I Have Fallen

[Raissermesser]

I'd become increasingly dissatisfied with my Jotter Stainless Steel with Fisher SpacePen refill, both due to the slickness of the barrel and for the ink turning from black to blue under heat and moisture. While I liked having a matched set (with a Jotter 0.5mm mechanical pencil), with CAD/CAM, I don't use 0.5mm that much anymore, and have come to prefer 0.7mm lead. This week I finally gave up.

In my pocket I now have a Uni-Ball Signo Micro 207 in black, and a cheap Pen+Gear 0.7mm mechanical pencil, both from WallyWorld. The mechanical pencil is a big surprise in that it has a triangular barrel rather than round. I was taught in drafting to rotate the mechanical pencil as I drew, but since this is primarily for writing, it works great. It has a nice feel, not what I was expecting at all.

Yes, that's every-day carry now. I still carry my Fisher AG7 on Sundays, and the concentric grooves on the barrel solves the slickness issue in the Jotter Stainless. But as a measure of how far I've fallen, I've already started using the Signo for journaling instead of my Pilot Metropolitan with Noodler's Black.

What's next? Am I headed back to cartridge razors?

 

[Shave_Rat]

That's OK, I come from the mindset of use what you like for writing, and in the grand scheme, it's the writing that is more important than the tool you are using.

 

[Doc4]

it's the writing that is more important than the tool you are using

Some of the most important stuff was originally written with feathers.

 

[Doc4]

PS:

 

[Billski]

That @Doc4 has the answer.

 

[Slivovitz]

Well, I never much liked the Pilot Metropolitan; uncomfortable to hold because of that step in the section. Others have complained of the same thing, while many don't have a problem with it; it's an individual thing.

I do like mechanical pencils, and use them a lot, but rarely for the same things. For extended writing, such as in my diary, I much prefer fountain pens, having found a number of models that are right for me. I rarely use a ballpoint unless it's the right tool for a particular job, such as using my Space Pen to write on a cardboard tag held against a vertical surface. Gel and liquid ink rollerballs can be nice. The Signo 207 you mention is a gel pen, right? I could live with a gel pen in a situation where no fountain pens were available; Pilot G2s are pretty good.

Anyway, there's no point in trying to like what other people think you should like when you know perfectly well that you prefer something else. Just remember, you may have fallen but you can get up.

 

[Doc4]

Well, I never much liked the Pilot Metropolitan; uncomfortable to hold because of that step in the section.

I always liked recommending the Pilot 78g instead as a starter pen ... same great Pilot nib, but no issues with uncomfortable in the hand. One used to be able to get a 78g from Hong Kong based e-bay sellers for $10 shipped worldwide.

It's been a while since I needed to buy a 78g, so wasn't paying too much attention ... but I think they discontinued the pen. More recently, though, I think they started producing it again slightly revamped. Anyhow, looks like you can still get the (new?) 78g from Hong Kong for about $15-$20 including worldwide shipping.

 

[H4nk]

I didn't even know that eBay took Visa. The 78g sounds like a winner. Thanks for the info.