Posts filed under Ballpoint

Lamy 2000 Ballpoint Pen Taxus Body Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

At this point, we're all very familiar with the Lamy 2000. It's an iconic design that has definitely stood the test of time. Love it or hate it, it certainly has a fan-base. We've also seen some special editions for the Lamy 2000, but not many. The classic black Makrolon is a winner, but that doesn't mean the 2000 has to stop there.

The Lamy 2000 Ballpoint pen has been around for quite some time. It's not a new pen by any means, but the Taxus body option sure is new to me. Instead of the industrial Makrolon body material, this ballpoint features a beautiful wooden body made from the taxus tree. It's a completely different aesthetic that adds a lot of warmth to this old classic.

If you're already familiar with the shape of the Lamy 2000, then this pen doesn't have any surprises in store for you. For me, it's an exceptionally comfortable pen that I've never had any problems with when writing for long periods of time. The Taxus body just adds a small amount of warmth and a smoother texture than the Makrolon material.

Aesthetically speaking, the grain of the wood adds a lot of character and visual interest to an otherwise reserved design. It's a lighter colored wood, with darker grain that swirls smoothly around the surface of the pen body. Personally, I think it's a great color and texture match for a timeless design. I've really enjoyed using this pen and would highly recommend this option to anyone interested in a Lamy 2000 ballpoint.

The Lamy 2000 uses a Lamy M16 ballpoint refill, and it ships with a medium black refill. You can also pick up a blue refill, but you only have the choice of a medium tip. Monteverde also sells compatible refills for this pen with a few other color options, but I haven't personally tried these out yet.

The M16 refill is really smooth and lays down a dark line with minimal skipping. It actually does a pretty great job compared to other ballpoint refills, but it just can't compete with the Schmidt EasyFlow 9000 I've come to love so dearly. This is one of those moments where I furrow my brow at Lamy for insisting on their own proprietary refills instead of using a more accessible style. That's really the only complaint I have against this pen, and it can be a fairly major one depending on how much you like (or dislike) the default M16 refill.

Refill woes aside, this really is a delightful pen. The nock mechanism is smooth and crisp, the minimal Lamy logo printed on the back of the nock collar is tasteful, and the clip features the famous spring action design that the flagship Lamy 2000 fountain pens boast. All in all, it's a great pen.

Now, this fancy taxus wood body does come at a premium. Compared to the base price of about $65 for the traditional black Makrolon ballpoint, the Taxus Body comes in at just over $103 (at the time of publishing). That's a hefty premium, but one that I think is justified in the look and feel of this premium material. These pens make great gifts for the pen enthusiast in your life. Oh, and of course they're an excellent addition to your collection if it checks all the right boxes.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Posted on January 1, 2020 by Jeff Abbott and filed under Lamy, 2000, Ballpoint, Pen Reviews.

Pilot Birdy Switch Multi Pen(cil) Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

Over the past few months, I've been trying out a collection of extremely small mechanical pencils. Earlier this year, I started this experiment with the adorable Zebra Techo TS-3, and was mostly happy with it as long as I threw in a couple of (pretty large) caveats:

Ultimately, I still like the Zebra Techo TS-3 strictly as a backup utilitarian option. It's not the first thing you reach for, and possibly not the second. But when all other options have failed or aren't nearby, it gets the job done.

When I started using the Pilot Birdy Switch, my opinion was almost identical, but the added length of the Pilot, along with the additional hidden ballpoint pen, push it further down the line of utility. The Pilot Birdy is about the same diameter as the Zebra, which means it's not comfortable for long writing stints. This is certainly still in the "backup/last resort" category of writing instrument, but it's marginally more comfortable to use given the extra length.

But, the slim profile and relative short length still give it some major advantages in terms of where you can store it. Sliding this pen into between two pages of a notebook is easy and allows the notebook to still close without much of a bump or gap. And, the aluminum construction make it resilient enough to be stuffed and crammed into tight spaces that may exert a lot of pressure on the pencil. It handles these situations with ease. Like the Fisher Bullet, it just takes whatever you throw at it. Unlike the Fisher, the Pilot can definitely get a little stabby in your pocket if it is oriented the wrong way, so beware.

