counter" pens in greater frequency as I do use them fairly often in my day-to-day, but tend to review the fancier stuff here on the blog.  There has to be a balance of both, wouldn't you say?

One pen that I was excited to finally get my hands on is the Sharpie Pen in the retractable model...in a medium.  Now, that may not seem like a big deal, but I have never seen these in the store; ever.  In perusing Sharpie's site awhile back I noticed them as an offering on their site, but no retailer (brick and mortar) has ever carried them to my knowledge.  Apparently you can buy them direct, but I didn't go through the process to see how much shipping would be...

I found a two-pack of the medium tipped ones in blue on Amazon, but these things were pretty pricey to try.  Its almost like they are a rarity or something?  For comparison, a two pack of blue in fine on Amazon are as cheap as $4.16 while a two pack of medium are $11.99.  Crazy, right?

In the Sharpie Pen I do prefer a medium tip over the fine as it has a little more flow while writing.  The fine is smooth enough as it is a porous tip pen, but I enjoy the broad lines of the medium; fits my style a bit more.

If you've not used a retractable Sharpie Pen, I'd give it a go.  They are pretty large pens and a little bit awkwardly long, but are super light because they are all plastic.  There is a grippy rubber section that isn't squishy at all, but gives ample stability while writing.  

The retractable mechanisms are a little loose on these pens as in they they feel kind of flimsy, although have a good stiff "click".  In my opinion it is obnoxiously long, but gets the job done.  I really think the overall aesthetic and design element of the retractable Sharpie Pen could be redone to be a bit sleeker even though they are pretty much all a solid color and a bit straight forward.  Maybe making them a bit more interesting?  They used to have chrome accents more chrome accents on the pens which I'm glad they did away with (other than the clip).

I think Sharpie should also make a higher end model of this pen.  I know there is the capped stainless steel Sharpie, but my issues with it are customization.  No medium tip and no blue ink... Although, a higher end model would require the ability to change the refill which these pens do not possess.  When they run dry you simply toss them in the trash.  Seems a shame as it would be awesome to buy a Sharpie Pen refill similar to a Schmidt Fine Liner that could fit in other pens.

Another weird thing about these pens is the fact that the ink doesn't seem very consistent as far as color is concerned.  The shade of blue for the fine tip is completely different than the medium.  The medium is a lighter hue, while the fine is a darker almost royal blue.  This seems super odd to me; don't they make these in the same factory? 

Although this pen does have some casual gripes from me, overall it is a solid go-to office writer. 

 

Ohto Super Promecha 1500P Drafting Pencil - 0.9mm

For starters, the name of this thing is a mouthful, but sounds awesome!  Anything with "Super" in the name (and Promecha is pretty sweet too) should be really good.

I want to thank my friends over at JetPens for providing this free sample for me to review of the Ohto Super Promeca 1500P as it is an instrument that I've had my eye on for awhile now and am super excited to give my thoughts on it.

Upon seeing this thing, it definitely stands out with it's shiny metal body and all the cool "gizmos" that make up the pencil.  Most drafting or mechanical pencils have a click mechanism at the end to extend the lead and might have a retractable tip if it is fancy, but the Promecha has a lot of cool bells and whistles that make it unique.  I can honestly say that I've not used a pen or pencil that has as many features as this does that truly customize the writing experience out of the box.

The tip is retractable and adjustable and ranges from 0 to 4mm depending on your preferences simply by twisting the grip.  Twirl the knurled grip to extend or retract to your hearts content!  What I really find interesting about this is the fact that I don't have to extend the tip if I don't want to. 

If I prefer the lead closer to the grip section, I could leave the tip all the way in and still continue to extend the lead and write with it.  Super cool.  The two other pencils I've received from JetPens previously, the rOtring 800 and Pilot Automac, both have retractable tips but are required to be extended for use and are not adjustable.

The main eye catching piece of the pencil is a little wheel or dial that sits right in the middle of the barrel.  What is this for?  It has some little lines on it that look like a cell phone signal (no, it does not receive cell phone coverage...joke...).  What the dial does is allow you to adjust how much lead comes out with each click.  Have you ever used a pencil that seems to spit out too much at once?  Or, 3 clicks is too much, but 2 clicks is too little?  The Super Promecha gives you the ability to refine this to your exact preferences.  Holy cow, this is awesome.  I do consider myself more of a pen guy, but this pencil is definitely making me nerd out big time.  Kudos Ohto.  The lead extension can be adjusted from 0.2mm (lots of clicks) up to 2mm (1 click) with each push of the mechanism.  The 2mm seems a bit odd to me though as the lead kind of shoots out.

