Editing The Pen Addict 635/transcript (section)

== Announcement of the top mechanical pencil, the Rotring 600. ==

* Number one, Myke, should really come as no shock to anyone. I wasn't trying to hide anything or do any... Play any tricks here. It's the Rotring 600. It's not particularly close from one to two, in my opinion. That's how far ahead I believe the Rotring 600 is from the rest of this list. And again, this is very personal. This is one of the more... I will admit that the Rotring has one of the weirder balance points because it is a fully metal, thick-walled barrel pencil. Right? So it has a little bit of a density to it. But that adds into the strength and durability of this pencil. This is a pencil where a student will get it in college and then 20 years later, it'll still be their pencil because it can withstand the test of time. That's how these Rotrings are built. That's how they feel. The gnarling's perfect. The barrel's perfect. There's not too much going on in the barrel. It has a lead indicator window. That's about it. A little gnarling at the top. So, this is... My superlative for this is most likely to become a model. Right? This is the pencil you see in marketing and advertising from non-stationery companies that need something cool on the desk. This is the pencil you see on there a lot of times. I was going to say it's just like the default. Right? Yeah. It's like the default classic engineering technical pencil. And it's well-deserved. It's a well-deserved default. It's still expensive. It's one of the most expensive pencils on this list. Let me look here. So, it's about $33.
* Yeah. The Spoke Model 4 is the only one that's more expensive. And that's because the Spoke's not made by a big manufacturer. Right? It's just a small company. But all the Pentels and Unis and all that stuff. I think it's the most expensive one here. But I still think it's actually a good value. I'm surprised it's not a little bit more, to be honest. But love the Rotring 600. If I have all of these pencils lined up on the desk, that's the one I'm going to pick every time. And I just have a love for it. It's really that good.
* Before we get into your list, which I think is super interesting. And I have a couple of things in here related to your list. I just wanted to mention a couple of other pencils that some people might have feedback on. The TWSBI Precision, I think, is reasonably popular. I just never got along with the TWSBI Precision grip section. I didn't really. It was kind of like a blocky. And like, I don't know. I don't mind like rigid. It's kind of like the Pentel Sharp, but blockier. And I didn't really, really get along with that as well. But it's a good pencil and a lot of people like it.
* I put in the Lamy Safari mechanical pencil in here. Because no one should ever buy the Lamy Safari mechanical pencil. So if you wanted a bottom 10 list, y'all know my love for Lamy. Y'all know my love for all things Safari. You should not buy this pencil. Because they have made the poor decision. My first task, I have a lot of first tasks when Lamy hires me, is to make a cylindrical grip for the Safari pencil. Pencils should not have molded grips. And for some reason, they decided to put the molded grip on the Safari mechanical pencil. And that should never, never happen.
* The Leuchtturm Dregorfeld mechanical pencil, I didn't put on here. But that's a pencil I want to get. Because I think I will like it. I like that small, compact shape. It's probably going to remind me some of the Pentel Sharp. In that it's lightweight. Even though it's in like an aluminum barrel. I just think the compact size of it is going to fit my hand really well. And finally, the standard Uni Kuretoga. Like the base level $6, $7 one. I still think that's one of the great pencils of all time. I just don't use it that much. I choose all these other ones. I like this drafting style. But that's still a very, very highly rated Kuretoga. That's probably the number two Kuretoga on my list behind the roulette. Would be just the absolute basic plastic barrel Kuretoga. So I think that's pretty great. So that's my pencils, Myke.
* You participated. You put together a top five list. I want to hear it. I want to hear it. In at number five, the Uni-Ball Kuretoga. I only have the plastic one. So I think I would like to get one of the metal ones. I know we were talking about that last time.
* Maybe that would push it up the list. But just it's a great mechanical pencil anyway. Like even the plastic one, I like the way they look. The plastic ones do benefit from you being able to see the fun little mechanism inside. Which is, you know, I like that, right? Yep. That's cool. But, you know, they do a particular thing better than anybody else can do. Which is they maintain the line. Like, yeah. They're the only ones that can do it as good as... Only the Kuretoga is the one that can do it better than anyone. You don't have to think about it. Now, what you can decide to yourself is how important that is, right? Like, it's one of these things we talked about last time. You may be... You think that might be more important to you than it actually is. But if it is important to you, then this is the only game in town.
