Unsharpen Team

Have you heard the term “tubular nib” thrown around and have no idea what it means? It’s a rarely used, but poorly defined term. This article will explain the uses of the term and outline a few pens that could be described as having a tubular nib.

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If you are choosing a higher-end Pilot fountain pen you have a potentially confusing decision to make: do you buy a Custom Heritage 912, a Custom Heritage 92, or a Custom 74? Even the names are alike, how are the pens different from one another?

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The Pilot Custom 74 and the Platinum #3776 Century are both excellent fountain pens. They are also shockingly similar — they are clearly direct competitors to one another. But give how similar they are on paper, how do you choose one or the other? And which should you buy, the #3776 Century or the Custom 74?

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Did you just see a “double-knock” mechanical pencil and have no idea what the name meant? Or why you would want the extra knock? Is this pencil some sort of postman who always knocks twice? (OK, rings, but you get the point.) This article should solve all your double-knock questions.

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If you do any significant amount of pen buying you’ll see the phrase “sign pen” sooner or later. But what is a sign pen? How is a sign pen different from say, a gel pen or a marker… or whatever other kind of pen a sign pen might be like?

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Multi-pens are one of those love-them-or-hate-them products. You either need multiple colors, and possibly a pencil, and want them in a single instrument, or the idea has zero appeal to you. After all, is it that much of a challenge to carry three pens? Or a pen and a pencil?

Let’s assume you are in Camp “Love Multi-pens” and are in the market for a new pen. Time to find the best multi-pen sold today!

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If you have an older model Zebra F-701 pen then you might have realized that the pen is almost entirely metal, but there is one prominent plastic part. Meanwhile the cheaper Zebra F-402 uses a metal component for the single piece where the F-701 does not! This video explains how to combine the two into a fantastic sub-$15 EDC pen.

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