Review: Nomadic PE-10 Tri-Fold Pencil Case

I love the design of the Nomadic PE-10 Tri-Fold Pencil Case, but I was honestly concerned about the functionality of it when it first arrived.  Would the Tri-Fold stlye work for me?  How would it close with the pens stacked on top of each other?  Am I doing it right?  I still have some questions about this pencil case, but the more I use it, the more it grows on me.

First off, if you have ever owned a Nomadic case, you know how well it is designed and constructed.  The nylon is durable, the stitching is tight, and in the case of this black model, the color is deep and striking.  I have played around with a few different pen layouts on the inside, and I settled on the "packed to the gills" style.  I'm not convinced this is the best way to go about it, but it actually seems to work.  I was worried how the case would close with all of these pens essentially stacked on top of each other, but that doesn't appear to be an issue.  It closes with no effort at all, and still lays reasonably flat.  You can see how many pens I have jammed in here in the photo below (apologies for the poor quality):

I still go back and forth a bit on whether I really love this case, or just like it.  The way it is laid out, I could actually see it used as an every day carry type of case, fitting some pens, plus a few larger items like a multi-tool, pen light, knife, scissors, etc., so I plan on trying that out as well.  I'll shoot a few more photos once I load it up with different accessories, but overall, I am pretty happy with this case.

The Nomadic Tri-Fold is available in six different colors from JetPens.  Most models are $10, but both the Gray and Light Gray colors have been reduced to $8.50.

See also:
Review: Nomadic Upright Pencil Case

Review: Nomadic Roller Pencil Case

Review: Uni-Ball Fanthom Erasable Gel 0.5mm

The Uni-Ball Fanthom is the latest entry into the friction based erasable pen market, and compared to the Pilot FriXion, it is a pretty decent option.  While erasable pens have their good and bad points, I do see some value in them, especially for students.  In the business world, maybe not so much, but this pen is designed for fun, so know what you are getting before you take the plunge.  Hopefully this review will help.

The ink is the real selling point of the Uni-Ball Fanthom.  Like the product description states on JetPens, the ink is thermo-sensitive, meaning the more heat friction I create while trying to erase it, the better the ink comes off the page.  This poses two problems for me.  One, it is difficult to erase a small area.  I write small, and it is tough to generate enough friction to erase just part of a character.  I have to erase two or three characters to get a clean enough area to make my correction.

Two, and this is a real stickler for me with the Fanthom as compared to the FriXion, the harder and faster I erase, the more I "gloss up" the area of the page I just erased.  I don't know the official term for "gloss up" but what I mean is by rubbing so hard on the page, I tend to create a smoothed out area that now has different properties than the page around it.  When I write my letters back over that spot, they look different than the other letters that weren't erased.  Not a big deal for some, but with my anal retentive ways, it bugs me.  The FriXion eraser has a little more give in it to where it doesn't treat the paper the same way as the Fanthom.  The Fanthom doesn't even have an eraser per se.  You just use the point of the pen cap to get the job done.  At least Uni-Ball put the eraser on the correct end of the pen.

On the plus side of the ledger, I thought my writing looked absolutely killer with this pen.  The letters were clean and sharp on the page.  The barrel is very well designed also, with a nod to the Uni-Ball Vision Elite barrel, which is one of the best around in my book.  Also, the Fanthom is refillable.  That is a very nice touch for heavy users - like students - who should find this pen quite handy.  While the ink colors are much lighter than gel or liquid ink pens, compared to other erasable pens it isn't too bad.  The regular FriXion seems lighter to me, but the colored pencil-like FriXion is darker.

Who knew there would be so many words to write about an erasable gel ink pen?  After all of that, there are probably things I have left out, so please leave a comment below and I will address any questions you have.  I haven't tested out any of the non-traditional colors yet, but I plan on it soon.  At $3.00 a pop, they are priced to where you could try one out before committing to the entire rainbow.

Click here for the XL review.

Product Links:
Uni-ball Fanthom Erasable Gel Ink Pens at JetPens
Large Writing Pad from Doane Paper

Exploded view:

Pen Addict Sunday Fun Contest

I have a ton of pens laying around just looking for a new home, so I though I would try something new every now and then like this Sunday Fun contest.  Here we go....

Be the first to name the photographer and the two album covers the below image was used for:

I will provide hints later if no one gets this, but it will probably be obvious to a few.  Be there first with the correct answer in the comments section and I will send you some nice goodies.

UPDATE:  We have a winner - nice job Patrick!  The photographer is Dennis Hopper, and the photograph was split in two and used for The Smiths "Best" Volume I and II as seen below:

In my younger days, I had a large record store promotional display of the girl on the Best I cover.  I wish I still had it now.  I do still have a vinyl copy of Best I, which you can see in the top left of this photo.

Email me your mailing address Patrick and I will get some pens out to you early next week.