The Pen Addict 213/transcript

The Pen Addict Podcast Transcript
Episode:	213
Title:	The Myke Hurley Signature Pen
Release Date:	July 13th, 2016
Hosts:	Brad Dowdy Myke Hurley
Guests:	No guests this episode
Additional Information
Official page:	Episode 213
Audio File:	Audio Episode 213
Podcast page:	The Pen Addict 213
Length:	6464 min <br />1.067 h <br /> minutes
Previous Transcript	Next Transcript

Myke Hurley: From RelayFM, this is The Pen Addict, episode 213. Today's show is brought to you by Harry's. My name is Myke Hurley and I'm joined by Brad Dowdy.

Brad Dowdy: Hello Michael Hurley, how are you?

Myke Hurley: I'm very well Mr. Dowdy, how are you? I'm always happy to be here talking about pens. I had a weird moment today where I was thinking about the show and I was thinking about how throughout the week I collect up little items that go in for follow-up and you tend to do the bigger topics. But usually I collect a bunch of links and then I put them in the document in the evening. And I was thinking about this and I was thinking about the fact that I collect up notes in a very similar way for my tech shows. So as things happen throughout the week, I add links into a note and I'll put some little items in to describe some stuff and make some notes that I want to talk about on the show. And it just dawned on me how weird The Pen Show is. You know? It's just like, you know.

Brad Dowdy: Just like it's an outlier, like, what am I doing with my life kind of thing?

Myke Hurley: Yeah, it just seems strange, right? Like, I don't know. I mean, and I'm starting to, like, stretch my wings a little bit more. I'm going to the other side, right? Like, I'm starting my wrestling podcast this week at The Incomparable. So it's, I don't know. I feel like I'm stretching out to all of my nerdy worlds now. But it was just quite funny, like, to think about the way that I prepare for the show about pens is the same way that I prepare for the show about technology news. I don't know. There was just something in there that was kind of just felt a little strange to me, but in a good way.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, it's definitely in a good way. And I do that, too, except it's, like, backwards for me. It's all pen stuff, you know, up front for me. But I'm collecting links all week long, like, pretty much every day. I'm collecting links either for the show or for the newsletter. So it's a full-time thing for me. It's, like, part of my life now. It's so integrated. It's, like, just what I do. Okay, now I'm going to sit and I'm going to put this together and do this. And it's cool. It's fun. It always gives you a smile on your face, though, right?

Myke Hurley: Sure does. It's funny how quickly you just kind of fell into it, right?

Pen Shows

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. Yeah, exactly. And we're going to talk about how you fell into some things, a few links into the show, which hopefully everyone has seen, hint, hint. Mm-hmm. But first, I forget a little bit in the summertime. There's a little bit of lull in the pen shows. Like, we've had all these pen shows, like, in the spring, like, up through, like, Chicago, which I was at. And then it's kind of a lull. Then Raleigh happens. And then now it's Miami before we, like, really crank back up, you know, with D.C. and San Francisco. So I just wanted to point out that Miami pen shows this weekend. And it looks like it's going to be an awesome time. Bert Ozer of Bertram Zinkwell puts it on. And he's just a legit good guy. He does things the right way. He takes care of all his vendors. Our good friend, Carrie, from Fountain Pen Day is going to be there. And they're putting on a party with Ken Rowe, the mule party, which a lot of you who have attended pen shows are familiar with. They're going to have a mule party on Saturday night. So that should be fun. You know, if you can get to Miami this weekend, you should do it.

Myke Hurley: And what a great place to go to a pen show.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, I know. If I didn't have a baseball tournament for my son that I couldn't get out of this weekend, I think I'd probably be in the car on Friday. It's a pretty good drive even for me, but I think it would be worth it.

Brad Dowdy: So, yeah, one of these years I'll make it down there because it seems pretty awesome. I know Vaness Pens is going to be there. A lot of people are going to be there. So, y'all should definitely check out the Miami Pen Show, if at all possible. If not just for the pen show for Miami. And I've never actually been to Miami, so that's another reason I need to get down there.

Myke Hurley: Brad, can you tell me what L.L. Bean is?

Brad Dowdy: Sure. I mean, it's a traditional American outdoors outfitter, if you will. So, traditional, like, clothes basics is what I grew up with them as. Like, when I was going to a school, like an elementary school and stuff, I would actually get, like, my uniforms from there because you could just get navy blue khakis and white polo shirts. You know, they would always have, like, those stock items. You know, just the very traditional polo shirts, button-ups, jeans, khakis, duck boots, that real traditional American stuff. The flannel, you know, the black and red check flannel. If you think, like, a traditional American catalog gear from, like, the 1930s and see those pictures, they're probably wearing L.L. Bean gear. Right? That's how they made their mark, and they're still, obviously, a much huger company these days, but they still kind of have that same aesthetic.

Myke Hurley: So, the reason I mention this is on the Field Notes blog, they posted that they've made some special notebooks for L.L. Bean. There's, like, a beige one with green Field Notes writing. There's a green one with beige Field Notes writing. And then there's a camo in the three-pack. So, they're available at L.L. Bean stores. I just thought they were a good-looking addition, like a little special edition. But I just thought it was interesting that they posted them on the website.

Brad Dowdy: They're starting to do more with their blog, if you haven't noticed that.

Myke Hurley: Also, their blog, right, has one of the coolest features that I have ever seen on a blog. There are no permalinks that take you to an individual post. Mm-hmm. When you click on a link, it takes you to that post within the part of the blog that it's at. Oh, interesting. And as you scroll down through the list of posts, if you look at the address bar, it changes depending on the post that is in your view. It is really cool.

Brad Dowdy: Well, their whole website redo was great. They did a really good job. I mean, so.

Myke Hurley: I think it's, yeah, they've done a fantastic job of it. But anyway, it's just a nice little thing. As you scroll down through all of the other posts, you get to see the address bar change. But anyway, yeah, I just thought it was kind of cool that they've got this edition out. But it's just different that they've got it on the blog.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. And they've done that before with J.Crew. Just, you know, the American retailer thing, you know, that really fits the Field Notes aesthetic. It's kind of like Field Notes and LL being kind of like a perfect complement to each other. You know, that kind of thing. So, this is a great looking addition. I love that camo one. Actually, I love the green one, too. They look pretty cool.

Myke Hurley: I guess if it's in a big enough retailer like this, and like the one you just mentioned, which I've forgotten the name of the store. J.Crew. J.Crew. I guess it's worth promoting it, right? Yeah. Because they probably did quite a big order, and they're available in stores. And it's kind of cool, I guess, when they get into these big stores. I guess it's like a nice little mark for the company.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. And I should mention Levi's, too. So, that's another, you know. Yeah. Between Levi's and L.L. Bean and J.Crew, I mean, you can see the feel that they're going for with the type of companies they're picking to work with, and it makes complete sense.

Myke Hurley: Yeah. It really fits. Goldspot pens went ahead and corrected our pronunciation of that ink that we were talking about with Adjeli. And if I can try and say it the way that they're saying it, this new ink from J.Aubon is the Carob de Chypre.

Brad Dowdy: Wow. You did really good.

Myke Hurley: Thank you. I wasn't too far off from last week, to be honest.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. I don't think so. It looks more intimidating than it really is once you get into it, I think.

