Hero 616 - Made in China

What does this pen and this car have in common?  Yep... made in China. If you have spent anytime at all on eBay drooling over Fountain Pens...these must have come across your browser.  Well, I fell for it.  Bought a 6 pack, or a 10 pack...I am not sure which anymore.  All I remember is they were about $1 a pen. In red black and I might have a green one floating around.

The goal was definitely to make this bad boy look like a Parker 51. At first blush they pass the test.  They do look like a Parker... until you pick one up.  If you ever picked up a 51,  you know this one does not feel like a Parker.  It's eerily light...even with ink in it.

Don't cheat....which one is the Parker 21 and which one is the Hero?

Filling is...twist off the body...dip (ink is preferred) , squeeze a few times and wipe off the nib.  That's it.  Keep it simple right? Here's the guts.

In this case,  I don't think it's suicide,  or flattery.  More doing what you have to do to get by.   "It is what it is" comes to mind here.  For a $1 you get a very workable fountain pen that across the conference table looks like a more expensive model.  The nib might not be as smooth, or the metal quite as shiny.  But again.  A buck.

Ebay links:

http://cgi.ebay.com/10-X-PIECES-HERO-616-CARBON-FIBER-FOUNTAIN-PEN-H19-/150340204103?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2300f97647#ht_3447wt_754

http://cgi.ebay.com/H33-10-X-PIECES-HERO-329-CARBON-FIBER-FOUNTAIN-PEN-/350366537827?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5193791863#ht_3813wt_754

http://cgi.ebay.com/3X-HERO-616-Fountain-Pen-Vintage-Style-Classic-Pen-NEW-/180580306069?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2a0b6ccc95

I don't have any affiliation with these sellers...just passing along the info.

Pen News!

I added a new column on the right hand side that I plan on keeping updated as news related stuff comes flowing in.  I am tempted to put it in the body...and I might eventually but in order to keep the noise down I will tuck it over there.
Enjoy!

If you are interested in this sort of thing, let me know and I could start putting more in the main part of the blog... up to you. Feel free to leave a comment.

And I started putting my missing links back in,  shoot me an email if you want a link exchange.

Pentel Graphlet 0.4 ... a good non-pen

Who has two thumbs and cannot stop using his new .4 mechanical pencil? This guy. Larger pictures if you click...
















I think like most people... I had natural progression down to smaller leads from when I first started using non-pens. (everyone calls pencils "non-pens" right?) You had your Yellow #2 and it stayed as sharp as you had the energy to walk to the pencil sharpener for.
Years later...I remember my first .3 pencil. It was almost perfect. There was the occasional scratching and lead breaking and paper tearing but for the most part... It was near perfect. However...I found some really good feeling .5's that a solid grip that made up for the thicker lead. Now I think I have found my happy place....

















Each different lead thickness has a different color cap!

Then I discovered the .4. OOOOH baby. It's kinda like chewing on a old pieces of leather for all your life and then someone handing you a piece of gum and saying "Here, try this."

"Thank you... where were you 4 cows ago?" (you have to excuse me today-I had a fresh new brand of espresso this morning and I might have gone overboard.)

















If lead ever had a small family reunion and some of them got together for a distant cousin portrait... this would be it. That's a .3 on the left then a .4, 5, 7, 9 and up to a who knows what that size is on the right. Oh...and that is a Parker 61 Mechanical pencil that I need to review (second from the right.)Love.

















Jetpens sell these for $7.50 a pop. Before you go start a rally about it...it's a very fair price for the quality. I will be picking up the entire series.

Oh, I cannot stop listening to The Avett Brothers. Anytime punk and folk are blended give me a shout, I would be in... Enjoy your day.