Pentel Kerry: A "postable" mechanical pencil with an unchanging design since 1971

(Original Mai-bun.com article, published 02/10/2019. Written by Takuya Takahashi. Translated by Bruce Eimon.)

I have started noticing "older" business people mingling amongst students in the mechanical pencil section of stationery stores in Japan. It may be that people are rediscovering the value of being able to erase what they have written, thanks to the popularity of Pilot's erasable Frixion pens. Pencils and mechanical pencils have long been tools for students, but we may be seeing a resurgence of these instruments amongst business people.

Many of the recent mechanical pencils embed advance technology, such as mechanisms that automatically twist the lead to maintain a sharp tip, or shock absorption that prevents the lead from breaking. However, when it comes to the design of these pencils, they are better suited for the classroom than the board room.

Today I would like to feature a mechanical pencil that will look right in place in the hands of any business woman or business man - the "postable" mechanical pencil, the Kerry.

The Pentel Kerry was first released in 1971. It is long seller that has been on the market for nearly 50 years.

The engraving on the cap proudly proclaims "SINCE 1971"

If you look at the Japanese product home page, its official name is listed as "Mannenncil Kerry." "Mannenncil" is an amalgamation of the Japanese word for fountain pen "Mannennhitsu" and "Pencil." You can tell from the name that they envisioned this product to be a mechanical pencil worthy of being carried along with your expensive fountain pens.

You can see how the designers tried to make it resemble an elegant fountain pen. Some may feel that the look is somewhat dated, in a nice vintage kind of way.

You may not have thought about this, but you hardly ever come across mechanical pencils with caps.

To my knowledge, even in Japan there are only a few with such a design.

By having a cap, you do not have to worry about scratching things in your pocket or having graphite dust flake out of its tip.

Unlike expensive fountain pens that have screw on caps, the Kerry has a snap-on cap. The key point of this product is that you can still click the lead out even when the cap is posted. There is a surprising amount of engineering in this cap. When the pen is capped or the cap is removed from the pen, the click-tip protrudes only slightly.

When the cap is posted on the pen, however, the tip extends out by a fraction of an inch to give you the length needed for a satisfying click.

This is a product designed with a lot of attention to detail. The pen can be used without the cap posted, so some people like to keep the cap hooked in their pen loop.

Compared to standard mechanical pencils, this is a rather compact pen. When not posted, it may be barely long enough to fit in your hand.

The whole point of this pen though, is that it can be used posted.

Most people will want to use it posted, as this gives you much more stability. The compactness of this pen when capped makes it an ideal companion for an A6 or passport sized planner.

The beautiful mold of the tip of this pen is also what makes the Kerry unique. This is a design choice that enables a nice balance between the thick grip and the thin lead tip.

By offering a thin tip, it makes it easier to see what you are writing too.

While the 0.5mm size is standard in Japan, Pentel also makes a 0.7mm version for the overseas market. I was able to buy the Navy 0.7mm version on my last trip to Taiwan. It gives you a different feel on the paper, and is especially good for sketching.

With a timeless design that appeals to people of all ages, the Kerry can be a great gift item. At a price point of $15-$20+, it is a good looking pen at a reasonable price. In Japan it shouldn't be hard to find a store that will personalize it for you for that extra touch.

There is a reason why this product has been around for nearly 50 years. If you have never used one, I suggest you give it a try!

Recommended for:

• People who like to use mechanical pencils
• People who are looking for a mechanical pencil that looks more "adult"
• People who want to carry a mechanical pencil with their planners

Information: Sharp Kerry™ Mechanical Pencil

Pentel B100 45th Anniversary Pen Set Review

When the Pentel B100 45th Anniversary Pen Set first crossed my eyeballs sometime last year I knew I would have to get a set, but that wouldn’t be the easiest task. They were made in France for the Japanese market and ended up being bought at a shop in England. How’s that for worldwide!

My good buddy Myke stopped by Present & Correct in London last year before I arrived for his wedding to buy me a set. I’m not sure what I was more excited about - these pens, his wedding, or exploring London for a few days with my wife. Oh, who am I kidding. It was the pens!

