The Pen Addict 388/transcript

The Pen Addict Podcast Transcript
Episode:	388
Title:	Alligator 🐊
Release Date:	December 4th, 2019
Hosts:	Brad Dowdy Myke Hurley
Guests:	No guests this episode
Additional Information
Official page:	Episode 388
Audio File:	Audio Episode 388
Podcast page:	The Pen Addict 388
Length:	6161 min <br />1.017 h <br /> minutes
Previous Transcript	Next Transcript

Myke Hurley: From RelayFM, this is The Pen Addict, episode 388. Today's show is brought to you by ExpressVPN, Pen Chalet, and Away. My name is Myke Hurley, and I have the pleasure, as always, of being joined by the man with a plan, Mr. Brad Dowdy. It is quite pleasurable, isn't it? I mean, not just you and talking to me, but just doing this show. It is enjoyable for me. It is beneficial. One of my life's small joys, Brad Dowdy. Yeah, that's a way to put it. It's a good way to put it. So, yeah, big show today, mostly STPA.

Brad Dowdy: Oh, no, we've got a lot of new products to talk about, though.

Myke Hurley: Well, before that, yes, we have so many new things I want to get your opinion on and some things you've added in here for me as well. But this first little note is interesting. You've got an idea for next week. What are you thinking about?

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, so a couple of weeks ago, we did that big breakdown of your desk. I said I would do mine. So what about next week? We do the breakdown of Myke's desk.

Myke Hurley: Yeah, I think we can do it. And I think along those lines, the way you put this in here, we don't generally plan too far ahead. I might have the rest of the month's big ideas already rolling around in my brain. So we might have topics booked for now until the end of the year.

Desk Setup Discussion

Brad Dowdy: Well, there's only two more episodes of this year because we're taking Christmas week off.

Myke Hurley: Right. So is that two more or three more? Because we're not going to record on Christmas Day. Right. So it's Christmas week, yes. Are you sure? You sure? I might need a break. I won't even be in the country. Oh, okay. Then never mind. I'm not good to you. Well, speaking of Christmas, it's too bad that these Rotring 600 colors are not available until February of next year because they would have been at the top of my Christmas list. Our gift guide episode last week has received rave reviews, Myke. I'm not afraid to give ourselves a pat on the back for that one. It was a joyous episode with Yumi and Anna, and I got a lot of great feedback on that. I cost myself some money. And, you know, I mentioned that we would talk about these soon. So I wanted to get your feedback on this image that was sent to me on Twitter from a Japanese pen store about this launch of red and blue barrels for the Rotring 600. Give me your thoughts on this.

Brad Dowdy: I adore the red one, and I don't know why. Like, I feel like usually I would gravitate maybe more to the blue, which is a great blue, but there's something about the red, especially because, especially because they didn't change the Rotring red. Right. So all of the markings are Rotring red, like the bright red, and then they have a more muted red for the rest of the barrel, which is just like a strange decision, but the right decision. And I think it looks really great. I want one of these, so I will be keeping my eye out for when they officially launch. And it is a shame that they're not a holiday gift, especially the red one for the holidays that have been perfect.

Myke Hurley: Right, right. I'm on the opposite side of the ledger. I like the red. Some people had problems with the red for the exact things you were saying that you liked.

Brad Dowdy: That's what I think it's a bad decision to have done it, but I like it because I know that people would not like that for good reason. You don't see the branding anymore. They're the same color, but I think it looks fantastic.

Myke Hurley: Right. The idea is red ring. Like, that's what you expect to see on a Rotring, and I don't dislike it. Like, some people just dislike it, and you love it. I'm fine with it. Like, it's an okay decision. The blue one, on the other hand, I am super in love with.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, I feel like I would probably end up getting both of them, because I bet I'd see the blue and be like, oh, that's true. I've got to get it. But, like, I would buy the red sight unseen.

Myke Hurley: Yeah. Yeah, the only thing I can't quite figure out. So, this is, like, a Japanese PDF from Rotring. And I can't tell if this is the retail price that they list down at the bottom of the page. They list for one number is 3,000 yen. Then they have a 10% number that says 3,300 yen. And that's about the retail price of the 600, just the standard 600. It's like $30 ballpark. You know, give or take a few bucks, depending on where you buy it. So, if they're the same retail price, even better. But I certainly won't profess to know exactly what those numbers mean. But that's kind of the ballpark that they currently sell in. Some people were commenting that the black pencils and pens, there's also a ballpoint. The ballpoint is also part of this set as well. And it looks like there's a box where you could actually buy a pen and pencil set. But the black ones I see on the page, some people were saying those were green. And there was some type of translation somewhere in this page, which I cannot read, that alluded to the fact that it might be a green. Do you see any green in that? I see green in that. It's black. You do? Yeah.

Brad Dowdy: It is a very dark green. And the compression in the image is not helping. But now you've said it, I see that as green. Plus, that makes more logical sense that there would be a third color here, not black. Because why would they show the already available black pen on this category page? Yeah. You've got a red special, a blue special. Without showing the silver. Why would you not do a green? Apparently, Tony in the chat room says somebody in Slack translated it and said it was green too. Okay. Which is, you know, I mean, that's probably all you need. But that looks like a very, very dark, almost British racing green to me.

Myke Hurley: Yeah. I bet that's going to look better in person. If it's green. I'm probably going to win a four or three of these, Brad. I'm not going to lie. Well, you can get the 0.5 in one, the 0.7 in another, and then the ballpoint in a third. So there you go.

Brad Dowdy: I would get three mechanical pencils because I'm not interested in the ballpoint because I love them as mechanical pencils.

Myke Hurley: If I get more than one, I will get the ballpoint model. That's cool.

Brad Dowdy: I think it'd be a nice set to get all three colors and like that'd be a good set. I bet they won't sell that, but I wish that they would.

Myke Hurley: Yeah. Yeah. That'd be cool. So good. I love these and they've been rolling around the internet for a while, but we just hadn't had a chance to talk about them. And yeah, we're going to need those. So if they're available in Japan only, we will be calling in some favors, but I hope they're worldwide.

Brad Dowdy: I'd be surprised if they were Japan only.

Rotring Product Speculation

Myke Hurley: Yeah. And the imagery, like the image that it's taken from just lists rotring.com, like the base site, not the regional site. So I'm hopeful, even though they're not listed on the US site. You can't find any information about these.

Brad Dowdy: It looks like somebody's catalog, right?