The tip of the pencil holds the lead nice and solid and there isn't a noticeable wiggle in the least.  While writing it feels solid and study.  The pencil is weighted more towards the front, but I wouldn't consider it heavy by any means.  The knurling on the grip is a smoother pattern and isn't sharp at all, but grippy. 

Elaine from JetPens was kind enough to send me some softer 2B lead to go with it which I enjoy.  Thanks again Elaine!

The barrel has some black o-rings midway through and I'm not sure what their purpose is, although I do notice that when I am twisting the grip to extend the tip, the o-rings are precisely where I grab.  Maybe a really good call by Ohto after all!

The clip on the pencil is pretty thin and what I would consider flimsy.  If you're pretty hard on your clips, expect this one to bend a lot.  There is another feature that isn't critical, but the functionality of the lead indicator isn't good at all.  On a rOtring, the twist dial moves smoothly yet sturdily around.  With the Promecha, you have to unscrew the reeded end part to loosen it up and then tighten it down while holding the lead indicator on the correct selection.  Unfortunately, 2B was not on the list so B had to suffice...

The price point on the Super Promecha 1500P is a reasonable $25 which seems like a great deal for all the features.  One concern I have is that when things are a bit complicated in their design this often leads to wear and breakdown of the parts over time which could leave the instrument in pretty dire straights.  Time will tell and if I run into issues over time with it I'll make amendments to the post.

I think the Promecha is a pretty sweet pencil and if that's up your alley it might be good to give one a go.  I put positive marks on it and the reviews overall on JetPens are also quite good.

Thanks again JetPens! 

A dream I have is that Ohto would someday make a Super Promecha ballpoint pen as it would be killer.

Kaweco Special Fountain Pen - F Nib

The Kaweco Special series was a line that intrigued me for a very long time.  The sleek black barrels, faceted shape; they just looked cool.  Different than most things on the market I guess which had an appeal to it.

I was given the opportunity to receive this pen directly from Kaweco to try out, so thank you for sending it my way.

The Special fountain pen has a long skinny barrel a bit larger than your average wood cased pencil.  It takes the small Kaweco nib that many of us love in our AL Sports or Classic Sports, but I can echo what most people say about them though, any larger than a medium nib and the writing quality seems to go down.  For me, the fine is the sweet spot and I made sure to switch it into the Special before giving it a review.  I ended up using the purple/violet ink that Kaweco sent me some samples of also and surprisingly enjoy the color.  The lines are nice and dark and it shades pretty good.  No crazy multi-colored action going on, but it looks great on the page.

I initially thought the grip of this pen to be made of plastic, but it is actually made of brass.  The tactile feel and finish make it appear to be of a thick, textured plastic, but it is metal.  I received some clarity on this from the source and as well I removed the nib unit which did reveal a bit of brass shining through the black coating.

The phenomenal AL Sport runs about $75 and the Liliput (Well Appointed Desk) at about $55.  

The only major concern is with the grip as it is extremely tiny.  REALLY tiny.  So tiny in fact that I don't actually use it while writing because it is so uncomfortable.  If you compare it from the point of the threads to the start of the nib against the AL Sport and Liliput, it is the shortest of them all.  I end up gripping the pen right above the threads which works, but I'd prefer a bit longer section.

I do enjoy the black finish on the barrel with the white contrasting letters.  This is a very cool look that I think they've pulled off well.  It's difficult to make your branding so apparent, but work, particularly in pens.

The cap posts on the end of the pen with a little finagling as there isn't a "sleeve" section to direct the threads.  You have to find the matching point for them to line up and screw on correctly.  Kind of a chore, but worth it.  I find that writing without the cap posted is a bit too short and light for my tastes, but posting adds a good balance to the pen.

The barrel is octagonal like the AL Sport cap and looks great.  When you close the pen the lines don't sync up very well and there is an o-ring in between the cap and barrel which squishes a bit so you can adjust to make the facets line up.  Perhaps I am spoiled by my rOtring 600, but if they don't line up it is just weird and makes the pen look odd.

The Special series does not come with an integrated clip, but there is one available similar to that used in the AL or Classic Sport series.

The AL Sport and Liliput a bit more manageable because they are meant to be small pocket pens, but the Special is so long that it doesn't really qualify to fit into this category.  The option of the clip does allow for some additional transportability and I am going to pick one up to give it a go.

Design wise, the Special is very sleek and technical looking and has an appeal all its own.  I'd love to hear thoughts from others that own the pen if you're open to share in the comments.

Do you like or dislike the pen?