* Let me... I agree with everything you said. Let me bring up one other point I should have put in my discussion period. You'll notice in my list, and looking at Myke's list here, he doesn't have one listed. I hate auto-lead advanced pencils. Like, when you push down, and then the lead comes out. No, I would never even consider it. Like, I absolutely despise those. You don't have control over that, and it frustrates me. So, like, the Zebra Delgard and pencils of that nature, like, just... They get a full just skip from me. It's just not something I need. I don't even consider them. Yeah. I just don't need that. Anyway, I wanted to mention that because that's a pretty popular... When we're talking about the Kuretoga and a feature that they have that no one else has, the auto-lead advancing is a different feature that other companies do use, and I greatly dislike that. So, anyway, sorry.
* And at number four is the Spoke Model 4. Yeah! I really like this pencil a lot. I've always liked the look of them. I mean, this goes back, again, years and years and years now, where we both found Spoke for the first time and immediately bought what I think was the Model 3.
* Something along those lines. A long time ago. Yeah, I'll have to go back and look. Yeah. For me, the knurled grip is the only way to go, and I think that you have a very interesting knurling that you do that I like. But I just really like the overall vibe of the Spoke pencil. I just think that it's aggressive and engineering-y without being too much.
* You know? But that's what I like about it. It looks like something that an engineer would use, and I appreciate that about it. Yeah. So, I have all these pencils laying on my desk that I talked about, and it actually fits in the group of pencils that I like. So, I definitely have a style, right? It has an aesthetic. It doesn't stand out there. It looks like it fits in. So, yeah, I appreciate that. In at number three is the Leuchtturm 1917 Dragger Fold number two. Yeah. I gotta get one. This one is all about vibe for me. The colors and the design of this pencil is next to none. Like, it looks so good. I really love it. I have one on my desk all the time. This is a vibes-based pick because there are a few things that I don't like about it. But I like the mechanism. The mechanism is really fun. You don't press anything. You twist the top. It has a little twist top. Yes. And that advances the lead. It's not like a continuous twist. You just, like, twist it, and it's on a spring, and it'll bounce back, and that advances the lead. But there's no eraser on this pencil, which is, has a big knock for me.
* Interesting. I want, I just figure, if you are writing with a pencil, you should include an eraser because you can do something pens can't.
* Right? Yeah. I mean, that's fair. That's fair. And you notice I didn't mention an eraser once going through 10 pencils. No. Having an eraser, it's not a make or break, but it is an important thing because it's a differentiator. And you don't, you can erase a pencil. And if the pencil has an eraser in it, even though the eraser is not going to be that good, it's better than having to carry a separate eraser. You know? And so, I like that that is an option. Yeah. But this pen is, like, it's a number three that I love, like, a number two. Yeah. I really love the look of it. Like, even, you know, another knock on it, the cone is too long.
* I can see that with the pen.
* For some people, it's definitely extended, right? Yeah. Because it's, like, the cone grip section is, like, one piece, but it's too long. And it's, like, not, for me, super comfortable to hold there. But, again, look at it. You know? Just, like, look at it. Right. Don't even use it. Just, like, buy one and put it in your desk. Like, it's, you know what I mean? It's just an incredible piece of design for the price. Like, really fantastic. Yeah. I'm glad you put it in there about the vibes because I think the Pentel Smash is my vibes pencil. Right. Like, it's the outlier in looks, but, like, it's one of my favorites because of it's the outlier in looks. Number two, the Rotring 600.
* Dun, dun, dun. Yeah. It's a classic.
* Here's a funny thing. I had it on my list. I had it in at number three or number four, and I used mine today. I was like, oh, up it goes. Yeah. I forget about it because it doesn't excite me, right? Like, the design of the others excite me. But, like, the Rotring 600 is so default. Like, I don't get excited about it. But then when I use it, oh, come on now. It's like everyone else just wants to be that. Like, that's what you're going for. Like, I agree with all that. Like, I agree with, like, yeah. It could almost be boring these days just because it's been at the top of the heap for decades now. Yeah. Right? Like, it has clear separation in its market. So, yeah. It's just unique. It's very unique. My number one is easy. And I'm actually surprised you didn't include it. It's the Studio Neat Mark III. Oh, yep. I'll let you talk about it. Then I'll tell you why I didn't include it. For me, the Mark III is the absolute perfect mechanical pencil. Like, it's – what I love about the Mark III is the same thing that I love about the Mark I, which is that Tom and Dan had no restraints from previous opinion.
* Like, that's what I see in these products where they designed what they thought would be the right product, not necessarily following the convention. Right? So, like, if you look at the Mark III, it doesn't have a defined grip section. Right? Which the market would tell you should. There's no nose cone at all. There's no pipe even. Like, and then it's made of aluminium, which is Cerakote. It just feels good. I have the white and silver. And I need to get one of these color ones at some point. What I actually want to do, like, and I want to make this look – I want to do a Cortex one because I love it so much.