The main function of the Pilot Birdy Switch is a 0.5mm mechanical pencil. The pencil works great, and I haven't had any issues with it. I'm guessing it's the same mechanism that Pilot uses in their other multi pens, and I've always been happy with those. This one is just wrapped in a thin aluminum shell that makes it seem like you're writing with a long, bare multi pen refill instead of a real pen. But, that's what affords it the transport and utility points. To extend lead, click the cap. To retract it, hold down the cap and push the lead back into the tip. Unlike a lot of mechanical pencils, this one does not sport a tiny eraser or lead clog remover.

Instead, removing the cap reveals a tiny ballpoint pen. Honestly, I picked this pencil up in a JetPens order without fully reading the description. I just bought it because I was on a mini mechanical pencil kick, and all I needed to know was that it was a mechanical pencil. It wasn't until I got the pen, used it for a while, and then became curious how much lead was in the reservoir that I actually removed the cap. I was stunned to find the ballpoint tip! What a pleasant surprise. Of course, I tried writing with it and discovered that it's pretty smooth. I don't know for sure if it uses the same ink formula, but it feels a lot like the Pilot Acroball 0.7mm refill. This thing is tiny! Unfortunately, it only comes in black, but you can at least pick up refills.

Even more, I realized that the cap can post on top of the mechanical pencil component. When using the pen, the only thing that looks odd is the clip on the wrong end. This is such a simple and clever design. If you've ever written with a Vanishing Point, then you know whether or not you can comfortably use a pen with a clip next to your fingers, but the Birdy is obviously less comfortable given the size.

Still, having a pen of this size with both a pencil and a ballpoint pen is a great tool to have when you're in a pinch. The size makes it great for squeezing into a checkbook, wallet, purse, bag, notebook, and other small spaces. Like I said in the Zebra Techo TS-3 review, it's definitely not a workhorse writing instrument, but it's a great backup option. And at just $8.25, the Pilot Birdy Switch won't break the bank either.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Posted on October 2, 2019 by Jeff Abbott and filed under Pilot, Ballpoint, Mechanical Pencil, Pen Reviews.

Parker Jotter XL Ballpoint Pen Review

When I think of classic ballpoint pens, the first one that immediately comes to mind is the Parker Jotter. There are older ballpoint pens, and there are better ballpoint pens, but there is only one Parker Jotter.

It's place among the pantheon of all-time great pens is well-deserved. Parker has treated it as such, with regular updates over the decades.

The most recent to hit the shelves is the Parker Jotter XL. As a Jotter fan myself, I was anxious to give this one a shot. And, while I like it fine, it's not compelling enough for me to recommend it over the classic-sized Jotter.

Let's talk about the XL moniker first. As it relates to the original, yes, it is longer, wider, and heavier. That puts it squarely into standard pen size for me, as the basic Jotter is actually a smaller-sized pen. That small size was certainly closer to expectations from this ubiquitous pen in its 1960’s and 70’s heyday. But like almost every other product that has been around this long, bigger is assumedly better.

I don't think the larger size serves the Jotter well.

The Jotter has always been a small, skinny, lightweight pen, with a plastic lower barrel and a thin metal upper barrel and clip. It tapers down towards the tip of the pen, and yes, with that thinness I see it being a non-starter for those with large hands. The XL does solve that issue, but I think that is where the benefits stop.

Due to the taper that is also present in the XL, the pen becomes more unbalanced the lower you grip it. It is a high-grippers pen, if you will. The top weight shift is not drastic - it's still a generally light pen - but I could feel it instantly.

The refill also does this pen no justice. It shipped with a standard Parker 1.0 mm blue ballpoint refill, and while the smoothness and color were enjoyable, it was a blobby mess. Ballpoint refill technology has improved greatly over the years, so what passed for reasonable ink output a decade or so ago no longer cuts it. As I wrote, the ink collected on the tip, and subsequently transferred to the page when I rotated. I hate messy ballpoint pens, although it is correctable by swapping it out.

That brings up the biggest issue I have with this pen: The price. At over 60% more than the standard ($23.50 vs $14 at JetPens) it is only justifiable if a short, specific set of criteria are met. One, if you are a Jotter fan and the XL barrel fits your hands better, or two, if you are buying it as a gift. It's tailor made for engraving.

That's it in my book. It's not different enough for me to choose it over any of the few standard Parker Jotters I already own and love. Make it in bright orange or hot pink and I may change my tune (and the refill) but otherwise I'll stick with what has worked for decades.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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