Many people are trying to reduce the amount of plastic they use in their lives, but this can be quite difficult, especially with small, affordable items like pens. While pens and plastic go hand-in-hand, particularly with lower priced pens, there are some choices you can make to reduce the plastic in your writing instruments.
Continue reading “The Best No-Plastic And Low Plastic Pens And Refills”
Prior to the proliferation of computers, making super uniform letters was a challenge. Companies like Leroy and later Rotring developed “lettering systems” so letters could be drafted in a controlled, computer-like manner.
Continue reading “Rotring 461-900 Controlled Lettering System Explainer”
The Rotring 800 ballpoint is the 2018 re-release of the iconic Rotring 600, specifically the Rotring 600G ballpoint with the “G” standing for “gold.”
The Rotring 600 is a fine ballpoint pen and one of the most popular writing instruments on Unsharpen.com. The Rotring 800 is a similar pen, and, based on the name, possibly better. But is it better? If you are buying a pen, which should you get?
Continue reading “Rotring 600 vs. Rotring 800 Pen Comparison”
When discussing vintage pens and pencils, the Rotring Newton is often confused with the older — the original — Rotring 600. Both are great pens and mechanical but they are quite alike. Even so, they are distinctly different models and while the Newton echoes the design of the 600 it is not a Rotring 600.
Sorry to say it, but there is no “Rotring Newton 600,” that’s just something people write on Ebay auctions.
Does any of this matter though? Are we just splitting hairs? Or is there a real difference between the Rotring 600 and the Newton models. Let’s find out.
If you are looking for a pen to carry with you, you want something tough, stylish, versatile, and affordable. You want a pen that’s a tough as your worst day. That’s an “EDC” or everyday carry pen.
When buying a pen you will encounter many of the same words each type you buy. The number one thing you should be looking out fo– so you know what to expect from the pen — is the type of ink. Two popular and often confused types are ballpoint and gel ink.
So what’s the difference between ballpoint and gel pens?
Continue reading “Ballpoint vs. Gel Ink – What’s The Difference?”
Pen refills come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. Some of these are standards, shared across pen brands and decades of pen designs, while other are propriety and limited to just a few brands or even a few models. This means that replacing the ink in a pen, especially an older one, may end up being a more difficult task than you’d expect.
The goal of this article is to make buying a new ink refill for your pen as easy as possible. A secondary goal to this guide will be maximizing the number of refill options available for each pen. This is only possible once you have a good understanding of refill shapes and which are interchangeable.
The Rotring Rapid Pro is a mechanical, drafting pencil that is a competitor with the old, smaller Rotring 600.
It might seem obvious that a nib holder is designed to hold a nib, but what makes it a nib holder and not a fountain pen? After all, isn’t a fountain pen just a nib holding barrel with some ink and a cap?
Let’s dig into nib holders and their place in the world in 2020.
Continue reading “What Is A Nib Holder And How Are They Used?”
Have a mechanical pencil whose lead won’t come out? There is a good chance that your pencil is jammed! This can be annoying, but it’s usually easy to fix.
This guide will help clear that jam and get your pencil back in working order.
Continue reading “Pencil Lead Won’t Come Out? How to Fix a Jammed Mechanical Pencil”
Multi-pens are great, but their pencil part can be fragile and prone to breaking. Don’t worry, the part is replaceable on most quality multi-pens. Here’s what you need to fix your multi-pen’s broken mechanical pencil.
Continue reading “Multi-pen Pencil Empty Or Broken? How To Fix It”
The Rotring 600 Trio is the multi-pen sold in the iconic Rotring 600 family. It’s often confused with the Rotring Newton Trio.
The Rotring 600 3 in 1 is a new model in the 600 family, modeled after the original Rotring 600 Trio and Rotring Newton Trio. The 600 3 in 1 combines two pen colors and a 0.5 mm mechanical pencil.
The Rotring Tikky is an affordable retractable ballpoint pen with a very comfortable rubber grip.