Myke Hurley: Yes, exactly. Exactly. So that wasn't the only Twitter link. This is me catching up on all the Twitter links that I get sent and then like, and then have to scroll back through to remember, oh yeah, I wanted to talk about these things. This one, Myke, did you see this link from Retro 51 about the eBay sale of the Boeing tornado pen?

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, I sure did. So there was, they took a screenshot and said that a new record was shattered for a Retro 51 sale on eBay. The previous record was for $1,200 as the most expensive that they'd found. This was two Retro 51s sold for a total of $6,100. Did you buy them? Was that you? I cannot confirm. No, it wasn't me. Of course it wasn't me. Jeez. I mean, why? So they are Boeing special editions, like a white and blue acrylic, two of them in the original, where they have the original tubes. I don't know why anybody would spend that amount of money. Right. It's crazy.

Myke Hurley: But that makes my conversation about when we found the original pen addict one sold for $400. That looks like child's play now. Maybe that guy was smart in buying it at the time and he's going to go dunk on this Boeing set one day and set the all time world record. So yeah, this is crazy. Come on, right? It's crazy. So much money. I don't get it. I don't get it. Yeah. The first thing when I saw them, I was like, wow, is that some like pen makers, like acrylic pen that they made and just slapped the Retro 51 around it. But no, it's like a, it's like an official Retro Boeing type of thing.

Brad Dowdy: My assumption is they acknowledge that it was real by tweeting about it, right? Absolutely.

Myke Hurley: Yes, exactly. They would know what they built in the past. So it just, it just, I'm just curious. Like, I'm just curious about this pen now, not for any other reason than it's just, it's almost like a freak show now, right? You can't, you can't help but look at that price and go, what is happening here? So I wonder if this next one.

Brad Dowdy: Maybe I need to bust out the drawer, right?

Myke Hurley: Yeah. Bust out the drawer and, you know, make some vacation money or something like that. You might with this, this next link you put in there. I hadn't seen this before. What is, what is this link you put in here?

Brad Dowdy: The, it's an exclusive Retro 51 for the retailer Hyatt, which I'd never heard of before. And they're like, like an art supply company, but they sell kind of everything. It's called the Great Glamour. It's very clearly a Great Gatsby riff. And it's very beautiful. 300 rollerballs, art deco style, with brass accents. There's like a black and white stripes, they say, over a matte brass material. Twist top, there's normal polished brass accents, number along the top ring. I think this is a beautiful Retro 51. I have attempted to order this. The Hyatt's website leaves a lot to be desired.

Brad Dowdy: Apparently, I paid for it, but I'm getting free shipping, which I don't think is accurate. So we'll wait and see for them to come back to me on that one. Because they are doing free shipping. But my assumption would be if you lived in America, which I do not. It let me buy it. It let me say I was from the United Kingdom, but never updated my shipping. So I will wait to hear from Hyatt, I am assuming, to pay for my shipping. But I have ordered one, because I think it's one of the better looking Retro 51 specials that I've seen this year.

Myke Hurley: It's a perfect addition, right? It's executed flawlessly. Like, it's not for me. I would never buy this pin. It's not my style. But for what it is, it's 100% perfect, right? I think it looks great.

Brad Dowdy: And I'm really intrigued. How heavy is it going to be? I think that's going to be interesting. It's made of brass.

Myke Hurley: Well, I don't think it's going to be that much heavier.

Brad Dowdy: No, but it will be different.

Myke Hurley: It'll be different. And that's what I'm excited about.

Brad Dowdy: I like, because my collection is so large at this point, I'm now into the, like, I just want different ones. Like, ones that are interesting and weird to me, in some ways. Like, what was the one with the rotten-looking shell? Do you remember that one?

Myke Hurley: Chiopino.

Retro 51 Exclusive Pen

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, that's it. And I, you know, I couldn't resist that one.

Myke Hurley: Yeah, it's great.

Brad Dowdy: They make a fountain pen version of that now.

Myke Hurley: Yeah, that one came out this year. So that was the round two of that one.

Brad Dowdy: So you're on it. I have resisted. But at this point, I honestly don't know why I've resisted. Like, I don't know why I don't own a Retro 51 fountain pen. I feel like I keep saying this.

Myke Hurley: Well, now that they've modified them into a better version of what they used to be, there's no reason to not.

Brad Dowdy: Because I have an old version. I have the old version.

Myke Hurley: Yes. Yeah, you have several. And you have some old, old versions, like when they were very different than what they are today. But the new modern version fountain pen is excellent.

Brad Dowdy: So I don't know why I don't own one. I should rectify that soon.

Myke Hurley: Yeah. Maybe your shipping problem was because you had your VPN on, maybe. I think you were from somewhere else. Yeah.

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Holiday Writing Challenges

Myke Hurley: Yeah, I think I need to do a little experimenting with that as well. Because, you know, I'm into the football, Myke, as they say. The footy. Yeah, the footy. And I can't get all the matches. What's your team? It's Wolves, right? Yeah, Wolverhampton. Yeah. Wonderful. They're having another great season so far. So, yeah, it's been fun. All right. Speaking of seasons, we have the Diamine Inkvent reveal going on at penaddict.com. It's happening. It's happening. And I know a bunch of people are out there doing the reveals. And Susan has taken that up for the penaddict. And I cannot thank her enough for taking up this project. Because it is very difficult and time-consuming to do an ink sample a day. Like, it doesn't sound like a lot. But as someone who has written blog posts and put these things together, it is a monstrous amount of work. So, I just wanted to give a shout-out to Susan for offering to take this on. You can find all the links on the penaddict blog. I have an inkvent tag for everything. So, you can see them all in one place. I got to say, the one that's coming up today at 2 o'clock, it's called – what's it called? Polar Glow, Myke. It's definitely the winner so far. I mean, we're early on. You know, we have 25 inks to go. But I'm confident to say that the one that will drop today at 2 o'clock is my favorite so far.

Brad Dowdy: What color is Polar Glow?

Myke Hurley: It is a blue with, like, a pinkish-purply sheen.

Brad Dowdy: Because I really like the candy cane.

Myke Hurley: Yeah. Yeah. The candy cane is definitely my least favorite so far. Okay. So, we're on the opposite side of the ledger there. But it's good, right? It is accurately candy cane color, right? That's the color you expect, right? So, it's very cool. So, I was talking with Myke at Ink Dependence yesterday. And I didn't realize that he is doing a YouTube reveal each day of these same inks, which I imagine takes a lot of time as well. So, we'll have the link to Myke's Ink Dependence YouTube channel if you want to get video of him doing the inkvent reveal. And if there's anyone else doing these inkvent reveals, I haven't totally caught up with my pin blog RSS feeds today. I don't know if anyone else is doing them. I'd love to see them. So, send them my way. Because I know it's a lot of work. And I would like to share that out there for everyone to see. It's a fun thing to participate in this year. So, I'm very happy with that.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. It's a lot of work.