These pens bring back memories of a young Brad rummaging through unused desks in my dad’s workplace in search of stationery gold. Often times, I left empty handed, but on a good day I’d score a few pens and mechanical pencils. The Pentel Sharp Mechanical Pencil was always a big score, followed closely by the Pentel B100. Why the B100? It was like a marker in rollerball from.

It still is, which is both its good side, and its bad side. It is designed to be a writing, editing, and sign pen for those times when big, bold lettering is required. It is more consistent and durable than most markers, and stands out on the page more than a ballpoint.

For this set, Pentel produced 7 colors in retro-styled barrels. Black, red, and blue are the standards, with orange, green, purple, and brown added to the mix. And they are all fantastically saturated without running or bleeding all over the page - similar to what I would expect from a marker.

The rollerball tip is marked as 0.8 mm on the barrel, but the actual line on the page is in more of the 1.0 mm to 1.2 mm width. If you are looking to write in small places, this is not the pen for you. But everyone - even me - needs a good marking pen from time to time.

(Note: You can find discussion about my R.E.M. Top 10 on Instagram, and listen to the playlist on Spotify.)

As I alluded to up top, the only real kicker is availability. Present & Correct still has them in stock for £22, but a quick Google search shows them available at the London Graphic Centre for a MUCH cheaper £9. If you don’t need all of the colors and want only black, Amazon has a 10-pack for under $10. With a bit more digging you may be able to do even better.

The Pentel B100 is a trip down memory lane for me. It’s not the best pen, and it’s not the best price, and it’s not easy to acquire, but it makes me smile. I have fun when I break this set out to draw, doodle, and highlight, and they are something I always want to keep handy on my desk. Now, if I could only get my hands on a half dozen of the orange ones I would be thrilled.

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Pentel EnerGel Permanent Gel Ink 0.5mm

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

The Pentel EnerGel line of pens has been around for quite some time and enjoys a healthy level of popularity due to how easy they are to find in big box stores. They're known for the dark, rich line that the gel lays down, and there's good reason that many people swear by them.

If the EnerGel is already so good, how can you improve it? Well, one way is to offer a variant of the pen that provides waterproof and fade-resistant gel ink. That's exactly what the Pentel EnerGel Permanent Gel pen sets out to do.

On the outside, the permanent ink version of this pen looks exactly like a normal EnerGel, minus the slight accent color variations. The click mechanism is the same, the grip section is the same, and the clip is the same. As an added bonus, the barrel is made up of 54% recycled material.

When writing with this pen, it's easy to compare it to the normal EnerGel since it shares the same product name. But since this variant features a new ink formula, it doesn't write exactly like its older sibling. It's still a smooth feel with plenty of ink flow, and the colors are bright and pleasing. The ink delivery is consistent and there aren't any issues with skipping. The pen itself is quite light, so it's easy to hold and manipulate on the page.

Where it differs is hard to put your finger on at first, but it comes down to the different ink formula. It looks and acts like a regular EnerGel, but the ink color and line isn't quite as bold and sharp. In both the black and blue pens, I sometimes noticed a small amount of railroading in the line, which I've never experienced with the standard EnerGel pens, regardless of tip size.

By no means am I saying that this pen doesn't write well — not at all. It's a great pen that writes well, dries fast, and leaves you with the assurance that it's as permanent as ink can be. The difference here is that it just isn't as nice to use as the standard EnerGel pen, which is already a tall order.

The waterproof nature of this ink is no joke. I tried several different paper types and patterns for this example, hoping that one would show up well in photographs. The ink is so resilient to water that it's almost impossible to capture with a camera. Let's just suffice it so say that the only way you can tell water was added to the page is due to the rippled texture of the paper where the water evaporated. The ink is completely unaffected by the water.

There are many waterproof or archival quality pens available on the market today, and they all have some kind of trade off. They may not write as well as your favorite pen, they normally aren't offered with many colors or other options we're used to, but they fulfill a very specific purpose. In the case of the Pentel EnerGel Permanent Gel pen, it excels at hitting the mark.

The Pentel EnerGel Permanent Gel pen is available in 0.5mm and 0.7mm tip sizes with an option of Black, Blue, or Red in both sizes. At just under $3, they're a great deal considering the specific purpose. If you need a waterproof ink, this pen should be on your list!

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

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