Myke Hurley: Yeah. Because there's a bunch of letters in there that you don't know how to make sound. Yeah. But there you go. So, thank you, Goldspot, for correcting us.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, and we'll have the link in the show notes to the audio on YouTube for that. It's really good.

Myke Hurley: Yep.

Brad Dowdy: Speaking of YouTube. Yeah. YouTube superstar Myke Hurley. Come on.

Myke Hurley: When we were in Atlanta for the pen show, I had the pleasure of sitting down with the lovely folk at Goulet, and I had a great chat with Brian. And we, I don't know, we did, we basically were just like a little interview that we did. It was really nice. I enjoyed it a lot. I don't really know what to say. Like, it was a fun time to do. We did it outside. It was a nice little break from everything else that we were doing. And it's kind of cool to, I don't know, to be on somebody's YouTube channel and be interviewed. I like being interviewed. And Brian did a great job. And he was very nice to me, and he was asking me, like, my advice on the interview and stuff, and very thorough preparation. Yeah, it was a lot of fun. And I got to speak about some stuff that I've been thinking about anyway. He picked out some really great topics, like, do I consider myself a pen guy? Right. And it was really interesting to think about that when I'm surrounded by these people with these collections that are worth a house and, you know, and stuff like that. And how much of a pen guy am I really? Or am I just the podcast guy? And it was a really good conversation. And you should go and check it out.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, the conversation from beginning to end was great. And, you know, it talked about your beginnings and how you got started. And, you know, a lot of people are familiar with that. But those that aren't, I thought it was a really good recap of that. You talked about getting into the pen addict stuff, which is still, like, crazy to us to this day. After we've been doing this so long, it's still, like, wild and crazy to, like, think about, like, what else happened to us. And you go through all that stuff. And you were repping knock hard in that interview, too. You had the knock t-shirt. You had a couple of lookouts on the table. That was pretty sweet. I didn't realize that at the time.

Myke Hurley: One lookout was mine, and the other was Brian's.

Brad Dowdy: That's funny. So I just thought it was a good overall interview. All the bits were great. You know, and you talked about, like, advertising. Like, you know, he asked you some tough questions. You did. And you talked about the advertising bit and how you, you know, work that in with, you know, what you're trying to do. And I thought that was awesome.

Myke Hurley: Yeah, he asked a great question about kind of, like, how it changes things and if it changes things to have advertising. And I really like to talk about that because it is a good point. And, you know, I got to talk about something that's important to me, which is the respect of the audience. So I think people will enjoy that. But, yeah, about repping knock, you know, when I'm in Atlanta, you know, I work for knock primarily. And then everything else comes second, you know. So, of course, I'm going to wear the company t-shirt. Yeah. Got boss man down my neck, you know. That's right.

Brad Dowdy: Fear the beard.

Myke Hurley: Yeah. I was more talking about you, but sure.

Brad Dowdy: Oh, yeah. Well, my official cup at the office is Office Overlord. Oh, there you go. Jeff's is Jerk Boss. So my kids like going around the shop calling him Jerk Boss.

Myke Hurley: I bet they do. I bet they love doing that. All right. You have, like, a gajillion links in the show notes today. Yeah. So I guess we're going to revisit some top fives.

Brad Dowdy: So we're going to do two different things. One, we're going to talk about gel, liquid, and ballpoint pens in a little bit different format than I have in the past. And then we're going to get into a bunch of good questions that I fielded over Slack and Twitter in the past day or so.

Myke Hurley: Cool. But before we do that, let me take a moment to thank our sponsor for this week. And that is Harry's. It is time to stop compromising on your shave and get started with Harry's. If you are looking for the best shave possible and you're not with Harry's, you're just not getting it. If you haven't made the switch yet, you're paying far too much for a comfortable shave or you've settled for a lower quality razor. You want a good shave and a good price. It's simple. Harry's does the best of both. And they can guarantee this because they make their own blades. They know the quality. They're German-engineered five-blade cartridges. And because they make them themselves as well, they can keep the price reasonable. Over one million people have switched to Harry's. And on average, each of these everyday shavers will save $150 each year on blades. So if you shave every day, you're going to be saving a ton of money compared to the big brand blades. And Harry's offer that fantastic price at high quality. You'll be able to find what you need and check out on this site in 30 seconds. They'll be shipped to you for free so you don't need to go down to the drugstore and get somebody to unlock a cabinet for you anymore. For just $15, you can get their starter set. It's called the Truman. You get a razor, a moisturizing shave cream, and three razor blades for just $15. And I can tell you in a moment how you can get that for just $10. Brad, tell me something about Harry's.

Brad Dowdy: My next blade order is on the way. I got a shipping notification. I'm a subscriber now. I'm fully bought in. So I forget the plan that I'm on, but it's the regular recurring blade shipment. And it's good because it reminds me. I don't have to keep up with ordering blades as much. And I order the lotion on its own, the shaving lotion. And so I just have a stockpile of that. But then I just keep the blades coming, keep them fresh, and keeps me nice and clean shaven.

Myke Hurley: Yeah, I bet. Well, and also at a great price.

Brad Dowdy: Oh, yeah. That's the kicker. Great product for a great price. It's kind of a no-brainer.

Myke Hurley: It's time to stop overpaying for a great shave. Go to harrys.com, and they'll give you $5 off if you use the coupon code PENADDICT with your first purchase. That's H-A-R-R-Y-S.com. Coupon code PENADDICT to check out for a special $5 off. Thank you so much to Harry's for their continued support of this show and Relay FM. Harry's loved this show. They loved this show.

Brad Dowdy: That's good. I love Harry's, so it's a mutual admiration society.

Myke Hurley: Goes around and around. All right. Tell me what you got for me today.

Gel Pens

Brad Dowdy: All right, so what I want to do, since I've been talking about not using fountain pens as much, people want to know, well, let's talk about gel and liquid and ballpoint pens again and kind of just kind of revisit where things are at in that realm. And instead of me doing my favorites or my top five or updating that, JetPens does this thing on their site where they will rank the products by popularity. I believe it's a 30-day rolling list. Don't quote me on that. I believe that's what this is. So if you go to just like the gel pens header and sort by popularity, it gives you a list. So you know what's popular on the site and what's sold the most in the last 30 days. So I took those lists and modified them to the disposable type pens, right? I'm talking like the $3 pens and less. Or, you know, under $5. I'm not talking about the other things that fall into those lists. Like, you know, you'll see the Lamy 2000 ballpoint pop in there or a Karis Customs retract pop in there. Something like that. Those aren't the ones I'm talking about. I'm talking about like the disposable gel roller and ballpoint pens here. So looking at the top five disposable gel pens on JetPens, I think this one's been at the top of the list for my entire life. And it's the UniSigno Broad White Ink gel pen. That is such a popular pen. I think they sell more of that pen than anything. It's never not number one on the list. It's not that I've ever seen because it's the only white jelly pen that works. Like there's a few, it has a few competitors, but they fail in comparison to this. So, you know, everyone who's into art or scrapbooking or sketching or drawing, even writing on dark paper, they flock to this pen and buy them by the dozens. Because it's a very wet pen. You'll blow through ink if you're using these heavily. Actually, I don't think I've ever seen that pen, not at the very top of the list. So I have one or two of them. They're great pens. I just don't use them. And yeah, but it's interesting that that pen is so popular. The next one is the one that should be probably number one. And if I was doing that ranking, it would be like the best pen is the Uni Sino UM-151, otherwise known as the DX, the 0.38 millimeter in black.