Myke Hurley: It really is. It is genuinely time-consuming. Especially, like, you're tied to a strict schedule, right? Mm-hmm. So, like, I couldn't do it. I will say up front. Like, I would fail after about a week. I would miss. And, you know, it's just how my life rolls. And I couldn't do enough ahead of time, I don't think, to, like, batch. I used to always batch blog posts and pictures and writing and all of these things. And have, you know, do, like, three things at a time. And that's been years since I've been able to, like, commit the time to batch process, like, reviews. And create things like that. So, yeah. This is a lot of work. So, I just want to make sure that everyone gets recognized for doing this. And I'd love to share it if I've missed you. So, yeah. Definitely send the links my way.

Brad Dowdy: So, I have a question. I don't know if you know this. Mm-hmm. Is Susan being legit? Is she opening one every day?

Myke Hurley: Yeah. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. She's doing them ahead of time. Good. No, no. She's doing them ahead of time. Oh, God, yes. I was going to say. No way.

Brad Dowdy: That's crazy. No.

Myke Hurley: Like, I got the first five days all in one shot. Right. To publish. No, absolutely not. That would be insane. I couldn't find the time to publish them if I was receiving them every day. Mm-hmm.

Myke Hurley: So, yeah. That's crazy. Crazy, crazy. Yeah. I'm on the Segway train. So, speaking of crazy, Myke, did you see our friend David Parker, Fig Boot on pins, do his video at Jonathan Brooks' Carolina Pin Company facility?

Brad Dowdy: Oh, yeah. The compound. I watched it today. The compound.

Myke Hurley: Wow. What did you think? You go first. I'm super jealous of the- Of their beards?

Brad Dowdy: No, of the Fig Boot video, right? Like, I wanted- Right. That's something I would have wanted to do. You know, so I gotta take my hat off to David for having the idea and then going and making it happen. Yes. Because this is something that I want to see. So, I'm pleased somebody made it. Yes. But I should have made it. But he beat us to it.

Myke Hurley: David's really good at that. He goes for it. Like, he does not mess around. He makes the big ask. And if it works, it works. And if it doesn't, it doesn't. But, like, you know, he had Neil deGrasse Tyson, right? Like, was one of his interviews. Like, he just, he goes for it.

Brad Dowdy: He is a tenacious individual.

Myke Hurley: Yes.

Brad Dowdy: Yes.

Myke Hurley: So, what did you think about this process? Because I have some thoughts. Because we got to see, basically, David walked in. The genesis of this video is David walked in with two photographs that he had, you know, either some personal attachment to or something he just found on the internet. And the task was for Jonathan to match those into a pen. And they went kind of through every step of the way. So, what did you think about this process?

Brad Dowdy: It was fascinating to see. I was surprised at how much Jonathan showed of what he does. Sure. Because I would have assumed, I mean, I'm sure that he's, that there are, you know, okay, you've got to have his skill to be able to do it. But it felt like there were a lot of, like, tricks of the trade being shown off in this video. Which, I mean, I wanted to see all of that. But it was surprising to me for anybody to share them. I mean, it's not surprising that Jonathan would because he's such a nice man. Right. But it was still like, wow, you're showing a lot about what you do. My assumption would be, from his perspective, if he does think of it this way, but this is how I at least think of it, is with a lot of things. You can show how something's done, but it doesn't mean anybody can do it. Yes. Right? Like, there is a disconnect there. But still, I loved seeing the whole process. The very coolest thing, which might be one of the coolest things I've seen in a very long time, is the way that Jonathan gets the rods out of the mold when they've been pressurized.

Jonathan's Crafting Process

Myke Hurley: We just need, we need gifts of that.

Brad Dowdy: I was thinking about making one. He, there's like in these molds, these silicone molds, and he sprays compressed air into the mold and the rod shoots up into the air and he catches it. Over and over again. He doesn't, like, so he has four in the mold and he catches each one without putting any of them down. So he ends up with four in his hand. Just, that's skill. That's skill right there. But what that shows you, though, is how much he does this.

Myke Hurley: Yes.

Brad Dowdy: Right? That he is at the point where he's realized for the milliseconds of time that it saves me, I won't even put these down. Another thing that this video showed me was I was surprised at how quickly he can make a pen. So it took two days, right? Mm-hmm. That tells you how many pens he must make if he is as backordered as he is. It's like if you say to Jonathan today, I want a pen, it could be, it'll be months until you get it, right?

Myke Hurley: I think we're at least six, if not pushing 12. I don't know. Right.

Brad Dowdy: So let's say it takes best part of a year before you'll get it. But it takes him a few days to make it. That shows how many pens he must be making. Right?

Myke Hurley: See, I kind of, yes, I thought along the same lines, and I think I thought of it differently than you, that just how long it actually takes. And what they accomplished took, say, maybe eight hours, but that was like four rods and two of them got turned into a pen. And that was like, you know, eight hours worth of work. That's a lot of work for like singular type of product. Now, I know he can batch make bigger processes and things like that.

Brad Dowdy: It is because of that, which is why it takes so long. But it was still just a surprise to me that like you can't give him money and get one in two weeks. Yes. That's not how it works. Even though he could make it in that time. Yeah. If you said go, he would have it done. But the point is you put an order in and he has so many other orders to fulfill. Yep. That it will take you a year, maybe, until you get it.

Myke Hurley: Yeah. So the thing I took away from the video was two primary things. One, Jonathan's attention to detail. When I notice someone making things, I tend to notice the smaller things. Like when he was mixing up the materials and he was pouring them from cup to cup. And then he was kind of wiping the edges with the cup. So it was like clean around the edges. And he would just do that out of habit, like every single time, instead of just kind of like splish splashing things around and things dripping. Like I noticed his particularness in the way he was handling his materials. And like, that's the person I want making my stuff, right? That they're that meticulous. Because you know, at the end of the process, if he's put all this time into it and it fails, you'll never see that product. Like he would never send out anything that hasn't met the high standards that he has for himself. And he's kind of, he talked about that a little bit in the video as well. Which like, I noticed the way he wiped the edges of the cups, like over and over again. I'm like, like, I get it. The second thing I noticed was how anxious I got once the timer went on. Yes. For, at least on the first one. On the second one, I wasn't as anxious because I'd already saw it once. And I was like, okay, they made it. But he starts a 15 minute timer when he starts mixing the first rods, which ended up being the Padre Sunset, which I think is just beautiful. Came out really good.

