The Pen Addict Podcast: Episode 521 - Un, Deux, Trois, Quatre, BAG

Once again, I go to bat for international paper standards. I put up an impassioned case against the enemy, who goes by the name Myke. I win.

Does Lamy win with the impeding release of the Glossy Red AL-star? You be the judge. We also discuss the latest Field Notes release, my Blackwing purge, and rollerballs for fountain pen inks.

Show Notes & Download Links

This episode of The Pen Addict is sponsored by:

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Pilot Kakuno Fmaily Series 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. And check out her latest book, Out of Water, now available where books are sold!)

I love a good theme, and while I don't love having my stationery unnecessarily gendered, these are pretty cute. And cuteness aside, the Pilot Kakuno is a good pen.

It's a pen that's perfect for kids or beginners, but it is also very at home in the collection of experienced Pen Addicts. The low price point and ease of use it offers makes it a great gateway pen for those looking to get into the hobby. It's not too precious to entrust to young writers, and it can be guiltlessly tossed into a pen pouch or backpack without much worry.

The pen body is made out of 85% recycled plastic, and this model is in a lovely transparent pink. There are lots of other colors to choose from as well. The clear body lets you see all the inner workings and even watch the ink flow through the feed, which is always fun.

The cap snaps to close and is shaped to make it easy to remove and also prevents the pen from rolling on a desk. It does post securely. The grip section is slightly shaped to promote a "proper" grip, but it isn't as obtrusive as some brands. It suggests a certain hold, but I can comfortably hold it several ways.

The best thing about the Kakuno, though, and the thing everyone knows it for, is the smiley nib. The family series gives these nib faces characters, all members of a smiley pen family. A dark blue dad, dark pink mom, light blue boy, light pink girl, and green baby. They all have some accessory etched in addition to the smile--the girl pen has a ribbon and long eyelashes. It's cute and also a little creepy in a Stepford kinda way.

Cute or creepy, it writes well. The nib is smooth and the ink from the included cartridge flows well. I wish they came with fun ink colors instead of black, but Pilot Black is a very good black.

This pen costs $12.50, which is quite a bit more than its main competition--the Platinum Preppy, which is also excellent and sells for under $5, AND comes with fun ink colors. The Preppy doesn't stare at you, though--unblinking and smiling, while you write. So if you're into that sort of thing, you definitely need a Kakuno.

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

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Maruman Mnemosyne US Letter Size Notebook Review

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

I've long been a fan of Maruman Notebooks because of their excellent quality, and the Mnemosyne line is well-known for the plain black cover and double spiral binding. No matter what size you need, the Mnemosyne notebook line probably has a size that fits your needs.

The latest size to hit my desk is a unique one for the US market: Letter. I have a lot of mixed feelings about this notebook and the size, but let's focus on the stuff that it shares with all the other Mnemosyne notebooks of all sizes and shapes.

The famous black cover, twin ring binding, and yellow accents really set the Mnemosyne product line apart. There's nothing else like it, and that makes for some recognizable branding. I'm pretty sure that if you're reading this site, you've probably at least seen one of these notebooks online or in person — or you may own one or several already. If you've never tried a Mnemosyne notebook, you should definitely add it to your list. When it comes to spiral bound notebooks, they're at the top of a lot of lists.

The build quality on these notebooks is solid. The front cover is a sleek plastic that withstands plenty of wear, and the back chipboard cover is rigid and protective. The yellow accents on the cover and on the first page really add a nice pop of color to make these notebooks instantly recognizable.

The notebook paper is superb. At 80 gsm, it strides a great balance between being thin and capable of handling all sorts of inks and writing instruments. There are 70 sheets in the notebook, and they feature a 1/4" grid rule. The top of each page has a couple of blank areas for the title and page number, but the ink used for the labels (same ink as the grid lines) is a light gray that is easy to ignore if you don't want to use them.

Each page has a micro perforation at the top, which makes it easy to remove pages from the notebook with a clean rip. Due to the micro-perforation (lots of little holes), tearing a sheet out is easy and rarely results in any accidental tears on the sheet itself or ripping the paper out of the binding. It works great, and it's also really satisfying to tear sheets out due to how smooth it is.

The grid lines are only on the front of each sheet. The back is completely blank, which can be great if you want something with zero lining. Since there isn't much show-through on this paper, you can easily use both sides of the page without issues.

I've tried every pen I own on this paper over the years. It handles most things with ease. Aside from brush pens, some pigment markers, and really large, wet nibs, I've never had any problems with this paper. Lines are crisp, dark, dry as expected, and hardly show through on the back side. I haven't noticed any feathering or bleeding with the many inks/pens I've used. There's a light coating on the paper that makes it feel smoother when writing (it feels great, by the way), but it doesn't seem to affect dry time much at all. Perfect balance.

Let's look at the unique aspect of this notebook: the size. The US Letter size is a limited edition for the US market, and for now, only available on Amazon. It measures in at 279 x 226 mm, or 11 x 8.9 in. When you tear out a sheet, it measures 8.5 x 11 exactly, so the extra 0.4 accounts for the binding.

Alright, cool. It's a notebook from Japan that uses a US letter size for the pages. This isn't common, which is why it feels a little weird. Also, it's a USA limited edition, so all I can do is scratch my head and wonder why. I already have an A4 version of this notebook, and you can't tell which is which unless you compare them to each other. I'm a little perplexed why Maruman would set up the machines to run a limited edition notebook size for the US market, but here we are! If you want this special Letter size notebook, you have to pick them up from Maruman directly on Amazon.

Regardless of what size you pick, rest assured that this will be a fantastic notebook with paper that is really nice to use.

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

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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!