Thanks to everyone who participated in the Retro 1951 "Albert" rollerball giveaway. Also, a big thanks to Retro 1951 for sponsoring!
The random number generator has spoken and the winner is:
Congrats! And I couldn't agree more... : ) Please connect with me through the Contact page with your details and I'll get your pen sent out.
Stay tuned for more giveaways coming up soon!
I suppose when the inspiration hits, sometimes you just have to create things. A couple of weeks ago I had a thought come to mind about a new product idea and the next day felt like I needed to get to work on it right away.
What I came up with I am calling The Daily.
The Daily is a small piece and is meant to be a place to hold just the things you are using now. No additional storage space, no long term, just the pens, pencils, and notebooks that are in your rotation or need close at hand for "daily" use.
It is the same dimensions as The Cube coming in at just 3" x 3" square on top and around 2.75" tall. This makes for a very small footprint on your desk or side table, but is an efficient and compact solution.
The Daily is made from a solid walnut and has 3 slots at 1/2" (as the standard) out front to hold your writing instruments and a slot in the back to hold up to three of your favorite pocket notebooks. Each piece is hand made and finished in a satin polyurethane to bring out the grain of the wood and to provide some surface protection. The finished dark walnut makes The Daily a small, but elegant piece.
Please visit the shop if you think The Daily might be a good fit for you. Thanks so much!
The Daily retails at $40 +shipping.
- Mike
On two occasions now I've posted reviews about the Ti2 TechLiner by Mike Bond; once for the initial prototype and the other for the awesome Blackwash edition. Both pens blew me away and were (and are becoming) a surprise hit in the community. I go into a lot of detail about the pens in general, so make sure to check those reviews out to get more info if you'd like.
Mike and crew are back at it, this time launching a Kickstarter campaign called the Ti2 TechLiner Revisited (only 9 days left when this post went live). The "revisited" part is definitely worth looking at...
The TechLiner has been given a couple of option modifications in both size and material which literally knocked my socks off. Ok, well not literally, but lets just say the new options were well received by me.
In talking size first, Ti2 is now offering the TechLiner "shorty" versions which shave a hefty 0.75 inches from the barrel of the pen. 3/4 of an inch doesn't seem like much in a lot of things, but on a pen it can completely change the feel and balance of the product. I really enjoy the other, longer pens as well, but personally I feel the shortened length fits the hand better. It literally feels like the perfect length for this pen in my opinion.
From a material standpoint, they are now offering a super cool acid washed copper or brass as well as a polished bronze or copper. All of these finishes (as well as the previous versions) are all available in the "shorty"
Mike was kind enough to send me over one of the new acid washed copper "shorty" versions to try out and I knew it was a hit the second I took it out of the package. First thing that gets you is the weight as it is a hefty pen, but with the shortened length and narrower barrel design it is extremely manageable.
I haven't seen any hand fatigue from my use of it, but I did switch out the 0.38mm black (I think it was) uni-ball signo 207 refill with a 0.7mm in blue ink. I've found with heavier pens I enjoy a broader line as trying to control a really small tip with a weightier pen isn't as comfortable.
The acid wash finish is awesome. It darkens and deeply tarnishes the copper, but allows the sharper edges of the grip to pop through with a little shine and variation. I'm interested to see how this finish holds up for the long term.
Even though I have a few of these pens, I still went ahead and backed the project for another shorty in the "Gonzodized" finish. Needless to say, I put a stamp of approval on this pen. The Kickstarter campaign is a limited quantity run, so make sure to check it out.