Editing The Pen Addict 667/transcript (section)

== Review of the Colotino Pen ==

* Coming up. Coming up soon. So, the Colotino, Myke, if you are on the stationery internet, you've probably seen this going around. It's fun when companies, like, send out a product to, like, all the reviewers and all the pen influencers. And we all kind of post it, like, around the same time. I don't know why. I get the biggest kick out of that. And I always have to, like, make some kind of joke about it because I think it's funny. But it's also good because every person who tries out a pen has their own opinions because, like we're talking about in the stub nib conversation, I have a certain visual that I want to see in the nib. And with the Colotino, I can't say. I just should call it the Colopinto now. That's going to bother me every time. And it's also going to get too confusing. So, let's just let everyone forget everything that we've been talking about for the last few minutes. The Colotino, you know, it is a stunning pen. Like, but in the end, I'll, like, go ahead and work backwards from here. This ended up being a form of a function pen. And I think that's very much something to consider. Like, we talked about the Agiotto, their pocket pen, you know, a few weeks ago and how, like, I really, really liked it. But I don't know that I'm actually going to enjoy using it that much. Like, it's a very particular pen. The Colotino falls into that same category. If you look at this pen and it's sitting there on a desk and it's capped, you might think, like, this is, like, a really, really cool pen. Like, I think it is. And you uncap it and it's like, yeah, this looks great. Like, it's kind of, you know, got the, my particular model, and we'll have a link in the show notes to my review, is in a full brass model. They make an acrylic barrel model that uses a brass grip section. And I'm going to relate to that. I'll circle back around to that here in a little bit. But what I, I like the style and shape and the design. I like pocket pens, right? So, it's just a very cool, small, nice fountain pen.
* But it's not a good writer for me. And I think it's not going to be a good writer for a lot of people because it has this massive step down from the brass barrel into the grip section. So, it's a triangular barrel, which looks great. And when you design a triangular shape into a cylindrical shape, you end up with various, you know, peaks and flats around that connection. Right? So, if you're like me and have a traditional grip, my grips kind of run up the flat sides. But they're still kind of like a big edge, even on the flats. And then if you have a little bit of an off grip, you really get into these huge peaks of the triangular barrel. And it's just an uncomfortable situation between the grip and the barrel. Like the step down is really large. So, you either have to grip it really, really low. Which if you do that, you still kind of touch the flat. Or you come all the way up on the flat. One of the things I enjoy, and I just, I didn't want to put too many more pictures. But if you go to like the Colo product page for the Tino fountain pen, there's like someone holding it like way up in the barrel on the flat. Like way above the grip section. And then there's another person like holding it like way down on the nibs. Like they don't even know where to hold it. And I found that to be kind of humorous when I was looking at the product shots. It's like, yeah, they don't even know how to hold this pen.
* So, all that's fine. Like maybe you can work around that. Maybe you can't. But the issue, the bigger issue I had is the length of the pen unposted and posted. Neither of those hit the sweet spot for me. So, unposted it's too short. And posted it's too long. Which is like really hard, really difficult to do.
* Unposted. So, like you take a Kaweco Sport that a lot of us are familiar with. You can uncap that and it hits in a certain area in your hand. And everyone's hands are different. Everyone's hand sizes are different. I have very, very average hands. And the end of the barrel unposted does not come up over. Like I just call it the cusp of my hand. I don't even really know what that little, you know, that edge between your thumb and forefinger. Right there in that gap. So, it kind of sticks in there, if you will. Right? It like hits your edge of your hand. And like I could pick it up and write a quick note. But I'm not going to write like sentences like that. So, you take that and it's like, oh, well, I need to use it posted. Which is totally fine for short barrel pins. And it puts it into a length that's a little bit too long visually. But the challenge with this particular model, the brass one, it now, your brass cap throws off the balance of the pin. It backweights it. So, I don't know. I'm really concerned. Like the writing experience seems secondary with this pen. The last little tidbit that bugged me. And this is the follow through from the stub nib conversation. The connection between the cap when you post it and the barrel looks so strange. Like it is really visually jarring to where I look at it all the time. It's a round into a flat. Yes, nice. And it leaves a gap. So, it's like round, flat posts, triangular edge, straight edge. It's very jarring to me visually.
* So, in the end, like I don't know who this pen is for.
* And like my recommendation was like, you know, you may like this and it might be perfect for you. But I would just implore you to try it because it's going to feel a little bit awkward.
* Circling back on the acrylic portion. So, this brass barrel is about 69 grams. Pretty heavy. I didn't find it to be overly heavy. Like if you like a brass pen, like you're not going to think this is outrageous. You're going to, your expectation that it's going to have some weight to it and it does. It's not ridiculous. Except when you post it, it's unbalanced. The acrylic barrel, I was curious. I didn't get to try the acrylic.
* And I was wondering, did the, does the acrylic overlay like a brass sleeve on the interior? And as best as I can tell by the weight differential, it doesn't. So, the acrylic, you almost might be able to work around some of the grip section because of the weight of the brass. Just like it, like gravity pushes it down, right? So, it's going to push it into your hands and push it into your fingers. So, when you post the acrylic, it's going to be much more airy, much lighter.