Myke Hurley: I love that you said Sino.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, I said Signo the first one. Then I said Sino, didn't I?

Myke Hurley: You've got to switch it up, man.

Brad Dowdy: I don't even, it's like, it just happens.

Myke Hurley: You've got to keep the dream alive, buddy. Like it's Sino, Sino forever.

Brad Dowdy: Sino for life.

Brad Dowdy: This pen is awesome. Like everyone should own this pen.

Myke Hurley: Yeah, this is a pen that I used for years and years and years. It's like before I was a big pen addict guy. Because these are available basically everywhere and they work so well. Like they're just, it's just a great pen. You can get them in a bunch of different sizes as well, right? Like I think I got, I think I was using like a 0.5 or a 0.7 at one point.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, that one ranges from 0.28 to 0.7. So you can get, actually there's some 1.0s that aren't the DX model, but just like the white ink pen, it's essentially the same. It's a 1.0. So that one is legitimately like, should be there. Should be number one. If you discount the white gel ink, that's the pen. That's the gel, disposable gel ink pen to buy is that 0.38 DX. Next is where we start getting into the fights. Because the next two are both Pilot Hitec Cs, but neither of them are ones that I would pick. So the Hitec C pen with grip, the 0.5 millimeter black, is the third ranked pen. And then the Hitec C 0.25 millimeter black is the fourth ranked pen. I don't know why the 0.5 sells so well. I guess, I mean, a lot of people don't like the finer tips. I don't like the 0.5 Hitec Cs at all. I would use the Sino way, way more frequently than that, than the 0.5. The 0.4s and 0.3 Hitec Cs are like the sweet spot for me. But I guess the 0.5 is a more normal size that people are used to writing with, right? So I think that's why that one ends up there. The 0.25 next is the real surprise. Because if you have never used a Hitec C and didn't know what to expect, you would absolutely hate this pen. Have you ever used a 0.25?

Myke Hurley: Hell no.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah.

Myke Hurley: Like, I don't like the Hitec C because I think it's too sharp and scratchy in like any width. I can't even imagine a 0.25. Like, I just don't understand how it's basically not an X-Acto blade.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, it writes like a pencil. It's very, very dry. But I think they sell so many of them because a lot of artists use them. And engineers and drawings draw artists who need that detailed work, right? But it's not a pen that I could use on an everyday basis. But I say that saying that the 0.3 millimeter is my favorite. It writes a line that's got to be twice as wide as the 0.25, though. It's the 0.25 is, I mean, you might as well just stick a needle in your arm. That's what it's like.

Uni Sino

Myke Hurley: Yeah.

Brad Dowdy: It's crazy, crazy fine and sharp. And it writes so dry. And it's kind of a mess. So that one surprised me. Both of those Hitec Cs surprised me. I thought one of the 0.4s, the 0.4 black, would be in that top five list there, as opposed to the 5 and the 2.5. So the next one I can kind of see, it's back to the Uniball Sino 151 DX in 0.28 black. It's a much better writing pen than the 0.25 Hitec C, probably than the 0.3 Hitec C. The line's a little bit wider. The output's a little bit wider. Where you can actually, that's one of those pens where someone branches out, says, let me try the 0.28 and says, oh, it's actually pretty good. I can use this pen where the 0.25 Hitec C I hardly think is usable. You have to have a very specific situation to use that. So I prefer the 0.38 DX. The 0.28 is really good for a 0.28 tip. The only other one that compares to that is the 0.3 Pentel Sleechy, which I think is a pretty good pen. It's just kind of got too narrow of a barrel. So I would use the DX way more than that.

Myke Hurley: Was it the 0.28 Sino that got you into all of this?

Brad Dowdy: The 0.38 at the time was called the RT. Right. So Uni Sino RT 0.38.

Myke Hurley: So it was the 0.38.

Brad Dowdy: And then the next pen I bought was the 0.18 Uni. I think it was the Sino Bit, which they don't make anymore. It was a 0.18 liquid ink pen. 0.18. Yeah. But it would being a liquid ink. The line didn't retain that fineness that you'd get even out of like a 0.3 gel pen. Because the ink spreads a little bit more. So they could actually do that with a 0.18. But it was stupid. The 0.18 bit was the one that they always showed writing on a grain of rice. Like you remember those pictures? They used to go around like, hey, the pen that can write on a grain of rice. It was the bit. And they don't make that one anymore. Because that pen would clog so much the way that tip was designed. It was actually a pretty bad pen. But it was kind of a cool concept. So it's interesting to look at these lists that aren't mine. And just kind of what's popular. So the ballpoints are interesting. In that it's kind of what I expected. Four of the top five disposable ballpoints are Jetstreams. The number one is surprising. The number one is the 0.38. Which I would never recommend to anybody. That's like the writing with the 0.28, 0.25 high tech C. I would think the Uniball Jetstream 0.7 is the sweet spot for a Jetstream. It's the right amount of everything. Right amount of fineness, smoothness, cleanness. It should really, really be number one. And actually their orange body. One that ranks really high. There's no surprise why. Because it's orange. And orange is the best color. So that one's actually number four on the list. So it goes.

Myke Hurley: That's good looking though.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah, I have one of those. They're great. And it's good because they're a bunch of these pens. They're refillable. So I just have the one barrel and have extra refills if I need them. So 0.38 comes in at one.

Myke Hurley: It's a little cheap though. Like why is that a problem? Like the refilling? I don't know. It's not. Okay. I mean how much are the refills? Like a dollar. $1.25. Okay.

Brad Dowdy: I mean for the orange series. For the rubber body series it's worth getting the refill. For the other ones it's really not.

Myke Hurley: Yeah. Yeah, no, I completely agree.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. So 0.38 is the top seller. 0.5 is the second best seller. 0.7 is the fourth best seller. And that's in the rubber body. And then 0.7 back to one of the standards is number five.

Jetstream

Myke Hurley: I've just never been that impressed by the Jetstream. Like I've never really got it. You know, people who listen to the show for years will know that. It's fine. It's fine. But I just don't think it's as good as the attention it gets. Yeah. In my opinion.

Brad Dowdy: Well, when you compare that to other ballpoints is where it becomes a thing. Right? It's so superior to pretty much every ballpoint out there except the Acroball.

Brad Dowdy: That's why it takes four of these top five spots.

Myke Hurley: Yeah.

Brad Dowdy: Right? It's just a better writing experience. But if you're not into ballpoints, you would have no reason to use it. And you probably wouldn't enjoy it. So the Outlier comes in at number three. And it's the Oto G-Fit Barrel ballpoint. Which I reviewed this pen.

Myke Hurley: Where did this come from?

Brad Dowdy: I don't know. It's random. And it's even out of stock. This is actually a really good pen. For the price. It's $650. So it's a little above that tier. But it's still. I consider that in the cheap range. Almost disposable. But it's got a little bit nicer barrel. I think the reason why it's on that list is because it's 0.5 millimeter. Right? You don't get a lot of 0.5 millimeter ballpoints. That's kind of a random thing. And that pen actually works well. I remember reviewed it. I reviewed it well. I enjoyed writing with it. But it's not going to beat a 0.5 millimeter Jetstream any day. And the 0.7 Jetstream is the one I recommend the most.