Myke Hurley: And so he starts this timer. And if you don't hit all these marks throughout the 15 minutes, you're basically wasting your time because your product will have to go in the garbage. And for that first pour and mix and build, I was stressed out watching it. Like my eyes, I was like affixed to the screen. I was like, I almost wish David put up a timer overlay on there. Although that probably would have added more stress to me. I was so stressed during that first 15 minutes. But Jonathan's like, man, we got a couple minutes to spare. Everything's good. We can go ahead and do this now. He was so calm and like chill. He's done this with thousands and thousands of times. So he's got it down to an exact science and you can tell. So it was a fascinating watch. So thanks, David and Jonathan, for doing that. I love seeing it.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, I was really pleased to see it. It's just a nice thing to see. There's still stuff that I want to see. I want to see the Urushi. I want to see how he does that. And maybe that's one of those things. Maybe he doesn't want to show that. I don't know. Right, right.

Myke Hurley: That's like a monstrous time lapse.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, and it's a newer thing that he's doing. There's one other thing I would have wanted. I would have wanted more slow motion shots of the pen. Yeah. Because slow motion shots of material being removed from other material was very satisfying to me. Yes. Yeah. So that was a really great video. And so thank you to David and Jonathan for putting the time and effort into showing that off. It's just a real fun thing to see.

Myke Hurley: Yep. Yep. So this next product I want to talk about, Myke, is completely random that I popped it in here because I totally forgot that this product exists. But a lot of people love this product. And I wanted to mention that the 2020 standard memorandums are available. So this is a collaboration between John Contino, which is how I saw it. I follow his work online and I saw that he posted it. And Word Notebooks, which everyone knows about Word. They've been making notebooks for a while. And this product, I don't know, it launched five or six years ago. Every year they make this tiny little thing called the Standard Memorandum, which is based off a traditional like old like jacket pocket planner type thing. And I've had these and given these away. Like I could never use this product, right? It's too small. The format doesn't fit how I like to use things. But people live for these little books and they sell out all the time. So I just wanted to kind of flag this as a note that, hey, these things are available if you're into the Standard Memorandum. You probably already found out that it was available yourself. I did have to go off the Word Notebook site to find an interior picture to share with everyone to show them what they're about if you haven't heard of the Standard Memorandum. And it's a cool little layout. But I thought it was weird that Word doesn't take a picture of the inside of the notebook on the thing. So anyway.

Brad Dowdy: Isn't that what you want to know? Kind of.

Myke Hurley: Because it's really it's a neat, lovely product. I would never use it. But I absolutely adore it. So like it's one of those weird. It's in that weird space for me. It's like I want to see this every year. And I want to stare at the pictures of it and go, ooh, I enjoy this. And let's see what fonts, you know, Contino designed for it this year. And okay. That's it. I'm done. I don't need it. Because I'll never use it. I think I've had one of these on my desk, you know, like years ago. And I was like, nope. I don't know that I ever got written in. Yeah. It's very cool.

Brad Dowdy: That product type just isn't my type of product.

Myke Hurley: It's very tiny. Like they took a picture of it next to like a tactile turn click pin. And it's almost like the click pin dwarfs it. You know, it's a weird little product. But super useful for some people. Some people swear by these. So it's very cool. I just thought I'd point that out.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, definitely.

Brad Dowdy: All right. Should we take our second break? Yeah, let's do it. All right. This episode is also brought to you by Pen Chalet. Pen Chalet have all of your favorite brands and all of their best products. We're talking about Pelican, Lamy, Pilot, Namiki, Sailor, Kafeco, Monteverde, and many more. They're an authorized dealer of all of them. Pen Chalet believe in giving you the best experience possible. They do fast, reliable customer service. They get their shipments out as soon as possible. And they do free shipments on orders of over $50 in the US and great shipping rates overseas. Pen Chalet has low prices on high quality pens and offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee. And it's not just pens. We're talking about everything you need in your stationary life. Carrying cases, pen holders, refills, ink, fountain pen converters, and so much more. And because Pen Chalet are amazing, they always have wonderful offers for Pen Addict listeners. If you go to penchalet.com, P-E-N-C-H-A-L-E-T.com and click the podcast link at the top of the website, use the password Pen Addict for this week's special offer and to get the code you need to save 10% on anything at Pen Chalet. And we have a selection of items this week, Mr. Brad Dowdy.

Myke Hurley: We have a wide and varying selection from the Conklin No-Sack. The materials on this look very cool. I haven't seen this before. It's this really pretty blue. It goes along with the silver trim. The Platinum Double Action Multi-Pen, which we've reviewed on the Pen Addict, which is a great multi-pin at a really good price. I noticed at the bottom, the Platinum President is also in here, Myke. That's kind of the bigger brother to the 3776, a little bit larger pen, a little bit different nib style. The price is really good. And they also have it in rhodium trim, which I didn't think was an option. So now I'll have to look into that a little bit further. So we'll see. There's always great stuff over at penchalet.com, especially this holiday season. So make sure you go check them out.

Brad Dowdy: Go right now, penchalet.com, click that podcast link, use the password penaddict to get your hands on these offers. Our thanks to Penchalet for their support of this show and RelayFM.

Myke Hurley: All right, Myke. We finally happened. Finally happened. Did it. The Spoke Pen is now available at spokedesign.com. We finished our Kickstarter campaign, we being Brian Conte and myself. Early, mid-November-ish. Took a few weeks to reassess, rebuild the inventory, see what we had available, and got them up on the site, including, Myke, a few new colors and configurations for the Spoke Pen since the Kickstarter launch. So I just wanted to, one, say, hey, they're available, because I know a bunch of people are asking. And two, say thank you for everyone who supported not just the Kickstarter campaign, but getting these pens launched on the Spoke Design site. The biggest problem I have right now is I don't have all these for myself. I get true enjoyment out of using this product. Obviously, I'm biased because I helped make it, but I made it around what I wanted to use. It just makes me smile, Myke. And I'm not going to lie about it. I love this pen. I'm really desperate to get the new cyan and gray colors in the Crush series with the silver trim. So if you've ordered those and your package goes missing, just email me directly, and I'll take out the one that I'm using and put it in your box because I've stolen it, because I don't get one until you get them first. So is that fair to say?