* But it being just this straight piece of all aluminium, the balance on this pen is, for me, just perfect. They did – I think they also did a really smart thing. They made it thinner than the Mark I. So, like, it's a thinner body, which really helps. That was needed. Yeah. Much needed. To go to a pencil. Yes. And, yeah, I love this thing. I use it every single day. I have the white and silver one. And, yeah, I could just sing its praises all day. I just think it's fantastic. Yeah. So, it's probably right outside the top ten for me, just from a style perspective. But you hit on the exact reasons why I don't put it in my top ten. If you're going to have a straight cylindrical barrel, that's fine. Like, I have, like, the Alvin Draftmatic is completely straight. The rotary is, you know, even though it's got, like, a grip section and a knurled section – I mean, a faceted section and a knurled section, it's still, like, straight, right?
* But if you don't have, like, a defined grip section and a straight barrel, I need a longer nose cone to give me the mechanical pencil vibe that I want. I need more of a clearance there. So, I either need – I need one of, like, three things to, like, move this up. But, like, they've defined what this pencil is, and that I appreciate. It's interesting because one of the things I specifically like about the Mark III is you hold it like a pen. Mm-hmm. Yeah, and that's one of the things I don't like. Yeah, and I find that – it's interesting to me. But, yeah, but I guess that's your difference. Do you want to hold it like a pencil or do you want to hold it like a pen? And I love that I hold it like a pen. Yep. So, if you look at my entire list outside of maybe the monograph shaker, they all have that engineering front end. I guess the carry doesn't either. But they all have a tapered point, a longer tapered point with a lot of clearance around the pipe for a visual, right? So, that taper starts higher off the page. Not as high as the Dreggerfell. That's really long. That's different. So, yeah, that's my aesthetic preference for a mechanical pencil. This is a great writing pencil, the Mark III, right? If you just want to have a great pencil for your desk and that you use to write and you carry it with you, like, it's awesome. I'm actually probably going to get another one. I'm probably going to get one of the color ones. I really like the pencil. But to break into my top ten, I am clearly much more on the engineering side of the pencil. I'm much more on the superlative of the graph gear where I'm most likely to be called a nerd with these pencils that I have as opposed to the Mark III, which I absolutely love. I think what is clear from my top five and your top five is that you're going for the nerds and I'm going for, like, the most popular kid in school. You know? Yeah, the vibes. Like, I'm going for the prom king and prom queen. Like, it's all about the beauty for me. Yeah. Yeah. I'm going to shoot the video at the dance. Yeah.
* So, this is what I have. I'm cool with that. This is what I have on my shopping list. All right. There's two Pokemon Kuretogas because that's from last time. Yeah. The roulette Kuretoga, the unishift pipe lock, and the Tombow Mono shaker. Perfect. Perfect. Like, I'd tell you to get a Smash, but not one of the black ones. Oh, Smash 2. I forgot about that. I want to get it. I just want to get it because I want to see what it's all about. But, yeah, it's just a shame that I can't get the color one. Yeah. I've had the black for over a decade. I'd have to go look and see when I first reviewed the Smash. It's been around for a long time in the same iteration.
* They pretend like they're going to make it worldwide, then they never do. So, we'll see. I found, like, a version with color and cold pens, but it's, like, 22 pounds, and I don't. Is it orange, blue, purple, or red? They did a Katakana series about three or four years ago. Yeah, it's orange. It's cocky green. Okay. There's an orange one, a blue one, and a cocky green one. Okay. I'll have to look at it. But, yeah. Yeah, a few years ago, I... Exclusive to Cult Pens, it says here on their website. So, heck, yeah. Well, good. I would love to see more of that, honestly, from them. Yeah. It's a great pencil.
* All right. I think I said I put a bunch of things in the show notes. Oh, I'm also going to include a link in the show notes for people that might be interested. So, last week, I did a stream. I put the YouTube video on my YouTube channel showing off a bunch of things Cortex brand related, including some prototypes. I kind of show some of the processes that I've gone through with the products that we make, and I also show up a bunch of stuff that we are hoping to ship over the next year. Nice. So, it's the first time we've done this where we're, like, showing things in development. One of them is our series of pocket notebooks that we're hoping to ship next year. I'm looking forward to that. I saw the video pop up in my feed, and I just put it in my watch list. I haven't watched it yet, but I saw, like, the image of it, and I was like, oh, yeah, I know these networks.