Brad Dowdy: As weird as the ballpoint list is. The liquid ink list. Or rollerball. Is a complete wreck. Then this just goes to show you what the market looks like right now.

Brad Dowdy: It's either Morning Glory. Mach 3 rollerball. Which is a wonderful pen. Or nothing. This is based on Jetpens.

Brad Dowdy: So. I even stopped the list after four. Because it took me to the second page. And there's. The default is. It lists 24 pens on the page. I had to go to the second page. To even find a fifth one. I didn't even bother. And the fourth one on this list. Is the Otofude Ball Liquid Ink Rollerball Pen. It's 1.5 millimeters. So people aren't buying this. To do normal things with. They're buying this for drawing or artwork. So I don't even consider that. The Morning Glory Mach 3. It's a needlepoint liquid ink pen. 0.38 millimeters. It's fantastic. I love, love, love this pen. After this. I hate the name though. It's a weird name. I will give you that. I will give you that. It's a weird name. But after this. What I really consider. In the liquid ink category. Is the Pilot Precise Line. V5, V7, VBall. All those are really good pens. The Uniball Vision Elite. Is a really good liquid ink pen. The Uniball Vision. Is a horrible pen. That you should never buy. It's very different. Than the Vision Elite. So. You know. There's not a lot. The liquid ink pens. Have kind of got lost. In the shuffle. Because gel. Is superior. In almost every way. So there's not a lot of call. For the liquid ink pens. Ballpoint pens. People have a reason. To use them. Other than gel. Roller balls. They really kind of. Got. Usurped. By the whole. Gel ink pen. And there's just not a call. For them anymore. Because. In most situations. You can get a gel. That performs as well. Or better. And has more options. Than any liquid ink pen. So that's why you see. The lack of variety. In these roller ball pens. So.

Brad Dowdy: So that's that. So this. This makes me. Want to go. Rework my top five. Which I keep saying. I'm going to do. I need to do it soon. Because. This is a pretty weird list. The roller balls. Are not very useful. I mean. And granted. We're limiting to this. To what's on jet pens. But I kind of did that. On purpose. Because. That's what the market's. Dictating right now. Yeah.

Myke Hurley: So. They're probably the biggest. Distributor of these things online. Right. These types of pens.

Brad Dowdy: And it's easy to tell. What what's popular. Just by the way. They set up their site. You know. Which is a good thing. So. I wanted to kind of. Take a snapshot of that. And. You know. I don't know that they changed that much. I know. Like I said. That white gel ink pen. I think as long as I've known about jet pens. That's been the number one seller. It's insane.

Myke Hurley: Well. Here's the thing about that list. Is it is. Like a self prophecy. Yeah. Right. Because people just hit that page. And look what's there. And then they buy it. So. The things that are popular. Will remain popular. The rich gets richer.

Brad Dowdy: Right. And that's why. It's funny when you see things pop up. Like the Oto G fit barrel ballpoint. You know. That kind of broke. Broke the jet stream. Streak there. So. You know. But. The one that does change a lot. Is the fountain pen page. Right. There's a lot of variance in that page.

Myke Hurley: Yeah. But I think that's external forces. Making that change.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. Yeah. I mean. You'll see the. The metropolitan. And a bunch of the Kveikos. But. Then you'll get the vanishing points. Pop up there. When there's new ones. And things like that. So. You know. It's pretty cool. But yeah. Like. That's why it's hard. You know. When we talk about top five. Pens that aren't fountain pens. There's not a lot of change. Right.

New Pens

Myke Hurley: Yeah.

Brad Dowdy: So. There's. No one is coming to market. With something that's blowing everyone else away. And. Maybe they won't. I don't know. You get. You get new players. Like the. When the pilot juice happened. That was pretty cool. But. It's not better than the DX. So. We'll see. And it's not as loved. As the high tech C. So. Anyway. That's that. I wanted to. To go over that. And.

Myke Hurley: That was good. I enjoyed that. Because it's. I don't know. It's putting into context. A little bit. Of something that we maybe don't pay so much attention. And. To anymore. Which is the ballpoint market.

Brad Dowdy: Right. And we're going to talk about that. A little bit more. Which is why I want to talk about that. There's a couple of questions we have. In the S. PA. About like. Why I'm using.

Brad Dowdy: Not some non-fountain pens recently. And I'm actually using. Ballpoints a lot. That aren't. Jet streams. So. We'll talk about that. As we go. You want me to hit a few of these questions? Oh yeah. I'm kind of going to go randomly. But. I mean. Sort of in order. So. You know. Hopefully you can. You can. You can keep up with me.

Myke Hurley: How do you go randomly. But sort of in order.

Brad Dowdy: Because I don't think. I can get to all of them. But I'm going to go down the list. And probably skip. If I skip one. I probably won't come back to it. Does that make sense?

Myke Hurley: That makes sense now.

Brad Dowdy: All right. All right. All right. Like I'm not going to do the bottom first. Then jump back to the top. But I might skip as I go down. But I do want to hit this first. Part of this first question. From Hutch. He asked it. Actually a week ago. And I saved it off since then. Because he asked. What's your ideal writing environment? And he gives like some examples. Classic study with wood grain. And leather bound books. Coffee shop. Cabin in the woods. Like if you could set up. You had carte blanche. And have your ideal writing environment. What would it be?

Myke Hurley: For me it would be a coffee shop. Like a nice coffee shop. There's a couple that I can think of. There's one in Bath. That I really love. One of my favorite coffee shops. In England. I don't go there very frequently. Obviously. Because it's like a long way away from here. But it's like a few hours. I would just go there to work. But I like kind of. The bit of hustle and bustle. And I can put on some headphones. And listen to some stuff. And I've got good coffee. And good treats around me. And it's just a nice chair somewhere. To sit and do some work. Or do some writing in.

Brad Dowdy: So are you better in hustle and bustle? Or solitude?

Myke Hurley: It doesn't really bother me too much. Because I will tend to create my own solitude. Even in hustle and bustle. Right?

Brad Dowdy: I'm very much like that. My ideal writing environment. Would actually be. A coffee shop. In a cabin in the woods. That would be pretty sweet. Or a coffee shop. In a hut on a beach. The coffee needs to be there. Because I need the coffee. The coffee is my drug. That's the thing that gets me going. But I'm like you. I can create my own environment. I do like coffee shops. I do like being around other people. Because it doesn't distract me. It's. I wouldn't say it's calming. But you know. I feel like okay. I'm here to do some work. I don't people watch. You know. If I'm going to do work. You know. I'll go. It's fine being around people. I'll pop on the headphones. And I'll just go. And you know. If I need a break. Every 10 minutes. I'll pop my head up. Look around. Take a drink. You know. Then get back to it. And it's an easy. Coffee shops are actually an easy environment. For me to work in. So. If it was ideal though. It would probably be. In a cabin on the woods. Or on the beach. I do like water. And I do like the solitude of the woods. So. He also asked. And I couldn't. I thought about this question now. But you actually put an answer in here. So I want to. I want to ask you about. The pen personalities. This is also from Hutch. He says. Take a celebrity. Or a fictional. Fictional character. And then pick a pen. That mirrors their personality. For example. What pen is most like Donald Trump? And I think we just took the answer is. I think the question is. What pen is most like Donald Trump? Because after you say that. I can't think of anything else. Anyone else. I would want to compare a pen to. So what do you have. For Mr. Trump. And I have one.

