No ranking for this because it is so different.
Showing posts with label review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label review. Show all posts
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Review: Quill Pen
Recently my brother and I went to the Franklin Institute to check out the Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit (btw this was very cool). On the way out I stopped by the gift shop to pick up some astronaut ice cream and while in the store noticed some quill pens lying around. Being the adventurous pen reviewer that I am, I picked it up for a review.
The quill and ink set came with one quill and a small glass bottle with a cork stopper and a small bag of dry ink. In order to make the ink you add a small amount of hot water to a small amount of ink. The less water you add the thicker the ink will be. A thicker ink makes a thicker line. The ink is a nice dark black when writing but quickly fades to a grey-black. The ink takes quite a while to dry, so be warned.
The quill itself needs no preparation before use, you just dip the tip in ink and begin writing. Surprisingly the quill isn't very scratchy at all. I was expecting a very scratchy writing experience and it wasn't. Now don't confuse me saying "It's not scratchy" with me saying "It's a smooth writing experience". The pen has resistance on the page and cursive writing is a hassle, but the scratching I expected wasn't present. Directly after you apply ink to the tip is when the quill feels the smoothest, and it begins to drag a bit against the paper as the ink runs out. Also, this pen is extremely squeaky. If you need to write something in a discreet manner this isn't the pen for you. Then again if you are looking for discretion you probably aren't carrying a quill and bottle of ink.
The quill is a precursor to the modern pen and it is interesting to be able to look into the past of writing utensils. I can't imagine people writing with these things as an everyday task. I definitely recommend trying one out if you get the chance they are a lot of fun.
No ranking for this because it is so different.
No ranking for this because it is so different.
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Review: Pentel Energel "Euro" .35mm Black
Cody recently reviewed the .5mm Pentel EnerGel, a pen that is in the Top 3 favorite pens for both of us. In my recent order from JetPens I ordered the .35mm version to try something a bit different. I've never used a 0.38mm tip that I had really enjoyed before. I was a bit tentative going into this review, but I was pleasantly surprised.
The 0.35mm wasn't scratchy at all! I really couldn't believe it when I took off the cap and started writing away. The line is a bit narrower than the 0.5mm pen which is to be expected, and is a nice change of pace. For my particularly messy form of handwriting the narrower tip keeps things organized a bit better, which helps the legibility.
The body of the pen is exactly the same as the 0.5mm version. The body of the pen is a shiny metallic blue with a metal looking plastic clip. The overall design is solid, although the blue body and black ink can be a bit off putting. This is the one thing that bothers me about the EnerGel, why can't a black pen ink have a black pen body?. The cap posts on the back with a very satisfying click and stays firmly on the rear of the pen when writing. The grip is unchanged from the 0.5mm version and just as stellar.
I didn't think that a pen could be better than the 0.5mm Energel, but the 0.35mm has surpassed it. I have actually switched to using the 0.35mm as my go to pen. If you are worried about trying a sub 0.5mm pen tip this would be a great pen to start with. The tip is not scratchy and glides across the paper. It is a great introduction to micro tip pens, and a great addition to any writing arsenal.
10 out of 10 mummies
The 0.35mm wasn't scratchy at all! I really couldn't believe it when I took off the cap and started writing away. The line is a bit narrower than the 0.5mm pen which is to be expected, and is a nice change of pace. For my particularly messy form of handwriting the narrower tip keeps things organized a bit better, which helps the legibility.
The body of the pen is exactly the same as the 0.5mm version. The body of the pen is a shiny metallic blue with a metal looking plastic clip. The overall design is solid, although the blue body and black ink can be a bit off putting. This is the one thing that bothers me about the EnerGel, why can't a black pen ink have a black pen body?. The cap posts on the back with a very satisfying click and stays firmly on the rear of the pen when writing. The grip is unchanged from the 0.5mm version and just as stellar.
I didn't think that a pen could be better than the 0.5mm Energel, but the 0.35mm has surpassed it. I have actually switched to using the 0.35mm as my go to pen. If you are worried about trying a sub 0.5mm pen tip this would be a great pen to start with. The tip is not scratchy and glides across the paper. It is a great introduction to micro tip pens, and a great addition to any writing arsenal.
