Editing The Pen Addict 462/transcript (section)

== Sponsorship Break ==


'''Myke:''' All right. Let's go thank our friends over at Pan Chalet for the support of this show. They have everything that you're going to need from all of your favorite brands. Whether you're looking for roller balls, ballpoints, mechanical pencils, fountain pens, inks, pen holders, cases, refills, converters. No matter what it is, they've got it. And you can find brands like Lamy, Sailor, Kaweco, Pilot, Monteverde, Estabrook, many, many more. And they're an authorized dealer of all of them. Pen Chalet are always adding new styles of pens and new products to the site. You're going to find stuff there every time you go. And they're also doing their best to offer discounts twice a month and close out specials every two weeks as well. So you're going to find fantastic prices on these wonderful ranges of products. Pen Chalet has low prices and high quality. And they also offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee. They want you to be happy. And something they do for this is giving free shipping on orders of over $50 in the United States with great shipping rates internationally as well. So go right now to penchalet.com. That's P-E-N-C-H-A-L-E-T.com. And click the podcast link at the top of the website. Enter the password penaddict and you'll get your hands on this week's special offer. And the code that you need to save 10% on anything at any time at Pen Chalet. Brad, what's catching your eye this week?

'''Brad:''' Right off the jump, the Conklin Duraflex demonstrator at a greater than 50% off price point is pretty cool. You get a really interesting nib with that for a price you can be willing to experiment with. It's really fun. You scroll down a little bit further. And I think this is probably going to go quickly. The cross-peerless Star Wars rollerball. I think this is the Darth Vader model.

'''Brad:''' It's practically like closeout price. It's kind of stunning. And Myke, they have something in here that they pop up from time to time. Ron does. The Pen Chalet seals and wax sets are a really, really good price. They're on discount right now. And if you're into that letter writing and making them look all fancy and special, this is a really, really good way to get into some different stamps and some different waxes at a really good price. Last thing, Myke, this is one of those, I've said it a thousand times before, how these pens tempt me. The Pelican ballpoints. They have the turquoise white ballpoint in here. It's just awesome looking. And I don't know if it's necessarily for me, but this looks like an awesome pen for somebody out there. I know. Like, it looks like an awesome gift. It's, I don't know. It looks amazing. This is a really, really cool pen. And it's at an unbelievable price. So, yeah, check them out.

'''Myke:''' So, you want to go and check it out for yourself right now? Go to penshalet.com. That's P-E-N-C-H-A-L-E-T dot com. Click the podcast link at the top of the website. Use the password of a pen addict. And you'll get that 10% code and also all of those special offers. Our thanks to Pen Chalet for their continued support of this show and Relay FM.

'''Brad:''' So, we had some good banter in our Twitch chat yesterday. I've been on Twitch a lot, Myke. Going all in on Twitch. I've noticed that. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. We're almost a partner. So, yeah. We're almost there. Oh, you're nearly there? We're going to work on that application suit. Yeah. Maybe this week. Maybe next week. Something like that. So, yeah.

'''Myke:''' Yeah, buddy. That's awesome. Yeah, yeah. Fingers crossed for you, Brad. Fingers crossed. Thank you. I know it's not an easy thing to get to.

'''Brad:''' It's not. And I'm working at it. So, we're going for it. So, it's close enough to just put the pedal to the metal and see what happens. But it's also... One of the reasons I really like it is because we can come up with topics for the show. I was like, hey, we're doing the show a day early, which means I have to prepare a day early, which means I am not ready to write the show. What do y'all want to know? Like, we have plenty of Ask TPA, but is there a topic that y'all want to discuss? And just repeated questions about choosing a custom fountain pen. Generally from either like a maker or, you know, something highly specific that fits you or your style. That's, you know, maybe not necessarily straight off the shelf. And we're going to go through a bunch of these questions. They all kind of relate in some way, shape, or form. But the first part I want to lead off with, and it's from openness in the Twitch chat. What is your favorite pen material, Myke? Like, what's going to stop you when you're walking through a pen show or online, you're seeing pictures and you're shopping? What pen material is going to make you just kind of stop and, you know, look a little bit further? Is it metal? Is it some type of resin? Is it some specialty material? Is it wood? Do you have something that generally stops you in your tracks and makes you look further?