Myke Hurley: I would probably pick. You know. Like that Sylvester Stallone pen.

Brad Dowdy: That's what I was going to pick.

Myke Hurley: Was it Montegrappa Chaos?

Brad Dowdy: Yeah.

Myke Hurley: That feels very Donald Trump.

Brad Dowdy: That's totally the right. Good answer. I mean. That's the Donald Trump pen. Is the K. And the expensive one. Not the cheap one. Like the $65,000 one. Yeah. Like the most gaudy. Tacky. Uh. Pen.

Myke Hurley: Ridiculous. Vapid. Useless.

Brad Dowdy: Like that's not the link. That you put in there. But that's what I was going to go with. So that you said that. That's just perfect. I mean like. That's the answer. There's. There's no arguing. There's no. There's no other option. That's the Donald Trump. Of the pen world. Oh my god.

Myke Hurley: But I did pick a second character. I went with Darth Vader.

Brad Dowdy: I'm a little. I'm a little mad at you for this.

Myke Hurley: And I picked the Stormtrooper pen. The. The white and black.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. The one I have. Thanks a lot. Thanks for being a super chain.

Myke Hurley: You're very Vader like.

Brad Dowdy: You know. Yeah. But now. When I look at that pen. You're going to make me think of Donald Trump.

Myke Hurley: No. Don't think of Trump. It's got nothing to do with Trump. These are. These are two completely unrelated.

Brad Dowdy: Oh. So you're saying that one. So if Darth Vader had a pen. Yes. It would be the Stormtrooper. Gotcha. I'm tracking you.

Myke Hurley: Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. This is. This is what I would say is my Darth Vader pen.

Brad Dowdy: Gotcha. Gotcha. Okay. I'm with you there. I like that. Plus he would. You know. Every time he would get mad. He would just crush it in his hand. And the Stormtrooper would die.

Myke Hurley: Yeah. Which is good. Because it's also. It's not like super expensive. So he could just get another one. Like I mean. It's expensive. But it's not like the Monte Graffa pen. Oh.

Brad Dowdy: Well. I mean. It's not like the Empire is lacking for cash. So he's probably got dozens of them. Good point. Yeah. Yeah. So. That's good. I love it. I love it. All right. So I definitely want to hit this one. From Josh Barrow on Twitter. Why doesn't Myke ever talk about Retro 51 pencils?

Myke Hurley: I have a couple of them. I have one of the Apple ones. And I think I have another one. Just a regular one. They just don't excite me in the same way that the Tornado does.

Mechanical Pencils

Myke Hurley: A mechanical. And I've said this before. A mechanical pencil is much and much the same. No matter where you go. Right. Because the pencil lead. At least to me. There's not as much variance that you would get in the way that a pen would write. You can get like the harder and softer and stuff. But it's for me anyway. With the way that I use this stuff. They're a lot closer to each other. So the actual brand of the. You know. The brand of the pencil lead doesn't excite me so much. Right. So the performance of the pencil itself doesn't vary. And I just much prefer the look and feel of the rotorings. Because they're so close to each other. The way that the Retro 51 pencils look. Like the hexamatic and the rotaring. What's the name of the rotaring? It's just got out of my head. The one that I use. You said the hexamatic. Yeah. The hexamatic and the 600. Oh.

Brad Dowdy: The rotaring 600. Yes.

Myke Hurley: They're so close to each other. That it's kind of. Just like a choice of what. Branding you like the most. And when it comes down to mechanical pencils. Mechanical pencils are rotaring. Right. Like they are the same. Right. Rotaring 600s are mechanical pencils. And that's why I'm sure the hexamatic looks so similar. Because it's the iconic design. So for me. Just. I just. We'll just go with the rotaring. You know. The thing is like the retro 51 stuff. I love the tornadoes. Because the ink is amazing in them. Like the refills are amazing in them. But so many pens carry that refill now. But I still keep coming back to the tornado. Because their design is unmatched. Nobody even comes close. To putting out special editions in pens. Like retro 51 do. Right.

Brad Dowdy: There you go. So yeah. I think the answer in a nutshell is. There are a lot better mechanical pencils. Than a retro 51. Mechanical pencil. And there's not a lot of better roller balls. Than a retro 51 tornado.

Myke Hurley: I would say it's the best. Obviously.

Brad Dowdy: Right. So yeah. I agree with that completely. All right. Todd. Former pen blogger. Who's. Who's asking this question. Because he's going through some changes. He wrote that one pen. And now he's changing. His format. Going to write about different things. About teaching and chemistry. And some other things. Along with pens that he's interested in. And so he asked. If you didn't blog and podcast about pens. What would it be? And you can't pick baseball. Which for me. That would be the simplest. Obvious answer.

Brad Dowdy: I want to say music. But that wouldn't be. Because. I've always had a problem. With music reviewers. And how they write. And they seem to be. Do me. You might have to cut that out. I. The music review. Business. Is really. Really weird. I. Just. Could never get into that. In a way where I felt comfortable. Um. And I don't listen to quite enough. New stuff. To. To do a podcast on it. So I think. If I did something. That wasn't. Baseball. And wasn't music. It would be just kind of. Life. Related. Like. In. Either some type of. Life hacks. Common sense. Work. Type of stuff. Stuff that I like. Really believe in. And try to like. Implement. In. In my life. You know. Um. Like. Not a lot of. Like. Wasting time. And idle time. What to do. And things like that. So it would be some kind of. Life hack type stuff. I think. Do you. You do so many. Different podcasts. Like all your. All your. Boxes are checked. Right now. Is there something else. Besides wrestling. No.

Myke Hurley: This is the last. The last bastion to fall. At this point. I've. I've covered every single. One of my interests. I don't. I don't have anything else. Yeah. I'm all done now. I'm all tapped out. Yeah. Tapped out. Perfect. Nice. Is that going to be the name of it? No. The ring post. What is it? The ring post. Ring post. Nice. Has the best artwork. Of all time. Oh. I haven't even seen this yet. Oh. It's so good. Go to ring post. Dot. Dot. Dot. Dot. Dot. F.M. Okay. It's the best. It is the best.

Brad Dowdy: Oh my god. I'm going to get some hacksaw. Jim duggan out on you.

Myke Hurley: Hello.

Brad Dowdy: All right. So from storm. You know. I say I'm going to skip through some of these. But actually all these questions are good. So.

Myke Hurley: So I'm enjoying getting a good job. Of this random thing you were talking about.

Brad Dowdy: I want to answer these questions. They took their time to pose these questions. I would like to answer them in retrospect. Instead of cutting some out. So storm asks. Have you ever worked out the dollar per use ratio for each of your pens? Which is the best and worst value from that perspective? This is a really, really good question.

Myke Hurley: I don't even want to think about the answer to this.

Brad Dowdy: Well, it's. I do. Because it's basically. It doesn't matter how much you spend necessarily. It's like what pen have you gotten the most value out of? I mean the obvious answer is going to be one of the cheap disposable pens. That I use so much. Like the Kuretake Zig Mangaka. Is a cheap pen that I use all the time. That would be the one. But if I got to like the expensive pen range. Say like over a hundred dollars. What pen. Have I used the most. That I've gotten the most value out of. Is probably Pilot Vanishing Point. You know. I use that pen a lot. It's probably. I've probably worked. You know. It's like the fashion world. You know. The cost per wear. Right. Is it worth it? So like the Vanishing Point was a pen. That's totally been worth it for me.

