Tactile Turn Short Ultem Bolt Action Pen Review

(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Bluesky. And her latest book, The Atropine Tree, is now available!)

Need a pen that can survive almost anything? Probably not! But is it fun to try one, anyway? Yup! Conditions at my work rarely reach the extreme levels this pen was designed for, but it's good to know that it's safe even in the crushing pressure at the bottom of my bag.

Tactile Turn is well known for their bolt action pens, which come in a variety of sizes and materials, including super fun limited series. Of all the ones I've tried (which is a fair few, as they're my spouse's favorite), the Short Ultem Bolt Action Pen may be my favorite design. Not just because it's indestructible, but because it's so light.

Ultem 1000 is not just resistant to heat, flame, chemicals, and force, it's also super lightweight. This pen, made entirely from Ultem 1000 with a few titanium accents and a stainless steel clip, feels like it could blow away in a breeze. I can write with it for hours without getting any hand fatigue, and it doesn't add any weight to my overpacked bag.

This short length is the Goldilocks of the Tactile Turn offerings. I also love their mini size, as I adore a good pocket pen, but it isn't as comfortable for longer writing sessions and has fewer refill options. The body of the pen has the signature ridged texture of all Tactile Turn pens, which make it easy to grip.

The steel clip is very sturdy and clips firmly to papers and pockets. The titanium bolt works smoothly, with just enough resistance to make it an exceptional fidget. The nosecone unscrews to access the refill, and the refill is the one thing I don't love about this pen.

The short size comes with the Schmidt EasyFlow 9000 medium refill, and mine was super smudgy. It never seemed to dry all the way, so even pages that were written the previous day were smudging when I touched them. That's not a dealbreaker for me, just a temporary annoyance. There are a lot of other refills that can replace this one when it runs out. They even have a handy list on their website.

The Short Ultem Bolt Action Pen sells for $99 at Dromgoole's, which is quite a good price considering the difficulty of working with the material and the specialized machinery required.

This pen has been in my purse since it arrived (alongside the Buccaneer Tactile Turn Mini Bolt) as one of the main pens I reach for on a daily basis. It certainly won't be my last Tactile Turn pen. I nearly ended up with a new one just by going to their site to grab the link. I highly recommend them, and this one especially.

(This product was purchased from Dromgoole’s at regular price.)

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Zebra Mildliner Double-Sided Dot Marker Review

The Zebra Mildliner lineup is about as popular as it gets for markers and highlighters. The colors are amazing, the uses are endless, and the styles are plentiful. So, what was missing from their lineup? Dots.

Dot markers were not something I knew I needed until I got the Kuretake ZIG Clean Color Dot Double-Sided Marker in my hands, and they were a game changer. Why? I don’t highlight much, but I do like to embellish my pages with various marks, and in various colors. Dot markers give me a fun option to play around with.

I bought this set of 10 Dual-tip Dot Markers this Summer from Zebra at the Atlas Stationers Sidewalk sale. I hadn’t seen them before, but apparently I hadn’t been looking hard enough, as they are available in a few pack sizes (2, 5, and this 10,) although not in the massive variety of shades found in the classic chisel-tip Mildliner lineup.

These dual markers feature two styles of tips: the aforementioned Dot tip, and a more traditional Bullet Marker tip on the opposite end. The Dot side is pressure sensitive, meaning you can press lightly for a small dot, or squish it down for a bigger one. This works perfectly since the tips are designed to bounce back and retain their original shape. The marker side is fine, but I would rather have a classic chisel tip on that end, or an even finer plastic tip for something different. That side is fine for filling in or coloring, but they don’t see much action.

The colors of this 10-pack are great, which should come as no surprise for a product with the Mildliner name attached to it. Cyan and Fuchsia are two of my favorite shades, while Summer Green isn’t quite my jam but fits well within the group, which overall gets a solid A-grade.

Not a great highlighter with the Zebra Sarasa R Gel Ink Pen.

If there is a downside to this product, it is that the Kuretake ZIG Clean Color Dot markers exist. I think the Kuretake version is better because I get that finer tip I’m looking for on the other side of the double-sided marker. They also have more colors than the Mildliner Dot lineup does, at least for now. Most options of both pens average out around the $2 per pen range, with some configurations of the Kuretake costing a bit more.