Brad Dowdy: That's very fair to say. The Classic series has the black trim, so the black clip and the black inside. The Crush series has the silver trim, silver clip, silver inside. And then you have the Jet series, which is a colored body and a matte black cap, right?

Myke Hurley: And black grips. So it's not on the outside picture, but they have black grips as well. So like the Crush grips. The Crush has the titanium grips. So yes. And then we have a special edition, the Joker. We had some left. That one sold out quickly. We only had like a dozen or 15 or so of those. This is the best one. They went quickly. They will be back. All of the products we're selling right now are going to be stock items. Like if you missed out, like I know people missed out on certain colors, sold out quicker than others. You will have a chance to buy these. It's just we're selling these as we build them. We're not selling pins and then making the pins based on your order. We're pre-building the pins, putting up the inventory, and then selling them. So the inventory will be constantly rotating. Stock levels will be changing. So just stay tuned to the site. Follow the email. Get your notifications set for anything you're interested in. And thanks again. I know Brian and I really appreciate everyone's support. The kind words we've gotten throughout the campaign about people enjoying their pins and how much they like them has truly, truly been special to us. And we really appreciate it.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. I'm really pleased to see that it's moving on.

Myke Hurley: Yep. Yep. It was time. We, you know, had a rush to get them ready. Get them ready for the holidays because we were a little bit behind on our Kickstarter. You know how that goes.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah.

Myke Hurley: Shocker. Shocker. Right?

Brad Dowdy: I've been in that situation.

Myke Hurley: Manufacturing is hard, Michael.

Brad Dowdy: Please don't. I can't. I just...

Myke Hurley: So when I talk to you at the beginning of this episode about what we'll talk about in the future, like in a couple weeks from now, we're going to be talking about journaling and planning and diarying for 2020. So we'll get... So be prepared. I'm going to give you a couple weeks to get prepared for that.

Brad Dowdy: I have to get mentally and emotionally prepared for what is going on in my life right now in regards to the physical journals that I'm producing.

Myke Hurley: Well, we won't pressure you at least until the next five questions, five seconds when I ask you a question about the theme system journal in this wonderful, glorious segment of Ask TPA. Mackie wants to know, I'm trying to get my life in order and have recently received in the mail two planner types. Number one, the theme system journal. Thank you, Mackie. Still sealed because I'm intimidated despite Myke explicitly telling me via podcast to just use it. We will elaborate on this in a couple weeks because I've been using mine still. And then the Hobonichi Techo Weeks in Houndstooth, baby. So we'll get to Mackie's questions, but great choices. This is my exact setup. So even if I... I haven't read the rest of this question yet, Mackie, but I will be talking about both of these products in depth in the coming weeks. Mackie continues. I'm relatively new to the pin hobby. A little over a year since I bought a Pilot Metro off the small box online retailer and have embraced fountain pens and inks in a bro hug. I like that. Not such a deep embrace that my wife monitors every purchase on the credit card, but a deep enough embrace that I have to check myself when I think I could just buy a Progear Vanishing Point and Lamy 2000 to see which one I like the best. This all seems random, but it does have a point. When I ramp up that courage to crack my theme system, I'm not worried about what I'll use to write in it. I have a lot of great options that I enjoy writing with. My question is here. For my Hobonichi 2020 weeks, I need a pen. I've considered a lot of different options from a Vanishing Point for clickability all the way to just a normal Jetstream for reliability. I keep coming back to the Tactile Turn bronze bolt action as a potential EDC, but since I haven't really explored the world of machine pens and gel refills, I'm worried I'll make a $100 mistake. I'm looking for something I can throw in a pant pocket or a bag, will be reliable when I need it to be, is interesting and fun to write with, and if I fall off the planter wagon, will still be in the regular rotation because it's awesome. I've been looking at things in the $100 range like the Tactile Turn and the Mark 1, but I'm definitely open to stretching the budget when it feels right. So, after all that long-windedness, what's your go-to planter pen? Is there a good way or a good place to pre-test refills before committing to a machine pen body? Is there something obvious I'm overlooking for an EDC planter pen that will work in the supermarket as well as the cube farm I work in? Finally, is the Schmidt Easy Flow 9000 that comes with a Tactile Turn 5.1 version a good refill? Thanks for your help. So, big question, but it boils down to simply this. I need a good EDC pen for my planner, for my Hobonichi Touch-Up. So, that's Tomoe River Paper, and right now, I'm using a spoke pen with a Uniball DX gel refill, .38 blue-black. I'm using a Pilot Hitec C, .3 blue-black. Both of those are gel pens, and I'm using a fine-nibbed fountain pen by Namiki Milky Way. So, you'll notice with those choices, I'm looking for small writing, because this is not a big format planner. The 2020 weeks is not, and I'll dig into more of what I'm using it for later. But with this planner, I'm okay with using your basic ballpoints, like the Jetstream, or your basic gel pens, like the ones I mentioned, or Zebra Souracic Clip. I would not overthink what body you're going to put those refills in, especially at first, if you're not sure. You can get a wide sampling of refill types for, you know, $10 to $15. Test those out in the basic model pens, and then we can determine if you like the tactile turn. Well, you can get the bolt action with the Schmidt Easy Flow is a great refill. You can get the tactile turns that fit the Pilot G2, which also fits the Pilot Juice. If you have, if you go with the one that fits the Easy Flow, it fits the Jetstream SXR. So, we can answer all of these questions, and I know I'm not giving you a single direct answer to this, because I don't think you should just like drop into the tactile turn and see until you figure out what pen type you want, and then we can figure it out. Maybe it's a fountain pen that you want because it's a Tomoe River paper, and that works great with fountain pens, and the ink looks very cool. So, maybe the answer is like a Kaweco AL Sport, which is like $60, $70, and you can use some cool ink colors, and it's a good throw-it-in-your-pocket EDC type pen. Or, you might end up falling in love with a .5mm Jetstream that you buy, like that's $3, and maybe that's the one that ends up working the best. So, yeah, I think I would work on trying to figure out which refill you want the most, because you've listed a lot of different options here. Then we can pick a pen to go straight into it. I wouldn't necessarily go right to the tactile turn or the Mark I and figure out what pen you want best.

Brad Dowdy: Please use the theme system, John, if you own it. Yeah, totally. It is built to help you in that regard.