Myke Hurley: Yeah. I don't know. Yeah. I'm really struggling with this one. Because I start thinking about it. And the idea of some of the money that I've spent on pens. That I don't really use.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. So there was an answer. A question in the pen addict members this weekend. Have you ever added up all your purchases? I'm like hell no. Don't do that. No.

Myke Hurley: That's a terrible idea.

Brad Dowdy: That would be a terrible idea.

Myke Hurley: All right.

Brad Dowdy: So play repeat. Our good. Speaking of music. Our good friends at play repeat. Want to know. How many unwrapped notebooks should be in a dresser drawer. Before you feel embarrassment in your own company.

Myke Hurley: Don't ever be embarrassed. Yeah.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. So don't ever be embarrassed. But if you can't shut the drawer. You might have a problem.

Myke Hurley: You need a new drawer.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. Just buy a bigger drawer at that point. But if you can't shut the drawer. Um. You might need to rethink your priorities. And I say this as someone. Who has a field notes bin. That's like the lids bowed on. Because I can't shut it anymore. But I refuse to buy another one. Or move some out to. So it can actually close. Because it's ridiculous. Yeah.

Myke Hurley: I'm looking forward to going through a bunch of my stuff. And working out some new storage solutions. When we move.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. Yeah. I've got to do that too. That's. That's on my like forever list.

Myke Hurley: That never happens. Because I have like a big bin thing. And uh. Some shelves in a wardrobe. And none of it's working right now. Like it's all fit to best.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. For sure. So um. Cliff wants to know. I know you're not a huge fan. But sometimes a ballpoint is the only option. What would you add to your lookout? So this is kind of what prompted. That other question. Well the topic where we revisited the ballpoint gels and liquid pens. Because I've been using a lot of ballpoints recently. And none of them have been jet streams. Because I've been using the pocketable stuff. I've been using two different things. The Lamy Pico. I'm using a lot. Lamy's ballpoint refills for a standard ballpoint. A non-hybrid ink refill. Are really good. Probably like the best stock writing option. So those I enjoy. The Lamy Pico. In any color. Any style. Shape. Design. I love that pen. It's very cool. It's pocketable. It extends to full size. It's just a flat out good pen. And it writes well. My second choice. Is. Well it's probably number two. And number three. Because they both use Fisher Space Pen refills. I'm using a standard Fisher Space Pen. In the brass. I've never owned the traditional Fisher Space Pen. So I wanted to put this brass one through the paces. It's quite enjoyable. I'm actually. Going to pick. The shown design. Aluminum barrel pen. Because Ian just sent that to me. After I didn't like the stainless. Because of the weight. The aluminum one. Is. Perfect. So I just got that. I'm playing around with it. It's going to be better than my Fisher Space Pen. In the end. Even though they use the same refills. I like the feel of it in my hand better. I like the. The cap posting better. And the weight is spot on. So. Besides those two. Pockatable pens. At my desk. I use the Lamy 2000. Ballpoint. Which is. For people who want a nice ballpoint. Like as a gift. I end up recommending that a lot. Because. I mean the Lamy 2000. The macaron barrel. Is just so cool. It's so well made. And it writes very well. For a ballpoint. So the Lamy 2000. Is another one. I use. So. I'm actually. I'm not a ballpoint hater. I love my ballpoint pens. And. Aside from that. I use the Jetstream refills. In the. TI2 Tech Liners. Since they. Got modified to fit the Jetstream. I have one of those. With the Jetstream loaded up. I don't use that one as much. I just tend to reach for. One of the Lamy's. Or the. The Fisher Space Pen. Refills. In either the. Shone or the. The Brass Bullet.

Myke Hurley: Wow. You should give me a lot of stuff. To put in the show notes there.

Brad Dowdy: Oh. Sorry mate.

Myke Hurley: I don't. I just don't enjoy ballpoints. If like. If I was going to go. For a ballpoint now. I'm still just going to go on style. Because. The refills. They just never. They never really do anything for me. And. I mean. And I've tried so many. And I just never really get that. Good feeling from them. So. These days. You know. I'm always going to go with a. With a. Retro 51 tornado. Right. Because it's like. A rollerball. But if I had to go for a ballpoint. I would probably pick up one of their new slim models.

Brad Dowdy: That's a good idea.

Myke Hurley: Because I can still get some of the great design. That I like. But yeah. I'm just. You know. I know that this is a. A drum. That I have probably beaten to death. At this point. But. It's just not a style of pen. That I enjoy. To use anymore. Sure. I do. The things that I love. About. Pens. Doesn't come through. With this stuff.

Fountain Pens

Brad Dowdy: Right. Yeah. And we're going to. I think let's talk about that next. So. If you. This is from. Sebastian Morissette. It says. If you. You have acquired. And tried many fountain pens. In the past few years. And gained so much experience. And knowledge about pens. And about your tastes. So now. What is your favorite. Fountain pen body material. And why. Your favorite nib material. And why. Your favorite filling system. And why. Conclude. Modern. Vintage. Rarities. One-offs. Anything you want to build. If you want to build. The mic pen. What type of materials. And what type of setup. Do you have.

Myke Hurley: I'm either going to go with. Aluminium. Or acrylic. I'm struggling a little bit. Between the two of those. Because. I think if you can. If you want a little bit of weight. I say aluminum. For me. All other metals. Can be too heavy. But acrylic plastic. If done well. You get some incredible styles. Right. Out of acrylic. So. You know what. I'm probably going to go for acrylic. Because you can really. Do some. Just beautiful things. With some of that stuff. Right. You look at the things. That like from. Carolina Pen Company. From Edison. Like. The things that you can get out of that stuff. Are just. That's what makes the stuff that we love. I'm going to say gold nibs. Whenever I've used a gold nib. I've always been happy. I think the softness of it. Is much better for my style of writing. Every gold. Every pen that I really love. Has a gold nib. You know. Like. Right. The Pelican. The Sailor. My Edison. You know. These are all gold nibs. And they all provide. An excellent writing experience. For me. And my favorite. Of all filling systems. Is piston fillers. Because. I love the mechanism. And I love not. Usually. Having to like. Take the pen apart. To fill it. Right. And it's way easier to clean.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah.

Myke Hurley: So. That's mine. I'm going to go with acrylic plastic. Gold nib. Piston filler.

Brad Dowdy: Are we playing Clue?

Myke Hurley: We could do.

Brad Dowdy: So. The body style. Is pretty tough for me. I think it's ebonite.

Brad Dowdy: I like. The lightness. And the warmth. That you get.

Myke Hurley: I could see myself going there. If I have. If I had pens made out of that. Right. Because. Yeah. It shares a lot of the idea. Of the acrylic. Because you can create beautiful things. But it's probably a superior material. Mm-hmm.

Brad Dowdy: You don't get. Necessarily. There's not the brightness. That you get. You can get some ebonites. That are very very bright. But like the acrylics. You can get the really wild. Wild colors. I still think I would prefer ebonite. I like the shapes. That. Manufacturers tend to make the ebonite. Pens in. Which are the very simple. Cigar shape stuff. It's not that you can't get an acrylic. In that shape. But they tend to be ebonite. That's kind of my aesthetic. I would definitely pick a gold nib. But rhodium plated. And the thing is. I don't know the size. I would pick. I think I would pick. Just a stock Japanese fine nib. To make up my perfect pen.