* And I don't know that the step down from the section is going to be as challenging. It's still going to be there, right? But, like, I talk about a pen like the Secure Picma Micron. Like, it has, like, a really edgy step on it where your fingers hit. But it's lightweight, right? So, you're not getting that gravity pushing everything into your hand and your fingers. And your hand fighting back against the weight to, you know, rein in the balance and get the proper writing form. So, the acrylic could be nice. It's about a third of the weight. It was, what, 20, 27 grams or something like that? Yeah. Yeah. Oh, 21 grams. There's even a, there's a 21 grams. But it's the same price as the brass one. Yeah. So, acrylic and aluminum. Yeah. Acrylic is 21 grams. There's an aluminum barrel, which could be good. It's 27 grams. And the brass is 69. All of them the same price, which I did find interesting. But I kind of want to, I'm going to try the acrylic. Like, next time I go to a pen show, just kind of feel it and see if it's a little bit better in the grip section. But I don't really find this one to be, like, a usable, like, long-term writing pen. Like, I'm not going to, I'm not going to journal with this pen because it is just too heavy and too uncomfortable. And, like, the design is just kind of broken for me outside of the initial capped laying on the desk aesthetic, which looks spectacular. So, you don't want to spend money on a pen you don't use, though. So, I would definitely hold off on this pen until you can, you can try it. So, interesting concept. The acrylic barrel would solve a lot of the problems that you have. But it wouldn't solve the visual issue. But I feel like it could probably solve, like, the weight when posted issue. Mm-hmm. But is it worth it?
* This is a pen I actually really want to see a version 2 of. Right. Like, can they, is there a change they're willing to make? Like, and this is a design, like, this is made by, like, a designer in his design firm, right? So, maybe this is there. They're a thing and they're only shot at this. But, like, if they're going to make, like, a pen whose functionality equals its form, like, I think it needs a revision. Right? Just something has to give. Because, like, it's got, it's got, it's a good concept. It just doesn't work as a writing instrument compared to, like, literally every other pen I own. Right? Like, I'm not going to choose it, even though it looks cool as heck on my desk. Right? Mm-hmm. What's the point of that? Yeah, it looks nice when it's not in use. Mm-hmm. Which is weird. I don't mean that in a bad way, but, like, it does. Exactly. It looks really nice when it's not in use. Yeah. When I say that, like, it is, that's not a negative. Like, this is a sick looking pen. Yeah. But I'm not going to make the choice to use it when I have options. All right. This episode is brought to you in part by our friends at the St. Louis Pen Show. If you love the feel of cursive writing with a fountain pen or documenting your thoughts and ideas through journaling, or hey, maybe you just like to doodle, the 2025 St. Louis Pen Show is the place for you. It's from Thursday, June 26th through Sunday, June 29th. And this year, their Friday night event includes a vintage pen panel, a pen tasting, and a free dessert party. There are some exciting new classes for 2025, including writing with Quill. You can also learn copper plate, cursive, flourishing, bookbinding, letterpress, and card making. That's so much stuff to do. I love that. There will be classes on the four types of journaling and a class on celebrity signatures and how to make yours extra special. Or you can sit in on the significance of writing with Brian and Lisa Anderson. There are over 20 classes over four days. That is something for everyone. So you're probably thinking, oh, man, this sounds so good. How do I get there? The St. Louis Pen Show is at the Sheraton Westport Lakeside Chalet on the beautiful Westport Plaza. There's plenty of free parking, loads of restaurants, and it's just 10 minutes from the airport. You can also get a special pen show room rate of $143 with breakfast included. There will be 95 vendors from 42 different states at the show, including Sailor, Pens Empire, Retro 51, and Specialty Hues, as well as Artisan Pens and Pencils from Countrymade, Heinz, Derail Pens, and Magnolia, and so many more. Go and check it out for yourself by looking at the St. Louis Pen Show website at stlpenshow.com. You can buy your tickets at $10 per day admission, $20 for a weekend pass, or $30 for a trader pass for all show access. For a fun-filled and educational weekend, don't miss the St. Louis Pen Show this June. Visit stlpenshow.com for all the information and tickets. That's stlpenshow.com. Our thanks to the St. Louis Pen Show for their support of this show and all of Relay. Multiple shout-outs here, and we're going to get to something special for this show. But I like it when shows, and St. Louis is a prime example here, put the emphasis on the class stuff up front. A lot of us who think about this, yeah, we know we're going to be able to go shopping, and we're going to be able to see some awesome stuff. But leaning into that as a prime focus of the event, it just makes me want to go. It makes me feel like the show has a really good perspective on an entire experience, rather than just a shopping experience. I think that's important these days. One of the other things that the St. Louis Pen Show has historically done is they collaborate with KWZ to make an ink. And this year, it is the St. Louis 314 Blues mic. So that's the area code. It's a color that represents a lot of the community, but it's really based around a lot of the music that has come from the area. So it's a really good combination and collaboration for an ink. I like that they continue to do, if they switch ink vendors, it would be fine. But I like that it's a KWZ ink every year. Because, well, one, I like KWZ inks, but it's very consistent. Like, they're doing a thing. They're doing it well. And they're doing it every year. And this year is just adding to the color palette of the previous things that they've done. It's a really nice bright blue with great shading. And it's just super cool. I like how on their Instagram page, which we'll have a link to, you know, not only is Myke, Myke and Kovieck's work spectacular, they put the little mood board up there on all the reasons why this color is awesome. So go check that out. And I've got a sample of it. I inked it up yesterday.
* And I am enjoying it and using it for show notes today.