Theme Planner System

Brad Dowdy: You're never locked into anything, right? If you have one yearly theme, you have four yearly theme pages, so you can change your mind. And also, everything is by your own filling, right? You decide the system. If you want to change the system halfway through, change the system. There are more than enough pages to allow you to do that. So, if you own it, use it. That is what I will say on that matter, please. But also, thank you for buying one, but use it. Yes. And we'll talk more about those. It's no good if it's just sealed. It's not helping you.

Myke Hurley: That's right. That's right. But we'll talk about both those planners in specifics in probably a couple of weeks. Great. Because that's exactly what I'm using.

Brad Dowdy: Perfect time.

Brad Dowdy: So, I have a question from Matthew. I've been listening to the current shows for about two years now, and I've also been working my way through the archives at the same time. I've grown to realize that my fountain pen preferences are more aligned with Myke's. I'm a lefty. I prefer broader nibs. I've seen Brad's various top five lists, but I don't think I've ever heard Myke's top five lists. My question is, what are Myke's top five fountain pens, including nib size? I'd like to hear what his favorites are, not what he recommends. As an addendum to this question, I'd also like to know Myke's top five fountain pens, including nib size, under $100, as his price range is more suitable for me.

Myke Hurley: So, you don't have to go all the way here. I put this in to give you into something to chew on and then maybe give a few things that you, you know, everyone hears what I say. They can go and reference the things that I write, but it's not like, hey, what is Myke like? Click. And here's the thing. So, what are your favorite fountain pens, including nib size, that you're using?

Brad Dowdy: My problem is the under $100. That's where I are about.

Myke Hurley: That's a tough category.

Brad Dowdy: I just don't own enough pens in that category, under $100. In the under $100 category, I would recommend Twisby. Like, there are multiple Twisby pens that I would suggest, right? Like, the Eco is under $100, isn't it? Yes. As well as the Go. Oh, it's under $30. Yeah, it's like $30 or whatever, right? And what are the Diamond Mini and stuff like that?

Myke Hurley: The 580s are around $60.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. So, Twisby. Look at Twisby for under $100. That's what I would recommend there personally for pens that not only I like, but that I still use, right? Because I could also say, I really like Kaweco. They're under $100. But I don't use them anymore.

Myke Hurley: Do you have a go-to Twisby nib size?

Brad Dowdy: 1.1 stub. Yeah, it's a great one. The Twisby stub nib, turn me on to stub nibs. They make a fantastic stub nib. And it is the nib that I recommend to anyone buying a cheap Twisby because you make it a special pen. So, if you don't own one of those, 100% go in that direction. Outside of that, right? Like, okay. We're talking the Pro Gear, right? Get a Pro Gear. If you don't own a Pro Gear, get a Pro Gear. If you want what I like. And also, my favorite Pro Gear nib. Well, nib 4A Pro Gear. My favorite Sailor nib is the Zoom nib. And if you like broad nibs, you're going to frigging love that because it's like the broadest nib that I've ever used that can still remain usable. Right. Yeah. Because you can go to a music nib if you want, but that thing, you can't use that. You can't write with that. Yeah. But you can write with a Zoom nib. I do all the time. Like, it puts down a lot of ink, but it's a lot of fun. I mean, other stuff. I mean, when you start getting into more of my, like, top fives, you then start moving into the acrylics, which is, like, super expensive pens, right? So you get your, like, can of layer pens, right? I own four. I'm looking at them right now. And, like, they're among my favorite fountain pens that I own. And then Platinum as well. The Platinum 3776 with a, what do I have on mine? Because that's the favorite. I've tried a couple. And my favorite, a broad, the Platinum 3776 broad is just absolutely fantastic. And I've tried mediums and they don't work for me as well. I really love the broad nib on the Platinum 3776.

Myke Hurley: Yeah. Platinum makes a great broad nib. Yep. I mean, all the Platinum nibs are great, but especially, like, I especially like the broad nib. So, yeah. Very cool.

Brad Dowdy: Also, I would, personally, I would skip Sailor's broad.

Myke Hurley: Yeah, I don't know that I've ever used one.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, I would go, I mean, Sailor's medium is very nice. It's very comfortable, even for someone who prefers broad. But I would always go with Zoom over broad in Sailor.

Myke Hurley: That makes sense. A little more character, a little more variance. Yeah. Yeah. That's why you choose, like, the stub for the Twisby, right? Exactly. It's just enough to be different.

Brad Dowdy: Yep. Another favorite of mine, which is not fair, but I'm going to say it anyway, because it is one of my very favorite fountain pens is the Pilot M90.

Brad Dowdy: But you can't get it. I mean, you can, but you kind of can't at the same time. Yeah.

Myke Hurley: It's a favorites list, Myke, not a recommendation list. So it's allowed.

Brad Dowdy: That's a good point. It was a favorites. It is a favorites list. So I'm only listing stuff that you can, in theory, get. Because another, like, my personal favorite fountain pens is the Arushi pen that Jonathan Brooks made for us.

Myke Hurley: That's funny. When I watched that video today, I went and got that pen out because I hadn't been using it recently. That sits on my desk always. That's great.

Brad Dowdy: But that's my, I love it because it's my pen that Jonathan made for me as a gift and it's special. But yeah, I guess I think that's it. Yeah. I mean, obviously I love sailors, right? I love the King of Pens. I love the Pro Gears. That's my absolute jam. But so I hope that that has been helpful. Oh, also get Alami Safari. Freaking love that pen.

Myke Hurley: You know, I love that pen so much. I'm, yeah. I have lots to say on that. Get Alami Safari.

Brad Dowdy: If you don't own one already, Matthew, like that is again, like another $100 pen that I choose to use. Even though I now own pens that are like five times more expensive than that.

Myke Hurley: Like that is a fantastic pen. And your grip works fine with the mold grip section. I know everyone's grip is different.

Brad Dowdy: And they have left-handed nibs. I've yet to use mine. That's true. I'm keeping it for a special Alami that will come my way in the future. But they have left-handed nibs, but I've had no problem with their medium. And that's what I would get, by the way, a medium nib in Alami Safari. It's thick enough because it's German, not Japanese.

