The Pen Addict Podcast: Episode 64 - Johnny Anypen

Visionnaire, Visionnaire, Visionnaire. That's all anyone has wanted to talk about for the past week in my social media feeds. What do Myke and I think about this white-hot Kickstarter project? Listen to Episode 64 of The Pen Addict Podcast to find out!

Show Notes & Download Links

For posterities sake, here is the list of questions I posed to Visionnaire creator Morgan Combes. I will post again if and when he gets back to me.

  1. You have talked about designing the Visionnaire but you also talk about not having much fountain pen experience. How much of the actual design is yours, and how much is pre-made parts?

  2. Did you fit your specs into an existing design, or is this 100% original design?

  3. Are any new tools or dies being made to produce these pens, or will existing tooling be used for the manufacturing?

  4. The full manufacture of your pen is Chinese. Why should someone buy the Visionnaire instead of a Hero Pen form the most well-known Chinese pen manufacturer that looks similar and only costs $4?

  5. You mentioned several times that your margins are low for this project, yet you increased the the number of Early Bird backers exponentially, allowing more backers to get the pen at a cheaper rate. What was behind the decision to allow this if the margins are so low?

Posted on July 24, 2013 and filed under Podcast.

Maxmadco Retractable Pen Review

Maxmadco Retractable

One of the fun things about writing this blog is getting emails from readers talking about their favorite pens. As if you didn't know this already, people are passionate about their pens, and love to share the ones that make them happy. Many times I have heard of and likely used the pens in question, but an email from Joe a few months back introduced me to something brand new.

How the Maxmadco Retractable Pen was not on my radar is a shocker to me because it pushes all of my buttons. Aluminum body, anodized black finish, tight clip, a very responsive spring loaded bolt style mechanism, and made in the USA - what's not to love? Joe let me borrow his and from the moment I took it out of the box I was impressed.

As I wrote in the sample above, this is what a 10 out of 10 build quality looks like. The Maxmadco Retractable is flawlessly designed and manufactured. It is so clean and sleek I just kept looking at it instead of writing with it. Before getting it in my hands I was worried the bolt would protrude too much from the side but my concerns were unfounded. It is subtle enough to stay out of the way but substantial enough to allow for quick engagement. Very well done.

Maxmadco Retractable

The supplied refill is the medium Parker Gel which was ok for the review, but if it were my own pen I would swap it out for another Parker compatible refill like my favorite 0.5 mm Moleskine Gel. The Fisher Space Pen refill would be another consideration.

The only hangup with this pen is the price. At $85 dollars it is fairly priced but that is outside of the no-brainer purchase zone for me. I will own one someday soon (it comes in stainless steel also) but I need to save up my pennies before jumping in. If you want that one pen you can take anywhere and will last a long time the Maxmadco Retractable should be on your radar.

Thanks again to Joe for letting me borrow this outstanding pen!

Maxmadco Retractable

Posted on July 22, 2013 and filed under Maxmadco, Pen Reviews.