As my buddy Sam said, it is always interesting to see what Rich finds interesting and watch him burrow down…well, continuing that tradition, we were in “Back to School” mode and someone asked, what’s the best pen? Can’t help but use Google to answer and found some wonderful sites like Penaddict to help. We were in Office Max, but still found one to try, but can’t help but see what (mainly) the Japanese have been up to. here are some notes:
Top 5 Pens – Overall
- Pilot Vanishing Point – Fountain pen goodness in a sleek, portable package. [This has amazing reviews on Amazon too as a vanishing point nib with these amazing refills. He likes the black matte with a fine nib for $140 at Amazon and these use the Pilot Namiki Ink Refill cartridges which are $8 from Amazon]
- Pilot Hi-Tec-C – My go-to micro tip gel ink pen. [He likes the 0.3 Grip Black. Jetpens seems to be the site to get Japanese imports and Amazon has a 10 pen gift set for $30)
- Sakura Pigma Micron – My favorite drawing-type pen. Archival ink is a huge plus. [Just $1.50 each as a t-pack from Amazon]
- Ohto Graphic Liner – A very pleasant surprise.
- Uni-Ball Jetstream – One of the best ever still in heavy use.
Top 5 Pens In The Store
- Uni-ball Signo 207 – “But what can I buy at Staples that is good?” This. [This is the one we got, can’t wait to try it!]
- Uni-ball Jetstream – Stay away from the 1.0 mm.
- Sharpie Pen – Would be #1 if it was more durable.
- Pentel EnerGel – People swear by their EnerGels.
- Pilot Precise – The only liquid ink pen to consider.
Top 5 Paper Products
- Doane Paper Idea Journal – Beautiful, durable, and portable. [These look so amazing direct from Doane, $50 gives you free shipping]
- Rhodia Dot Pad – My favorite fountain pen paper. [ $5.50 from Amazon]
- Maruman Mnemosyne Inspiration – As good as Rhodia and more portable, but costs more.
- Field Notes Memo Books – Love the seasonal releases.
- Doane Paper Utility Notebook – More fountain pen friendly than Field Notes.
Top 5 Pen & Pencil Cases
- Nomadic PD-04 Roller – My all day, every day pen case. [Not available anymore which is too bad]
- Doane Paper Leather 4 Barrel Holster – If it’s not in the PD-04 it’s in here.
- Alter Manufacturing Mod.02 – Durability at its finest.
- Nomadic PE-10 Tri-Fold – Love this case for extra storage.
- Kokuyo NeoCritz Transformer – Perfect for students or cube jockeys.
Top 5 Extreme Weather Pens
- Tombow Airpress – My pressurized refill pen of choice. [Pretty amazingly cool for $10 from Amazon]
- Uni-ball Power Tank – Writes great, could use a more durable barrel.
- Fisher Space Pen – The classic, but not the best writer.
- Tombow Airpress Apro – Smaller, slimmer sibling of the Airpress.
- Pilot Down Force – Solid clip and barrel, average writer.
