Posts filed under Rotring

rOtring 600 Ballpoint 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 Bluesky. And her latest book, The Atropine Tree, is now available!)

rOtring are very well known for their iconic mechanical pencils. The signature look evokes serious-business design. It's a plain sort of elegance, but jazzed up by the fun new colors available in the 600 line. The ballpoint version of the 600 has the same look as the pencil.

This pen is in the newer “Chocolate Truffle” color, which is a burgundy-brown that I absolutely love. The smooth matte finish gives it a very elegant look. It's also available in blue, black, dark stone (grey), gold, silver, green, red, pearl white, and rose gold. They all look good enough to make choosing difficult.

The body of the pen is brass. It's still lightweight, but feels very solid. The body is hexagonal, so it doesn't roll, and the grip section is the gritty knurled tube that rOtring is known for. It has a very sturdy metal clip. The click knock has a very satisfying clunk, but it's surprisingly silent. You can click to your heart's content without annoying your coworkers. The nosecone is narrow and elongated, designed to let you see the tip of the pen better as you draw or write.

The grip section unscrews to allow access to the refill. The refill included is a rOtring oil-based, parker-style ballpoint. And it's not great. It's fairly pale, railroads, and it smears, even long after writing. It's still perfectly useable for a practical purpose. I've been using it at work for a few weeks now, and it's been a pleasure to use. But it could be so much better. Fortunately, there are many better options that will fit. The Schmidt EasyFlow 9000, the Uni Jetstream, and the Fisher Space Pen pressurized ballpoint refill are all good options.

The rOtring 600 Ballpoint sells for $41.60 at Vanness Pen Shop, marked down from the list price of $52. It's a lot for a ballpoint pen, but the prestige of the brand is part of what you're paying for, here. For the good quality build, easy refill access, and timeless look, I think it earns its sticker price. It's one I keep reaching for. It's a convenient staple that makes the experience of everyday writing a bit better.

(Vanness Pens provided this product at a discount to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Posted on April 9, 2026 by Sarah Read and filed under Rotring, Ballpoint, Pen Reviews.

The Pen That Started It All

(Kimberly (she/her) took the express train down the fountain pen/stationery rabbit hole and doesn't want to be rescued. She can be found on Instagram @allthehobbies because there really are many, many hobbies!.)

Some of you may know that my FP journey started with the Pilot Metropolitan, Platinum Preppies (yes, all 7 of them cuz I couldn’t pick a color) and Lamy Safari – all arriving on May 31, 2017. But did you know I’ve been a pen fan long before that? Yup, it’s true! Ever since I was a kid, I loved the Sanrio store (I was a My Melody and Little Twin Stars girl), as well as any office supply store, or heck, even the stationery aisle at the grocery or local drug store! In fact, I once got in deep trouble for stealing coins out of my older brother’s piggy bank just so I could buy pens and pretty paper at the Sanrio store - I didn’t do that again!

At some point in middle school, I got a Sheaffer calligraphy kit, which I used until it eventually ran out of ink (so you just popped in a different color cartridge) or until it just stopped writing altogether. They weren’t nearly as exciting as the cute Sanrio pens that I used to get, and they didn’t write as well either! So that was the end of fountain pens for me (or so I thought, ha!), but not the end of my love for pens and paper!

All throughout college, I loved buying notebooks that had my school logo and in lots of different colors. And at my various jobs, I would always raid the supply closet looking for the best pens and the sticky notes in all the different sizes. At some point after college, I stumbled across a Levenger catalog. Oh my gosh! A catalog of pens and papers and binders and desk accessories!! I was in heaven! Of course I was shocked at how much pens cost, but this was like discovering a Victoria’s Secret catalog but for pen and stationery geeks like me! I don’t remember any of the other pens in the catalog because I was only fixated on one pen.

It was a ballpoint.

Gasp!!! Yeah, that’s right. Not a fountain pen, not even a gel pen or rollerball. And no, it wasn’t a Bic Cristal! I fell in love with the Rotring Newton! Something about the faceted metal barrel and the little red ring (did you know that “Rot ring” means “red ring” in German?) just hit all the buttons! And I remember that it took me months to be comfortable spending $30 on a pen. Shocking, I know! I loved the pen once I got it but I was afraid to use it at work because it was so expensive so it stayed at home where I would only use it occasionally. I’ve lost and found it many times over the course of several moves and was so relieved to have found it again while cleaning the garage recently.

*Rotring Newton with Private Reserve Parker-style refill in Purple on Hobonichi Weeks, 52 gsm Tomoe River paper.*

I have long since replaced the original refill but now that I’ve found it again, I keep it within arm’s reach at my desk. It makes me happy knowing that this has survived so many moves and drops on the floor, and I can still click this pen to my heart’s content. This pen will always have a special place in my heart as being the pen that started it all.

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

Posted on June 16, 2023 by Kimberly Lau and filed under Rotring, Ballpoint.

Rotring 500 0.5 mm Drafting Pencil Review

As a fan of the brand, it doesn’t take much for me to test out anything from Rotring. So, why did it take so long for me to review the Rotring 500? The simple fact that the Rotring 600 exists.

The 600 is the best mechanical pencil on the market, and one of the great stationery products of all-time. If there were a Stationery Hall of Fame, the 600 gets in on the first ballot, without question. There is no better in my book.

Rotring may want you to believe that the much pricier 800 model is better, with its retractable lead pipe and fancy gold trim, but no, the rock-solid 600 is better. Don’t @ me.

The 500 takes an alternate path as the entry level Rotring drafting pencil. At less than half the price of the 600 ($14 vs. $31,) the main difference is that plastic is used for the center barrel in the 500, compared to brass in the 600.

For some writers, that may be preferred. Why? Balance. Most mechanical pencils that get classified under the “Drafting” category have a low center of gravity for better control when writing small details on the page. The 500 uses the classic metal knurled Rotring grip, and in conjunction with the plastic barrel, the weight is moved towards the tip. The full metal barrel of the 600 is more balanced throughout the length of the pencil.

If you want me to continue to list out the differences between the 500 and 600, well, you will be disappointed to know that is it. Plastic barrel in the 500, metal in the 600. That’s the list. In reality, you should be excited, because every other part of this pencil is the same as its much more popular pencil partner, while being much cheaper. Same grip, same clip, same lead indicator, same eraser and cap. It’s fantastic.

Now, if you think I’m about to tell you I would pick the 500 over my beloved 600, you would be wrong. The brass barrel makes the 600 what it is for me personally. But the 500 is a fantastic choice, right up there with the Uni-ball Kuru Toga and Uni Shift Pipe Lock as favorites in the $10-$20 price range. And, if this Red barrel is any indicator (along with Blue and Green,) maybe Rotring is ready branch out like they have with the 600 over the last several years.