10 out of 10 mummies
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
Review: Rotring Tikky Rollerpoint EF
This was another pen in the recent order from JetPens. The Rotring Tikky is a solid pen, and one of my favorites from the order. It also taught me something, how to pronounce Rotring. (For some reason before I ordered this pen I always pronounced Rotring as Rot-o-ring, but once I got the pen I realized there was no o in the name)
The Tikky Rollerpoint is a liquid ink pen from the good folks at Rotring. This is my first experience with a Rotring product but I have read that the Rotring name is almost synonymous with quality. The Tikky has lived up to these expectations.
The ink comes out very smoothly along the paper of my Black n' Red notebook. I hardly have to exert any pressure to write anything with this pen. The ink is a very dark black that doesn't fade over time. In the Black n' Red there is no show through and no bleed through. In my Field Notes memo book there is minimal show through and no bleed through (unless you leave the tip on the same spot for an extended amount of time). The writing experience this pen provides is stellar.
The body of the pen is reminiscent of a Pilot Precise, with a see through window to gauge ink levels in the pen. The cap of the pen is marked with EF so that when stored upright in a pen cup you can tell the tip width at a glance. This is a nice touch that shows the great attention to detail this company has.
On the grip area there is one flaw that makes this pen a bit of a hassle to use. The grip is covered in ovals placed to give improved grip for the writer. However, these ovals actually make the grip seem slippery and make my fingers slip from the places I want them to be. This is a minor annoyance in the grand scheme of things, but it is an annoyance.
Other than a minor flaw this pen is great. The Rotring Tikky Rollerpoint EF will be in my writing arsenal for a long time. I can't wait to try other Rotring products. I have my eye on one their gorgeous drafting pencils.
8 out of 10 mummies.
The Tikky Rollerpoint is a liquid ink pen from the good folks at Rotring. This is my first experience with a Rotring product but I have read that the Rotring name is almost synonymous with quality. The Tikky has lived up to these expectations.
The ink comes out very smoothly along the paper of my Black n' Red notebook. I hardly have to exert any pressure to write anything with this pen. The ink is a very dark black that doesn't fade over time. In the Black n' Red there is no show through and no bleed through. In my Field Notes memo book there is minimal show through and no bleed through (unless you leave the tip on the same spot for an extended amount of time). The writing experience this pen provides is stellar.
Other than a minor flaw this pen is great. The Rotring Tikky Rollerpoint EF will be in my writing arsenal for a long time. I can't wait to try other Rotring products. I have my eye on one their gorgeous drafting pencils.
8 out of 10 mummies.
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Review: Sakura Pigma Micron 05 Marker Pen - .45mm - Blue
This pen was a surprise. I was walking out of my house and saw that the mail had arrived. I went to put it on the coffee table and noticed my name on one of the packages. I was taken aback because I had not ordered anything recently. It was a package from JetPens with the blue Sakura Pigma Micron 05 Marker Pen inside. It was a great way to start the day.
The Sakura Pigma Micron Marker Pen is a high quality pen. The 05 version writes with a .45mm line width. Even though this is a line width than most pens I am used to writing with I would consider trying the smaller tip sizes in this line of pens. At times I felt like my handwriting was getting a bit out of hand with this pen.
The ink is a beautiful blue that doesn't fade as it drys. While it may look very wet when the ink comes out it drys very fast. There was minimal show through in my Black n' Red notebook and no bleed through. In my Field Notes memo book there was a bit more show through but not enough to make deter from using the backside of the page.
The bod of the pen is very nice. Although it is plastic it feels very well constructed. The one thing I absolutely love about this pen is the way the cap looks when posted on the back. The cap of the pen when placed on the back of the pen is seamlessly integrated into the body of the pen. There are no overlaps it just fits perfectly on the end.
There are a couple of problems with this pen. Although the pen is well constructed there is one thing that drives me absolutely crazy about it. Inside of the pen there is some mystery item rattling around. It is distracting to use and it detracts from an overall good writing experience. This may just be my specific pen, but it isn't a nice addition.
The other problem is the lack of grip/design of the grip area. i grip my pens very low when writing, and the are leading to the tip of the pen on the Sakura Pigma Micron Marker Pen is very harsh. The area consists of two cylindrical shapes that are smaller than the previous placed on top of each other. This leaves two relatively sharp edges near the end of the area that most people grip their pens. Since I grip my pens a bit lower than average this leaves the edge digging into my finger while I write.