Myke Hurley: Yes, they're very juicy. Juicy nibs. All right. Thanks, Myke. Look at me. Look at you. Look at you. All right. Shawnee B. Good says, any recommendations for a pocketable multi pen? I absolutely love my Kalito. The high-tech C refills are the bomb. Twist to select and knock activated pens always seem to open in my pocket. Are there any great options with a refill as nice as the Kalito? The answer is no. I believe the Kalito is the best. The Uniball multi pen. I forget the exact name. Style Fit. That's a very, very good option. Like it's Kalito and Style Fit are one and one A. The mechanism is very similar. The refills are a little bit. Yeah, they're about the same. Same length, same diameter, which is to say they're both skinny and small. You will go through a lot of gel ink if you're using those. If you're not, if you want to step up the game from the Kalito and the Style Fit, I think you're looking at two different types of pens. One is the Zebra Charbo X, which is a multi pen. And that Zebra makes, it's got a very nice twist mechanism that, you know, it just, it's got this, it's Japanese, right? It's like this wonderful Japanese technology that you use it and you go, oh yeah, that's really nice. And then the other one in that same price range, these are like in the $60, $70 price range is the Lamy 2000. And those take, both of the Charbo and the 2000 take D1 refills. So those are a little bit less enjoyable than, and less variants.

Brad Dowdy: That Lamy 2000 multi pen exists. It's such a good pen. All the time. But it is so freaking cool because of the way that you change the color. You just turn the pen, right? And it changes it. And then like, so whatever color is facing up and when you click, it will change. That is a super cool mechanism that they have.

Myke Hurley: It's a great mechanism.

Brad Dowdy: I remember when you bought one, didn't you buy it? Doesn't yours say like West Germany on it or something?

Myke Hurley: Yeah. One of those, was it the multi pen one that I got? I think it was the multi pen. I think it's the multi pen one. Yeah. Yeah. So it has the West Germany stamp on it from the thing. And I paid like 50 bucks for it. And even like the new ones are only like 60 bucks. And the best thing about the 2000 and the Charbo is that neither of them are overly wide. Like they have a traditional feeling barrel. Which multi pens can sometimes go the wrong direction of getting too wide. And the, that causes the refills to come out at an angle because of the, the way they have to travel out of the tip in the front of the pen. So those are my four recommendations. The Colito and the style fit in the under $20 gel pen range. And then the Charbo X and Lamy 2000 in the like 60 plus range. You can't go wrong with any of those. They're all great pens.

Brad Dowdy: All right. We've got a few more. We've got a handful more questions to do, but let's thank our final sponsor for this week's episode. And that is Away. Away creates thoughtful products built for the way modern travelers see the world. They start with the perfect suitcase. Now they offer a range of essentials to make your travels more seamless. Holiday season is coming. It can be a nightmare to travel around during the highest peak travel season, but Away's products are designed to work and fit together. So your travel is smoother for the holidays and beyond. Now I love my Romanian family. I love them. We're going to Romania for Christmas. Getting off a plane landing in Romania is an absolute nightmare because everyone wants to get off that plane first, everybody and everybody has bags that they have in the overhead. Nothing is checked because everyone wants to be first to get out of the plane. Right. Like that is just a thing. Being able to have my Away carry on right there when I need it means that I can also be one of the first people of that plane. That is the hardest thing about traveling for me over the holidays is getting off the plane. So I'm always happy to have my Away there because I can move quickly through the hordes of people that push off the plane. It's kind of hilarious. Everyone has a unique travel style. That is why Away offers a range of suitcases, an array of colors, sizes and materials. So whoever you are and whatever you need to pack, whether it's gifts, comfy clothes, holiday treats or more, Away has the luggage to work, how you travel and they all come with a TSA approved combination lock that keeps your belongings safe. Away suitcases are designed to last a lifetime. You get a 100 day trial on everything as well so you can know if it's right for you. Plus free shipping within the US, Europe, Canada and Australia too. I love that. They ship all over the place Away. For $20 off any suitcase or bag, go to awaytravel.com slash penaddict and use the promo code penaddict at checkout. That is awaytravel.com slash penaddict, promo code penaddict during checkout for $20 off any suitcase or bag. I would like to make a personal recommendation before we finish this ad today for a product that I found and bought with my own money from Away's website, which I absolutely adore. It's a new carry-on size that they have. It's called the Daily Carry-On with Pocket. It is a completely different type of carry-on bag. It has like this like folding like concertina thing in the middle of all this organization. It's what I use when I travel now instead of a backpack. I do not use backpacks anymore. This is what I use as my kind of like put all my stuff in bag that I'm going to take on the plane. Friggin love this thing. It's got a pocket on the front to put stuff in, pockets on the inside. Really great organization. Check it out. Super cool. Thanks to Away for the support of the show.

Myke Hurley: Yeah. I need to check that out. I'm a big Away fan myself. To change my game. Yeah. We'll save my Away story for next time because it could get a little lengthy as well. But next time they're up, I'll have a little story to tell. How about that?

Brad Dowdy: All right. Fibber says, what can I use as an agitator? Every time I see this question, I think it says alligator. Alligator. So what can I use as an alligator in an ink converter that does not come with one?

Myke Hurley: I put this question in here because I don't have a definitive answer and I thought maybe the listeners could help. My only thoughts are that you could probably find stainless steel ball bearings in various sizes from hardware stores. I don't know what the recommended is, but I would think it would have to be at a minimum stainless steel. So nothing is happening within the ink while it's in the barrel. So I would love to hear if anyone else has any tips and why you would want to do this anyway. Like I get it maybe with like shimmering because it might help, you know, mix up the ink a little bit more. But I always got turned off by the sound. Like when Pilot does that with like the Con 40 or whichever model there use the agitators and it's never my favorite thing because I was like, what's that clicking noise? And it kind of bugs me, but I could see where it would be useful. So that's my first thought. So I don't know anything outside of that what I could recommend.

Brad Dowdy: A tiny ball bearing.

Myke Hurley: You got to be able to buy some like stainless steel ball bearings like pretty simply. I guess so. You poke one in there, but you got to get them just the right size. Yeah. I mean, they make them that small.

Brad Dowdy: But like, do you not like, but it's got to not fall out though, right?

Myke Hurley: Well, yeah, you're going to have to be careful if you're using a converter that's not made for that. Yeah. I mean, of course, but that's why, like, I'm sure you have to buy them in like a quantity of a hundred. Why is it that important? It'll be covered. I mean, I don't find them to be necessary, but some people like them just to.

Brad Dowdy: What is the thinking? That it keeps the ink mixed?

Myke Hurley: Yeah. And, you know, keep it from getting, you know, I don't know, stuck at the top or dried out or something.

Brad Dowdy: It's a little extra movement in the converter. I guess it could be good for like ink that has stuff in, you know, like glibbery flakes or whatever, I guess, maybe.

Myke Hurley: Right. But I just got a good violent shake anyway. Yeah. So, yeah.

