The Pen Addict Podcast: Episode 328 - The Longest Relationship I’ve Ever Had

The Dallas Pen Show was spectacular, and I’m back with tales to tell. While there, I got to hang out with the crew from Retro 51, and got to lay my eyes on the new Sailor 1911 Key Lime fountain pen. Orange pens of various origin play a role in this episode as well. Shocking, I know.

Show Notes & Download Links

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Posted on October 4, 2018 by Brad Dowdy and filed under Podcast.

Monami Olika Fountain 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 Twitter.)

Where were pens like this when I was still in school? I had to hunt for affordable fountain pens back then and most of what I found wasn't nearly this nice or fun.

At first glance, it looks like just another cheap "I only use this in contexts where I'd worry about my nicer pens" pen. And it is indeed perfect for those situations! But the more I play with it, the more I like about it.

The body is clear PVC, so you can easily see your ink level. The grip is textured rubber like you'd find on a lot of big-box gel or rollerball pens. It's easy to grip and comfortable to hold. It does feel a bit large for my hand, but it's so light that it's still easy to write with even for long periods of time. The whole thing looks like a plain inexpensive office pen--which sounds like an insult, but think of it as protective coloration. I can leave it on my desk in the middle of a public library and walk away, and it will still be there when I come back.

The cap snaps to close and it posts securely on the back of the pen. The clip is wide and flexible, but feels very flimsy--like it's going to break off the first time I try and clip it to too many pages or if I put it in my purse wrong. Weak clips are one of my biggest pen pet peeves. Fortunately, the pen writes well enough to make up for this offense.

The EF nib is surprisingly smooth on this pen. It writes with even the lightest pressure and lays down a wet enough line that it shows off some great character in the provided ink. Reports from the wild indicate some inconsistencies in their nib quality, but that's not surprising at this price point. Most seem to be of the excellent quality I'm experiencing with mine.

The nib is steel, and it's fed by a wick rather than a plastic feed. I worried this would cause some problems with drying out or ink starvation, but I haven't had any trouble. It does mean, though, that it's a pain if you want to switch colors--because you'll need to rinse all of the ink out of that wick. It would probably be more sensible to keep a dedicated color for each of the pans, and just collect all of the 20 different colors.

Each pen comes with three ink cartridges, and there are refills available. It also accepts Lamy cartridges, if you do decide you want a change. I also noticed that these cartridges are more rugged than the ones I've seen before, They are made of hard plastic like the pen, not the flexible plastic of most cartridges. It does mean that you can't squeeze ink through if the nib gets too dry, but they look sturdy enough that they could be refilled with a syringe and used many times over.

The Olika ink that came in the cartridges was a very pleasant surprise. The color is rich with beautiful shading and it behaves very well. I'll definitely be eyeing some other colors of both the pens and ink. The ink alone is worth the $5.50, and the pen is an added delight.

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

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Posted on October 4, 2018 by Sarah Read and filed under Monami, Fountain Pens, Pen Reviews.

Mark's HiBi Weekly Notebook Review

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

The Mark's HiBi Weekly notebook is a small spiral notebook that spreads your entire week on a single page, making it easy to plan events and tasks for each day. Unlike a lot of weekly or daily planners, this one features a wide landscape orientation, and also sports a back cover that allows the notebook to stand up on its own so you can easily reference the planner on your desk.

At 8.3 x 4.6 inches, it's a familiar size. It's a bit smaller than an A5 notebook, which makes it easy to store and transport, but also allowing enough room on the page for an entire week. While it's great that the full week is available on every page, that's where this notebook causes me trouble. Due to the small size, I've had trouble using the notebook since I don't normally write super small. Even if I do write incredibly small, there still isn't much room for me to add meetings, appointments, and tasks for each day without everything feeling incredibly cramped. At first glance, it looked like a great format. After using it for a week, I was a bit disappointed.

For me, the functionality was a flop, but what about the build quality? The notebook features a top-bound twin spiral ring that seems rugged, but can be difficult to turn pages without getting stuck. The chipboard that makes up the front and back covers are incredibly strong, and I have no doubt they'll stand up to a great deal of abuse. The kickstand on the back cover is a novel idea, but it does add bulk to the notebook when it's closed and laying flat. If you're using it to stand up the notebook, it works great.

Once you get to the paper, the build quality starts to decline. The paper has a smooth feel that's pleasant to write on, and it's thin without feeling fragile. I also haven't seen any feathering when using different pens on this paper, which is a good sign. However, the show-through on the opposite page is significant. Even with a micro-tip gel pen, there's almost too much show-through to use the back page. And since every page has a front and a back, that poses a significant problem. The Schmidt P8126 and fountain pen inks caused the most show-through, but the only option that hasn't caused some sort of show-through is pencil. I was disappointed by this attribute of the paper, because it's pleasant to use if you discount the show-through property.

Unfortunately, this notebook didn't mesh with my daily routine or writing style. It could potentially be fixed by removing a lot of the lines that create the feeling of cramped writing space, but fitting seven days of information on a single sheet is always a tall order. This might work great for some people with specific use cases, but it just didn't hold up for me. That, together with the paper quality and problematic spiral binding, ultimately makes this notebook difficult to recommend unless you can think of specific uses that will suite your needs.

The model used in this review is orange, but that color isn't currently available on JetPens. Today, they offer blue, pink, and yellow, and each notebook is just under $10.

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

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