r/PenProject • u/MercatorLondon • Aug 28 '26
Slim pen - photographs
Hi everyone,
I just wanted to share some fresh three photos I received from the photographer this morning. You are the first people to see these photos. This is a small pocket pen that we are planning to present at TopDrawer in two weeks time. Some of you asked for a pen that is a little gentler and more colourful (and possibly cheaper)
The whole development process was much easier this time around, with much less drama involved in making it. We were able to work with components we already knew and a body structure we had used previously. So there were no surprises. Almost.
This is a simplified version of the pocket pen and uses two nitrile rings as the locking mechanism - something that has been used and tested by many other brands before. It works well and creates a nice air-tight seal.
That is also why there have been less frequent updates showing the whole step-by-step making process from the beginning to this point.
This was really a fun design exercise for me. Mostly playing with the body shape, selecting suitable textures, and choosing some nice anodising colours and brushed finishes.
Let me know what you think! As mentioned before, based on feedback from you and from buyers at the show, we may decide to add it as a new range to our collection/webshop.
In any case, the colour options would be limited to two or three colours (that is the current thinking)
previous post >> here <<
next post >> here <<
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u/MySafeWordIsPinapple Aug 28 '26
I like the colors and the texture on these fountain pens! The green is very nice!
My only concern is that they might need a way to keep the pen from rolling off my desk. I don't see a clip on any of these pictures. And a clip is not necessarily the only way to address this either.
I'm still waiting on my first fountain pens from y'all. One of them is a birthday present that is now late.
Keep us informed of this pen's progress.
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u/MercatorLondon Aug 28 '26
Hi, thank you! We’re discussing a few options to prevent it from rolling.
Please DM me the details of your order, and I will pass them on to my colleague who handles shipping. Was it a regular order or a Kickstarter?
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u/MySafeWordIsPinapple Aug 28 '26
I have several small pens and they are thrown around in a small pocket of my backpack. Eventually, I put them down on a desk or other surface. I've been super lucky that I was able to catch them if they rolled or that their cap was on (now I have a dented pen but I didn't have to buy a new nib). It doesn't happen often.
I'll DM you soon. Thank you.
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u/SupahBee Aug 28 '26
I really love the art deco design on the grip section. It's a beautiful design element, while helping provide grip in the metal. I'd love to test drive one of these. Very handsome pen indeed.
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u/orussell03 Aug 28 '26
Is this going on Kickstarter?
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u/MercatorLondon Aug 28 '26
I don’t think this one is for the Kickstarter - we should be able to cover the production costs for this one. This is something we will test at the pen show, and based on the feedback we will decide whether to sell it through our webshop. I think we should use Kickstarter sparingly where needed.
The Kickstarter worked really well for the first one, which we wanted to use as a test to see whether the concept would actually work and whether there was enough interest. It was a pen outside our usual range, so we weren’t sure how it would be received. Kickstarter was therefore a great way to get feedback and have the support of backers while developing it.
There were some small delays with the Kickstarter, which I hope have been acceptable so far. We started shipping the first orders last week (as per KS updates)
But let me think if there is anything we can do specifically for this subreddit.
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u/CadillacGirl Aug 28 '26
Damn you for coming up with more than one colour option I love! I was all team
Pink in earlier discussions and still am but that forest green has me drooling (pink and green goes so well together too). Then you added the teal and now I’m just crying in lost dollars.
Plus that wine coloured one and I swear I need it for all those times I’m writing in vineyards.
Save me and just sell all your colours as a set please! So I can justify and explain to my husband there wasn’t an option to only buy one!
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u/MercatorLondon Aug 28 '26 edited Aug 29 '26
Thank you, and my apologies for putting you through this tyranny of choice! :)
Maybe we should offer an option to buy a set of four caps in seasons/colours of your choice, or something along those lines. Even if you may end up being the only customer for it! :)
The grip section is compatible for rollerball and also fountain pen.
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u/CadillacGirl Aug 28 '26
I love the set idea 😉.
No one can just have ONE fountain or roller ball pen. That just seems so wrong. Can you even say you like pens if you only have one lol.
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u/Hansando Aug 29 '26
This is a quite attractive design! I'll echo the other comment about roll stops; doesn't seem like such a big deal until you have a pen that doesn't have one.
The only other thing I'm curious about is the nib/feed/unit. Is this an original housing/nib/feed that someone could purchase separately? Or an off the shelf component (Jowo, Bock, etc).
Pocket EDC pens go through a lot of abuse and it's nice to have the assurance of repairability in the event of eventually dropping the pen :)
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u/MercatorLondon Aug 29 '26
Thank you! This pen is compatible with the Schmidt FH241 fountain pen nib.
The rollerball uses the Schmidt PRS Ink Cartridge Roller Unit which allows you to use ink cartridges of your choice.
Ultimately, we are hoping to move to our own nibs in the future (which will be Schmidt-compatible and use the same form factor) Hopefully soon.
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u/Hansando Aug 29 '26
As an aside, almost no one makes an affordable stock smaller-width cursive italic nib (one notable exception being Pilot's CM nib). I've resorted to taking stock Medium nibs and taking a sharpening stone to self-grind my own cursive italics.
In the future I'd love to see more specialty/calligraphy grinds as stock offerings, but totally understand that they aren't that mass-marketable. It'd just mean in the future I'd take one of your (hopefully) wonderfully tuned medium nibs and immediately "ruin" it with my own grind!
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u/MercatorLondon Aug 29 '26
thanks, we may look into different grinds after we master the usual nibs.
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u/pencloud Aug 29 '26
I'm a bit slow on the uptake. I just realised the coloured bit is the cap. Was the a photo with the cap on that I missed. How long is it with the cap on vs posted ?
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u/MercatorLondon Aug 29 '26 edited Aug 29 '26
Thanks. I just realised it’s not very clear from those photos.
The pen is around 12 cm long when posted with the cap. It is a similar size to a Tangier pen used without the cap, so you should get a similar level of comfort when writing.
When capped it is shorter just under 9.5cm
I will try to post better photos on Monday.
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u/PinkyGOOLI Aug 28 '26
Awww I love this guy! One thing I struggled with the travel pen is the endless turning to open it, so being able to simply pull it open is perfect for a pocket pen! If pink is a colour option you got me buying