Other than those few problems the Sakura Pigma Micron 05 Marker pen in blue is a good pen. The ink is waterproof and fadeproof, and the design is well done. A few flaws keep this pen from being a really great pen
8 out of 10 mummies.
The Sakura Pigma Micron Marker Pen is a high quality pen. The 05 version writes with a .45mm line width. Even though this is a line width than most pens I am used to writing with I would consider trying the smaller tip sizes in this line of pens. At times I felt like my handwriting was getting a bit out of hand with this pen.
The ink is a beautiful blue that doesn't fade as it drys. While it may look very wet when the ink comes out it drys very fast. There was minimal show through in my Black n' Red notebook and no bleed through. In my Field Notes memo book there was a bit more show through but not enough to make deter from using the backside of the page.
The bod of the pen is very nice. Although it is plastic it feels very well constructed. The one thing I absolutely love about this pen is the way the cap looks when posted on the back. The cap of the pen when placed on the back of the pen is seamlessly integrated into the body of the pen. There are no overlaps it just fits perfectly on the end.
There are a couple of problems with this pen. Although the pen is well constructed there is one thing that drives me absolutely crazy about it. Inside of the pen there is some mystery item rattling around. It is distracting to use and it detracts from an overall good writing experience. This may just be my specific pen, but it isn't a nice addition.
The other problem is the lack of grip/design of the grip area. i grip my pens very low when writing, and the are leading to the tip of the pen on the Sakura Pigma Micron Marker Pen is very harsh. The area consists of two cylindrical shapes that are smaller than the previous placed on top of each other. This leaves two relatively sharp edges near the end of the area that most people grip their pens. Since I grip my pens a bit lower than average this leaves the edge digging into my finger while I write.
Other than those few problems the Sakura Pigma Micron 05 Marker pen in blue is a good pen. The ink is waterproof and fadeproof, and the design is well done. A few flaws keep this pen from being a really great pen
8 out of 10 mummies.
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Review: Zebra Disposable Brush Pen Super Fine
I recently placed an order on JetPens which included this Zebra Disposable Brush Pen. Honestly, I wasn't very excited about ordering this pen but it pushed me into the free shipping category so i got it anyway. Now that I have the pen though I'm happy I ordered it. This pen is really interesting and fun to use.
The thing I was worried about with the Zebra Disposable Super Fine Brush Pen was with how it would write. I had never used a brush pen before and didn't know much about them. (I still don't). The pen surprised me though. It writes beautifully. The ink comes out jet black and stays very dark after it dries. There is minimal show through and no bleed through with this pen.
This pen absolutely glides across the paper. It's a different writing experience than I have had before. It just feels different. I have heard that artists enjoy these types of pens because of the varying widths that the brush tip can produce. I'm not an artist so I can't attest to that, but the varying widths the brush tip can provide by using different amounts of pressure adds a nice unique characteristic to your writing. This may just be me and my horrible handwriting but it also made my handwriting seem a lot better looking.
This pen isn't all positives though, there are some problems. The tip of the pen is a bit concerning to me. I have been using this pen moderately for about 2 days and signs of wear can already be seen on the tip. The tip has already changed shape and sees to have shrunk a bit. Sadly I didn't take a picture of the tip before I used it, but it happened. Also, the cap when posted is not extremely sturdy. It doesn't wobble or shake or anything like that, but it is very easily knocked off the back which can get a bit annoying.
The body of this pen is super cool. It's navy blue with gold lettering, a classic color combo that never gets old for me. The body is also covered in Japanese/Chinese text which I can't read. Originally I thought it was Japanese text. However, when I looked on Zebra's international catalog this pen is listed as a Chinese Version. So I'm not positive what language the text is in. The foreign text on the body just adds a bit of mystery and intrigue to the pen, and makes it a bit more fun to use.
I was not expecting much from this pen at $2.50 from JetPens, but it surprised me in a good way. Although it is far from a perfect pen it really is interesting and fun to use. The Zebra Disposable Super Fine Brush Pen is one of my new favorite pens to use. It may not be great for marathon note taking sessions, but it is great for a quick note or letter to a friend.
8 out of 10 mummies.
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