Guest Pen Cup #1

I am at my parents for Thanksgiving and wanted to try a new thing called "Guest Pen Cup" I decided a long time ago that I can tell all I need to know about people by taking a quick look into their pen cups. It's like a window to the soul.

In this case it's strictly utilitarian along with a comb just to increase the odd factor a bit. I am pretty sure I had that Sanford King Size marker 15 years ago. I am not sure how the American Pencil Co. Brown 1212 drawing pencil crept in there, it's at least 50 years old.  There are some Sharpies and a few run of the mill crappy ballpoints (I thought I taught them better.) But if push came to shove, the contents would cover just about any situation Macgyver would come across. (including wind blown hair.)

Platinum Preppy Fountain pen

I thought I already reviewed this pen simply because I use it so much, but looking back, I don't think I did. I really love this pen, possible the best modern, low cost disposable I have ever used. (In a heads up battle, I probably would give the nod to an old school Sheaffer School though.) The great part is, I have no fear of losing this pen. It's very easy to replace and it writes like a dream on most paper. I am not sure why they named it "preppy" but it works for me.


There are currently 1.1 million students who are home-schooled, or 2 percent of all school-age students ages 5 to 17. Those are the lucky bastards... I wonder how many of those are preppy?

In High School I had a slight preppy period, which I think lasted about a week and consisted of popping the collar on my knock off Lacoste shirts.


Jetpens sells these for $3.00 each here, and you can get refills there as well. Well worth the money. It's a Good pen.

Have a great Thanksgiving everyone and I should have a fresh post for you tomorrow morning.

Capless Pilot Fountain Pen

Or the vanishing point as it is known here in the US. One click and the nib draws in and is protected, another click and it pops out ready for action. I still mostly just use this at my desk. I know it's meant to be carried around, but I like it safe and secure right here. Fine point and a perfect pen. Good pen.

Pilot is the 3rd largest pen manufacturer in the US. *If* I were to categorize all of my pens by age, color, tip size, roller, felt, fountain and ink color, I bet that I would have mostly Pilots in my collection. (by 17%) (I am kidding...or am I?)


When we were renovating our kitchen my wife ordered custom tiles that would "pull all the colors together" being a man, I nodded and went back to sports talk. When the custom tiles came in they were "all wrong" and "disastrous." I nodded and we decided to reorder new tiles. The key word I missed was "custom." Long story short, I have 4 boxes of very nice green subway tiles that I have to do something with. Here two are being used for expensive props and we went with a white tile. Lovely.

Zebra Jimnie Gel Rollerball

Every now and then I feel the need for a semi-fat writing, traditional rollerball  and this Zebra usually fits the bill. Yes, it skips a bit, but if I am using cheap notebook paper for something, it seems to be a good bet for a quick drying, smudge proof pen. Plus it's acid free so I don't have to worry about my pen tripping out.

I re-watched Office Space again over the weekend. 2 in the morning, can't sleep and a perfect movie. It's so hard to believe that the movie only made 10.8 million in box office revenue. Mike Judge is a genius.

It's a true medium point without any surprises when pen hits paper. Good, but not great. I wish the rest of the pen was a little better, because when writing, it feels really nice in your hand and has a decent weight to it. On Amazon, it's less than a dollar each so don't be afraid to try it.

Thanks again for all the emails and comments over the weekend, I appreciate the feedback. As a reminder, feel free to join the Good Pens Group in Flickr, it's lonely right now, but hope we can put another good group of pens together. Click the link or visit http://www.flickr.com/groups/goodpens/

The George S. Parker # 20 1/2

As always, click for better views...

2 Parker's in a week, this is trouble.

George S. Parker... I wish I could give you a big bear hug and let you know that 100 years (or so) later, your pens put a big doofy grin on my face. (I doubt that he was a hugger, wikipedia does not mention it.)




I would fight you before giving up this pen. No holds barred, kicking and screaming. I just know that there's some history here. A lot can happen to something in 100 years, an accidental drop, or placed in a forgotten bag, or sold in Tijuana for a bottle of tequila, a tortilla press and a few sarapes. (DON'T remind me.)

But somehow, this one survived and still puts a line of ink down that makes you want to write a Senator, or phone a friend, or actually want to write something for once.



And there is just enough flex to make the good lines even better. Thank you George.

Good Pen

Fountain pen ink in my Pentel Energel

Every now and then I crave a different color ink in my gel pens, or I finish a disposable pen and feel like it still has some life in it, so I grab the pliers and go to work. I know I can buy a replacement for a few bucks, but that's no fun at all. Plastic tipped pliers will separate the point from the body of the pen, if your pen is not empty, prepare for a mess. (Clean up aisle 3.)


Do a proper cleaning to the tip and the tank, warm water and lots of it are the keys. Run water through all parts till it runs clear. Here everything is empty and dried out and ready to fill.

No mom, I do not do drugs, so please...no surprise interventions over Thanksgiving, I just happen have a sweet selection of syringes for refilling my fountain pen cartridges and other pens. Tip the body back and fill it up, I think this pen will hold about 1.5 cc's of your favorite color and brand of ink, in this case, I am putting in my waterproof Baystate Blue made by Noodler's.

Close everything back up, wipe it down, check for a good seal and scribble to get the ink flowing.



Voila, your standard run of the mill liquid gel pen can hold the color of your choice. All in, this took me about 5 minutes. It's a new Good pen.

Pilot V Ball Grip Extra Fine and Mo

I miss Red Sox baseball.


In 1995, Mo Vaughn hit 39 home runs, had 126 RBIs and averaged .300 for the Red Sox. In New England we also remember him for the famous car crash coming home from a strip club gentleman's establishment one night. Close the the end of his career, the Angels gave him a 6 year, 80 million dollar contract that was injury plagued and he sadly ended his career early with a knee injury. To me, that was overpaying.

In sharp contrast, I payed 6 dollars for a 4 pack of these pens and it feels like I am stealing them. They are worth every penny to me.

I know the graphics look like a white pen mated with a cow, but they are so comfortable to write with and although it says extra fine, it feels like somewhere between a .5 and a .7, but that works for me.

Good Pen.