Brad Dowdy: The tiny badge asks, will I ever be satisfied with the pens that I own? Will I always want more? Yes. I love this question. Yes, you will always want more. That's why you're here. You're listening to this show because of that. Yeah.

Myke Hurley: Well, I don't disagree with the will I always want more? Yes. I think you will be satisfied with the pens your own because I'm coming to that realization now.

Brad Dowdy: Well, I think we are both in that state of our addiction, but it doesn't mean we're going to stop buying them. It just means we buy less.

Myke Hurley: Yes. It's definitely more considered purchases these days. So, I think you will hit a satisfaction point. Absolutely.

Brad Dowdy: But the thing with that, we are both in this too, we spend more money now, but we buy less things.

Myke Hurley: Yes. Yeah. It's a little bit of a natural progression. It's absolutely unnecessary. You don't need to spend the stupid money that we've both spent on pens, especially recently. It's not necessary at all. So, I think you can be satisfied with anything. I know. Right? So, that's why I'm more satisfied than ever because I found like the one, the one pen that, I mean, which doesn't preclude me from buying more pens, which, you know, well, when I answer the next question, you'll see that I'll probably be making purchases sooner than later.

Brad Dowdy: So, our next question is from Warehouse 40, will you be at the Philly Pen Show in 2020?

Myke Hurley: I will be. Yes. So, that'll be my first time at the Philly Pen Show. And I have no expectations other than to just go to the show. When is the Philly Pen Show? January 16th, 17th, 18th. Don't hold me to that, but ballpark, whatever that weekend is, right around there. So, I'll be attending. I will not have a knock table. I will not have a pen act event. I will be a normal pen show attendee for the weekend. And I thoroughly look forward to this experience. This will be kind of my first time since, you know, my first pen show or two, like back in 2012 where I was going and didn't have to work during the show. So, it should be fun. I did this on purpose. Like, I said, what, sometime earlier this year that next year I wanted to do that, like pick out a show or two to just go to and enjoy. And that's the first one. And hopefully there's more next year. Probably will be.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, I'm sure. Lavaz asks, when you say a fountain pen ink behaves, what exactly do you mean?

Myke Hurley: This, I, yeah. So, there's not, like, I don't use very strict terminology very often. And sometimes I generalize and to say, hey, this ink behaves. But there's a lot that kind of goes into that. It means I'm probably using good paper and the ink is not spreading. It's not feathering. It's drying in a reasonable time frame, like 20 seconds or whatever. And that it also cleans well from a pen. Like, it can fall into a lot of these categories. It's just kind of a general term to say, hey, I had a pleasurable experience when I wrote with this ink because it acted well on the paper. Even though it could be the paper's fault in a lot of situations. And that it cleaned well when I was ready to clean out my pen and change into a different ink. So, it's just kind of a general term I use to say that, hey, this ink played nicely with my pen, my nib, the paper I chose to use, which let's not forget that that's a massive, massive category of things that could go wrong with an ink. And then that it cleaned well. So, it was just kind of a catch-all phrase for me that I was happy with it.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. I would just, for me, behaving is just, please don't smear too much and don't, like, explode out of the pen. Right. That's kind of it for me.

Myke Hurley: Right. So, it's a personal term, right? It's like a dry, I don't want it to be too wet.

Brad Dowdy: You know? Yeah. It's like, it is, I think the behaving is very much a, does the pen do, sorry, does the ink do what you want it to do? And that 100% differs from person to person.

Myke Hurley: Yep. Absolutely.

Brad Dowdy: All right. Finally today, a question comes from Jay Casabona. It looks like the 1911 Standard and the Pro Gear Slim are about the same size. Do they feel the same? I wasn't a fan of the Slim Pro Gear and opted for the regular sized one. They do not feel the same. They do not feel the same. They do not feel the same. The Pro Gear really does feel a lot chunkier than the Slim.

Myke Hurley: Yes. Like, I've mentioned that I've converted myself to only, for the most part, only buying the regular size now.

Brad Dowdy: I'm one of the only people that I have ever known that likes Pro Gears that is happy with both.

Myke Hurley: Mm-hmm. But... See, I'm happy with both 1911s. I like the 1911 Standard as much as the Large. They feel, they have that same difference in feel. They do feel very different. Yeah. The nib's bigger on both of them, but I like the 1911 Standard more than I like the Pro Gear Slim. Like, I prefer not to have a Pro Gear Slim if I have a choice. Mm-hmm. You don't always have a choice if you, like, really, really want a particular pen. Um, but I prefer the Pro Gear regular, leaps and bounds. If they, if I have an option in both, it's not a consideration, even at the, even at the more expensive price point. With a 1911, I will consider which one because I do like the 1911 Standard. Um, so yeah, like there, there is, you know, appearances can be deceiving on that pen because it's a little bit wider. Both sizes are a little bit wider and a little bit bigger nib and have different nib material. One, the, the slims and standards are 14K and the larger ones are 21K nibs. A lot larger.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, but they really, they really do feel different in the hand and I do recommend that if you have the ability to try and, try and hold before you buy, if you're not sure.

Myke Hurley: I think out of all four of these pens, so the two size 1911s and the two size Pro Gears, the regular size Pro Gear feels the best out of all four. I will say that.

Brad Dowdy: I agree with you. Mm-hmm. But the, the, the reason I own so many slims is because that tends to be what the special, like the weird specials are made out, are made, they tend to be slims, which is why I own way, I only own like two or three standard and then like a bunch more none. Like the same.

Myke Hurley: Yeah, it's a big price point issue there.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. Because you need more material, right? Yeah. Yeah. To make the big, the bigger one. Yep. If you would like to send in a question for a future episode of the show, just send out a tweet with the hashtag AskDPA or you can email longer questions to hello at penaddict.com. Brad twitches every Tuesday and Thursday, 10 a.m. Eastern is my memory.

Myke Hurley: Yes, I was on yesterday and will be on tomorrow.

Brad Dowdy: Twitch.tv slash penaddict. Of course, Brad will always tweet when he's going live and he is at dowdyism on Twitter, penaddict on Instagram. I am imike, I-m-y-k-e. Y-w-y. I am w-y-k-e. Thanks to ExpressVPN, Pen Chalet and Away for their support of this show. Go to knock.co and load up on your holiday gifts.

Myke Hurley: Yes, got some kits built. Yeah. Get some extra goodies in your purchase there. So go check those out.

Brad Dowdy: Very nice. Oh, look at those. The originals kit, green kit, big storage kit. I like big storage and I cannot lie. We'll be back next time. Until then, say goodbye, Brad. Goodbye, Brad.