Myke Hurley: Yeah. I have no idea. What size I would pick anymore. Because now. I have a bunch of pens. That are fine and medium. And they're both amazing to me. And then I have things. Like the music nibs. Like I don't know what nib. I could pick anymore. It would. Totally depends on the manufacturer. The nib.

Brad Dowdy: Right. Right. So I think. If I had to pick one nib. I would get a stock pilot fine nib. I believe. Gold.

Brad Dowdy: 14k nib. And then for filling system. Piston filler is pretty much there. But I think I'm going to go eyedropper.

Brad Dowdy: You can get. I like seeing that ink sloshing around. If you happen to have a clear window and a pen. Which you don't get a lot in ebonite. Unless you have the window specially made. But still. Just the ease of use. The capacity. I never thought I'd be an eyedropper person. But they're super easy. Even though you do have to have the extra bit of the silicone grease. To seal up the threads. Just so there's no leaking. It's just nice.

Myke Hurley: Also the terra.

Brad Dowdy: And the terra. But piston filler. I mean. It's hard to. It's hard to beat a piston filler. So. I'm going to go with. Kernel mustard. In the study. With the candlestick. Bravo. All right. So.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. So that was. That was kind of the. If we were creating our own fountain pens. What would we. What would we do?

Myke Hurley: I would love to do that one day. By the way.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. One of these days.

Myke Hurley: Like. I would really. Just. I mean.

Brad Dowdy: I've got some pens that are pretty close. I mean. My. My Nakaya. I mean. That's pretty much hard to beat. And I say. I mean. I've.

Myke Hurley: I've picked pens that I like. Right. Like I've. I've. I own pens like this. I just mean like. Actually. Make one for people. Not just for me. Gotcha. Gotcha. Gotcha. Gotcha.

Brad Dowdy: Ooh. Look at you. Fancy.

Myke Hurley: It would be nice. Right. Like. To work with someone. To pick out all the materials. And make. And actually make a pen. The Myke Hurley signature pen. You know. And I can adorn it with skulls and snakes. Like. Still. Call it the trump.

Brad Dowdy: Call it the huge. The huge pen. All right. Evelyn wants. Wants a Hobonichi update for quarter three. Are you still using. Using it. If so. What for. What's working. What isn't. I'm going to bet. No. Yeah. Total fail. I. One of the best products in the world. I swear. This is just an elite. Elite product. It's amazing. Every which way. I don't do dates. I. That's the hang up. It's. That. The page has a date on it. So. I just need to stick with my blank notebooks. Be happy with it. Instead of trying to force the Hobonichi. It's so damn cool. I mean. I. I won't guarantee you that I won't buy one for next year. I just. I. It's an amazing. Amazing product. It's. It's not. Sticky for me. It's just not. And it's the dates. I. I have a. Brain lock. On dates on the page. It does not work for me. So.

Myke Hurley: Let me tell you something. Uh. I've been using. Uh. The cross field.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah.

Myke Hurley: My gosh.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. See that's. That's. That would be the way to go. Right. The paper. But without.

Cross Field Notebook

Myke Hurley: How did I end up with one of these? It was given to me by you in Atlanta. Did you get it for me? Yeah. Yeah. I couldn't remember if you got it for me or if somebody sent it to you for me. Oh.

Brad Dowdy: Gotcha. No. That one I got for you.

Myke Hurley: Thank you. I've been using it just to do some general note taking and to play around with. I know I'm so late to the party. But my God. Yeah. My paper.

Myke Hurley: It's. So special.

Brad Dowdy: And that. That. That. The cross field notebook as a whole. It's just so well put together. Yep. For that paper.

Myke Hurley: It's flat out. It's like writing on tracing paper. Right. Like the bleed through is. It's intense. Yeah. But. It is. Such a joy. To write on. An absolute joy. Yep. But the paper's so thin. I'm looking for it now. I'm taking some notes for a show. And I've completely missed out two pages. Because the paper's so thin. You think you're turning one page. But nope.

Brad Dowdy: That's funny. That would. That would drive me insane. Yeah. I'm very upset about this right now. Yeah. What are you going to do now? I can't do anything. I know. I know. Oh. That's a mess. That gives me the heebie jeebies.

Myke Hurley: I just made a note that says turnover.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. So let's get to Tammy's question. This is a. This is a really good question. That I want to be sure to touch on. So. I'm just going to read what she wrote here. She says. I had that overwhelmed feeling a couple of days ago. That realization. I have more ink than I need for my lifetime. Not to mention pens and paper. But somehow. Never having finished a bottle of ink. And now having so so many. I felt like I was facing my mortality. As well as this past year's. Overspending and hoarding. And ink seems harder to unload than pens. The fragility of shipping. Finding people who don't have it yet. Do you have any favorite ways of releasing the too much of this hobby? Both in the selling as well as the emotional release. I recently sold a Kaweco pin on eBay. And found that tough to do. So. Everyone listening. Or most people listening. Have gone through this. Right Myke? I mean. You've gone through this. Oh yeah. I've gone through this. You hit a point. Where. You're still kind of new. You're still kind of figuring out. What you like. And you're in this like. Crazy acquisition phase. And then the next thing. You look up. And you go. Holy cow. What have I done? Look at all these pens. Look at all this ink. Look at all this paper. I'll never use all this. In my lifetime. Or the next lifetime. And. What do I do now? And. I didn't come to this. Realization. Until probably in the past year. That. I'm okay. Not having everything. I mean. That sounds really weird to say. Like. But I felt like. I had to have everything before. Like. I'm in this community. We're talking about this pen. I should get this limited edition. Or I should get this new color. Or I should get this ink. That was released. Or I should buy more of those field notes. And I finally came into the realization. That. I've got some things. That I'm really. Really happy with. And I'm going to continue. Using those things. That make me the happiest. And. If I find something. That. Can kind of. Trump those things. Kind of beat those things. Like. If I think it's going to be. You know. A pen that I'll really enjoy. More than a certain group of pens. That I have. Or an ink. That's going to just be. A really high usage ink. For me. That's come out. And that's really different. From what I have. Then I'll buy it. I have. I've. Gotten over the feeling. Of having. Of this acquisition. Syndrome. And this fear. Of missing out stuff. Like. I'm okay. Not having. Not buying everything. Anymore. Or. Um. But. We all discover it. The same way. Tammy did. Right. That totally happened to me. Yep. And it's happened to. A million other people. As well. Um. It took me forever. To sell. Some of my pens. Even if I wasn't using them. Um. And I'm actually going to work on that today. I have a few more. I need to sell. I'm going to go through that today. I.

Myke Hurley: I can't imagine doing the selling stuff. Yeah. I give stuff away. I've not sold anything. Luckily I don't really feel the desire to sell. Like. I don't have. A ton. Of really expensive stuff. Like. I have more than I should. But I don't have so much. That I feel like it's like a. A hole. Right. Right. Um. And I've tried to be. Cautious with stuff like ink. I have like five bottles of ink. Because I know. That I'm not going to use it enough. Right. So like. I know that. I just knew that I would end up in the Tammy situation. Of like. More bottles of ink than I could ever use. Which is why like. I found a couple that I liked. And used those. Then I found a couple that I thought were interesting. And bought those. And I'm kind of stopping there. But if I look at my paper products. My word. I have way too many. Like you know. There's a lot of stuff that I have way too much of. So I can totally sympathize with that. And I have. I have a. Maybe a potential idea for Tammy. To do with her ink situation. And I don't know if she's done this. But like. I guess you could maybe like. Buy one of those folded nibs. And then just use it all up. Draw in crazy stuff.