'''Myke:''' I think it tends to be resins.

'''Brad:''' Mm-hmm. You like the brightness?

'''Myke:''' Again, yeah, I like the variation. I think metal is, again, like, it catches my eye too. But I think if I was, like, walking through a pen show, it's more likely that a resin-based pen is going to catch me. It's either going to be a solid, bright color, or it's going to be something beautiful and swirly, or it's going to have, like, some kind of cracked ice effect or whatever. That tends to catch me more. Now, obviously, I do love metal pens too, right? So that there is something there. But I think what I tend to like most is things that look different, and I'm going to get most of that out of an acrylic. I would say, though, like, of resin, I should say, plastic, basically, a plastic-based pen, whether it's a good plastic or whatever. But what I tend to like most, most myself, though, is that when I pick it up, I want it to have some weight. Like, this isn't a thing that I desire, or, like, not desire, it isn't a thing that I say is a definite from my pens, right? It's not a requirement, but it does add that extra. You know, like, we talk about, like, the Pro Gears we have that have metal grip sections. Right. That really changes the pen. And, like, the new Canaleya pen with the Mailele band on it, similarly, like, when I pick that pen up, it's got the weight of that band, the Honokalani, and that adds something extra to that pen for me. It feels more premium because it is more premium because it's got some kind of additional thing going on with it. So I will always tend to like some weight if it's possible, but it's not a prerequisite for me to buy something.

'''Brad:''' It's funny you say what those last couple of pens that you mentioned, the Sailor with the Grip or the Canaleya, those are pens that you have when you're, you know, an avid user like ourselves, where you pick them up and you know exactly what it is. You don't, like, if you're at a show, you don't pick this up and go, oh, you know, what is this? And this is, you know, this is interesting. Like, you pick those pens up and you know it's like this is this exact pen and this is why I like it. And then on top of, like, the weight that you're talking about, then you get into, like, the materials and the feel and the look and all that. The resins generally stop me as well. I do, like, this is a yes to everything for me on these custom fountain pens. I'm pretty open as far as materials go. You know, I like metal pens, like, you know, when I see something that Matthew Martin's made, because I think he's just a really special maker and crafter of machined pens, right? I like his pens. And even though I have, like, the most basic one, it's just a full titanium barrel, I love that pen. Resins obviously stop me. I like bright colors, you know? That's the exact opposite of metal or, like, the darker woods, like Ryan Krusak uses. Like, I have all of those things. And I love them all. But there is one material, Myke, that stops me in my tracks every time. And I never end up going with it because generally the price, it's a challenging material and it's micarta. Anytime I see a micarta-based pen, I'm going to stop and think a little bit more. So if you're not familiar with micarta, it's essentially a fiberglass, if you will. It's like a, I don't know, it's got fibers in it, right? Like, it's glue-layered fibers. And you can do all kinds of different things with them. And then you get them made into sheets or blocks or rods. I don't know exactly how it comes. I think it might just be sheets. You get them and you, pen makers, turn them into pens. And it provides a different feel than resin or metal or wood. It has a unique look. There's like texture. You see the texture in the pen barrel. And I just love how they feel. They're generally pretty lightweight, which I'm generally, prefer my pens on the lighter end of the scale anyway. They're not air light, but, you know, they're generally lightweight. And I just love that look. And they tend to be pretty expensive too, because of all the challenges that come with actually manufacturing it and then turning it into a pen. So, you know, I've looked at Stilo Art when I've been to pen shows. And those pens are great. I've been following a maker on Instagram who does some really cool, colorful micardos, Atelier Lusso. I have not ordered a pen from them yet, but I probably should because that looks up my alley. So, I really...

'''Myke:''' It's a strong material, right? It's pretty resilient.

'''Brad:''' Yeah. It's not like the G10, which is the heavy-duty handle material. This is a little bit more pliable. The challenge with micarta is it can stain, right? Because it does have these fibers. And if the, say, like the edges on the threading are generally more open, right? So, if you get ink in there, it can stain it. So, I have a Twisby micarta that I love, but it's just completely stained, which actually doesn't bother me. But that's just a negative about the material. Like, if you have a fibrous material, it's obviously going to soak up the ink and there's really no way to clean those things. But I don't know. It's just an interesting...