That said, Mildliner gonna Mildliner, and if you are in that ecosystem already, you will like what their Dot Markers bring to the page.

(I paid full price for this set of markers directly from Zebra USA.)

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Mayfair Pens Noldor Fountain Pen Review

(This is a guest post from Paul, aka The Poor Penman. Paul (he/him) is a life-long stationery fiend and former industry professional. Read about his journey with pens and paper at The Poor Penman and on Instagram.)

(Author’s note: I will endeavor to keep the Tolkien references to a minimum in this review, both because I’d hate to draw any undue attention from The Estate, and because this article’s gracious host would not understand them anyways.)

Mayfair Pens is a Virginia-based brand owned and operated by craftsman Ben Stewart. Ben makes fine fountain pens in several uniquely-styled pens inspired (at least a little) by Tolkien's Legendarium. I have admired his work for some time online, and had the chance for a hands-on look at the San Francisco Pen Show. Mayfair makes a handful of models with different characteristics, like the shimmering resins of the Arkenstone line, or the pocketable and postable Narya.

I chose the Noldor model for the simplicity of its design, as well as its position as the first design in the Mayfair family.

The Noldor is a cartridge/converter pen equipped with a steel Jowo #6 nib. The design consists of a smooth-sloping barrel with soft rounded corners and a pinched grip section. The shape of the pen is reminiscent of a glass vial or narrow flask, with seams that would be invisible were it not for the colorful resin mix. The grip section is reverse-threaded into the barrel (righty-loosy,) concealing the converter compartment. The Noldor is compatible with short and standard international cartridges and your typical Schmidt-style converter.

This particular Noldor, MY Noldor, was crafted from a sparkling dark resin mix with tones of purple, blue, red, and gold throughout. There were quite a few runners-up on the table (and online.)

The grip is pinched at the end of the section, rising slightly and dropping-off sharply to meet the cap. At its narrowest point the grip measures in at around 12 mm, swiftly widening to around 14 mm. This is on the wider end of my pen size tolerance, but still usable. Mayfair pens ship with a standard steel #6 JOWO nib unit. The nib that came with my Noldor writes well enough, but I immediately swapped it out for a laser-etched Tree of Life style design that felt very fitting for the piece.

I have mixed feelings about the cap. On the one hand, it’s simple. The cap is completely free from logos or insignia. It has a smooth shape that maintains the silhouette of the pen. On the other hand, it is quite small. And light. And fairly prone to rolling. If you tend to hold your pen cap while writing, then there’s no problem here. I tend to rest mine on the desk or tabletop, and sometimes the coordination of man fails.

Let’s talk about value. The Noldor retails for $185, which is not a small ask. In fact, this comes very close to my limit when it comes to recommending pens. There are some considerations to be made, however, such as the source and (for lack of a better term) provenance of the pen. Strictly speaking, the experience of using a Noldor is not remarkably different from less-expensive products; Jowo nibs and converter fillers are not exactly rare. What sets Mayfair apart is the design and artistry that goes into each piece. From the resins to the shapes, these things are unique. The main difference in buying a Mayfair compared to a “Big Pens” $200 offering is that your dollars go directly to the person making the pen. There is a direct relationship between the piece you buy and the person you buy it from. There’s something special about that, and it cannot be replaced by a bit of gold or precious resin.

Overall I’m enjoying the Noldor from Mayfair Pens. It has been in rotation for a few refills now, which is really saying something. The shape and style of Mayfair’s designs may not be to everyone’s taste, but that uniqueness is what drew me in. I think there is a LOT more room in the fountain pen market for interpretive and creative pen profiles. Ben Stewart, the craftsman behind the pen, uses a beautiful assortment of material blends to make unique pens that will stand out in any collection. He also does an excellent job displaying his work online, but I highly recommend checking them out live at a pen show if you ever have the opportunity. But not this one. This one is mine. My own. My… Precious.

(Note: For more on Mayfair Pens, check out Caroline’s Meet Your Maker post.)

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Enjoy reading The Pen Addict? Then consider becoming a member to receive additional weekly content, giveaways, and discounts in The Pen Addict shop. Plus, you support me and the site directly, for which I am very grateful.

Membership starts at just $5/month, with a discounted annual option available. To find out more about membership click here and join us!