Review: The Noodler's Flex Pen, Revisited

This review is by Kalina Wilson, who can also be found at geminica.com.

Not long ago I reviewed the Noodler's flex pen with mixed results.  I wanted to love it, but my pen just couldn't keep up a steady flow of ink. Thinking it was just a matter of proper adjustment I spent hours trying every bit of advice online, even carving into the ebonite feed, but the pen got no more usable. Instead of giving me a graceful, sweeping line I was ending up with awful chicken scratch because so much labor was involved in making the pen flow.

It must be concluded that at least some of these pens aren't very good straight out of the box. That's not too surprising - it's often the case with affordable fountain pens, and  the Noodler's is very affordable at $14.  At least the Noodler's Flex is made to be easily worked on, with easy disassembly and a workable feed. It's a great intention, design, and pricepoint, you can't knock that. Still, I was disappointed that I was spending more time fiddling with my flex pen than actually drawing with it.

Now to the GOOD NEWS.

In June, a few online suppliers received new shipments of the flex pens, and I picked one up in 'Vulcan Coral' from Goulet Pens.  

This one flows like a dream.  Straight out of the box! No struggle required, though I did wash the nib in soap and water as always.  I love sketching with this thing, and am already angling to grab another one next time they're on the market (that June batch is already long gone, but online retailers can put you on a list to be alerted when they're coming back). Flex nibs have a learning curve attached for those of us that aren't used to them, but now that I'm spending more of my time learning instead of cursing, I'm making some progress. 

Does this mean the new Noodler's flex pens are better?  Or is it a game of chance, since each ebonite feed is slightly different than the next?  Did I irrevocably destroy my first pen during my efforts to salvage it? Is my new flex pen made out of magic?

Who knows.  But I can tell you this - a functioning Noodler's flex pen is a thing of beauty, and a great sketching tool for artists.  It's a gamble but the payoff might be the pen of your dreams.

Ink Links

– Multi Tool 4 in 1 Level Pen (Multi Pen Dimensions)

– Review: About:Blank Notebook (Notebook Stories)

– Pilot Petit1 Mini Fountain Pen (A Penchant For Paper)

– Pentel Energel-X Retractable Rollergel Pens (Pen and Paper Hoarder)

– Materials and Techniques, Part 1 (Nattosoup)

– Recent Jet Pens Haul (Economy Pens)

– Pantone Universe Flame Orange Notebook (Pocket Blonde)

– Leuchtturm 1917 Medium Coloured Notebook in Lavender (Gourmet Pens)

– Uni-ball Jetstream Ballpoint Pen – 0.7 mm – Alpha Gel Grip Series – Silver Body (No Pen Intended)

– Schrade Tactical Fountain Pen and Rollerball in One (Office Supply Geek)

– Sharpie Pen Grip Review (Tiger Pens Blog)

– A (Luckily) Defunct Object: The Rotring Isograph Pen (Socks Studio)

– Review: Tombow AirPress Ballpoint Pen (The Pretense of Knowledge)

– Design for Hackers Sketchnotes – Alexis Finch (Sketchnote Army)

– Pentel Art Supplies Review (David Wasting Paper)

– The Best Pencil Eraser (Cool Tools)

Pen Reviews by Andrea Joseph

I am honored to be able to share with you these great pen reviews by my friend Andrea Joseph. Her ballpoint ink drawings are some of the most amazing pieces of art I have laid my eyes on, and I am very grateful to her for sharing these with the readers of The Pen Addict. Be sure to click on the drawings to read the reviews. Thanks Andrea!

When I approached The Pen Addict about doing a ballpoint pen review I felt there was only way to go about it; draw it! At first, I intended to review blue ballpoints but I couldn’t stop there. So, here are some of the ballpoints that I use for drawing and doodling. They are by no means my favourite pens or the only ones that I use, they are just a random selection. Actually, maybe not that random, they were selected because they worked well in the over all composition of the drawings. I hope!

A little about me; my name is Andrea Joseph and I am a ballpoint addict. It doesn’t just stop at ballpoints; I am a pen addict in general. I have three bulging pencil cases for ballpoints alone (there are, of course, all the other pencil cases with fine liners, fountain pens, colour pencils etc.). These drawings are a selection from each of them.

If you’d like to see more of my ballpoint drawings, you can find them on my Flickr page. For more information on drawing with ballpoints you might be interested in my ballpoint zine or my ballpoint ‘starter pack’. They can be found in my Etsy shop. And, for all other news on my work check out my sketchblog.