Brad Dowdy: That's a great idea.

Myke Hurley: You know like. Just sling it. Use a ton of ink on that. Just have fun with it. Like just play around with it. You can't sell it. Don't pour it away. But basically just pour it onto some pages. Mm-hmm. Yeah.

Brad Dowdy: That's a great idea. I love that idea. You know. And I was going to say about selling ink. It is hard to sell ink. What I would do. If you could do it. Is I would sell them in a group. In a lot. Either like three to five bottles. Just get rid of a bulk. In one fell swoop. Hopefully someone will buy them all. It's hard to break down that stuff. The cost isn't worth it. It just feels like a hassle. The shipping.

Myke Hurley: The hassle of shipping.

Brad Dowdy: The shipping fees aren't worth it. But if you sold five bottles. As a group. You know. You might lose your butt on it. But they're gone. And it feels better. That they're gone. You know. And that would be. At least one recommendation. And. The pens. They will come to.

Brad Dowdy: The cream will rise to the top. Eventually. And then you'll find yourself. Oh. I haven't inked this pen in a year. And that's a pretty good sign. That you could let that pen go. And not miss it. So. You know. We've all gone through this.

Brad Dowdy: You know. These stages. And. You know. When you get to the point. Where you don't have to have. All the hot new stuff. Then you kind of. Get this calming effect. And you're. You're able to. Start releasing some of the stuff. You did buy. That you're not using. In the past.

Sailor King of Pen

Brad Dowdy: All right. Our good friend. June Thomas. Wants to know. How the king of pen. Is holding up. So I bought the sailor. King of pen. Pro gear. Sky. At the Atlanta pen show. She wants to know. Has it found your way. Into your regular rotations. And lived up to your expectations. So. It's holding up wonderfully. It's one of two pens. I always have inked. Which is my pilot 823. And the sailor king of pens. Those are always inked. And the third one. Would probably be my Nakaya portable. Um. I love the shape. Feel. The nib. The style. Like everything about this pen. Screams Brad. I don't think. I could recommend this one. To many people. Because I think. It's not worth the money. If that makes sense. Um. You know. I love it. It's amazing. It seems more like. It doesn't seem like. An $800 pen. If you will. It feels more. I don't know how to. Put it out there. It feels more like. A $500 pen. I don't know. Five or $600 pen. Which one do you have? It's the big blue one. It's called the Progear. Sky. King of pens. I think it's called Sky.

Brad Dowdy: But. It's amazing feeling. It's wonderful to write with. The nib is fantastic. Um. You know. And I don't regret it. For one second. I am glad I own this pen. I don't know that. I would tell a lot of people. To go out and buy this pen. I would spend. The money. I would recommend. Spending money on other things. You know. This is a. This is a me pen. For sure. That I'd necessarily. Wouldn't necessarily recommend to others. Does that make sense?

Myke Hurley: Yeah. I would never buy. I. My Sailor is my. Basically. My. First or second favorite pen. Mm-hmm. But you're not getting me anywhere. Near the 800. 800. 800 dollar monstrosity. That you earn. But. I totally get. What you're saying. That that pen. Is for you. Right. 100%. I get it. Yeah. Because. I have.

Brad Dowdy: Zero regrets. I love it. It's amazing.

Brad Dowdy: For me. You know. That's. That's kind of where it ends. Like. I'm going to review it. And the review is going to be glowing. For how I write. How I enjoy pens. What I'm looking for in a pen. Everything I like. It's going to be glowing. But. At the end. I'm going to say it's too expensive. For me to recommend. Anyone else to buy. I would rather. Buy. You could buy. A Nakaya. For that price.

Myke Hurley: Is that. Is an incredible. Every time. Every time. You tell me the price. I always forget.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. You could come close to. You could buy one of the. Arushi. Ebonite. King of pens. I just didn't like that style. I like this style. This is. This is me. So yeah.

Brad Dowdy: So yeah. But. I'm enjoying it. I use it all the time. I took it to. I took it to. Our. Our pen meetups. I always like to let people. Let people use it. Show it around. Let them. Touch the king. And. They always enjoy it. And they go. Wow. It's too big. Which. It's a really large pen.

Myke Hurley: Somebody with it. You know. You totally could. It's huge. It's like a. It's like a novelty pen. Right. Because everything's bigger. You know. Everything's bigger. It's kind of strange. It's like. It's like a prop in a movie. You know. It is. But. It's a. It's special. In that way. It's so.

Brad Dowdy: It's so nice to write with. I mean. I'm using it today. I brought it in to use. For the show notes today. For my notes. So I'm using it today.

Myke Hurley: So. And I'm using a regular size. Per year. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Brad Dowdy: Well. Let's wrap it up on. That question there. Which I think was awesome. And all these questions were awesome. And I think. Mm-hmm. You know. I probably missed a few. Out there. I need to start. Collecting the ask TPAs better. Because we like doing this. We want to make sure we talk about. You know. Not just like whatever topics have crossed our desk in the past week. You know. We definitely want to hear the listener feedback. And you know. The things you want us to hear. Talk. Us talk about. Even if it's only like personal to you. Like if you have a very specific question. We're happy to answer. Because that ends up helping others along the way as well.

Myke Hurley: So what's the best way Brad? Twitter?

Brad Dowdy: I think Twitter. Our ask TPA hashtag.

Myke Hurley: Use the hashtag. You need to a hashtag. Ask TPA is the hashtag.

Brad Dowdy: So that goes right into a document for Myke and I to see. We grab the questions out there. The Slack room is also great. The podcast channel. I usually. Every week. I'll post a note saying. Okay. I'm ready for your questions. What do you got? How about.

Myke Hurley: That's how I got those. Set up a special ask TPA channel in the Slack. That just has the questions.

Brad Dowdy: Well.

Brad Dowdy: Let's just leave it in the podcast channel. All right. It gets too many. It gets too many.

Myke Hurley: King of Slack over here. King of Slack.

Brad Dowdy: Oh my God. You're going to get me in trouble.

Myke Hurley: Aren't you? Uh huh. I probably am. That. I can only ever pop in. For moments. To the pen addict Slack. It is.

Brad Dowdy: Crazy in there. It's good stuff. Good people in there.

Myke Hurley: Mm hmm.

Brad Dowdy: All right. So let's. Let's take this one to the house.

Myke Hurley: If you want to find our show notes for this week. Go to relay.fm. Slash pen addict. Slash two one three. I did just realize. King of Slack. I did not mean that as a joke. Right. It wasn't. It wasn't a king of pen joke. But it worked real well. Uh. If thanks so much to Harry's for sponsoring this week's episode. As I mentioned the show notes. We have tons of show notes. I've put every pen. Mentioned in that. Uh. Top five. So like. There's like 15 there or so. And. Yeah. A bunch of stuff that me and Brad have mentioned this week. So the show notes are massive this week. There's 35 links. Whoa. Show notes for you to go and peruse. I don't know how you do that.

Brad Dowdy: While we're talking.

Myke Hurley: Mm hmm. It is a skill built up over many years. Yeah.

Brad Dowdy: Professional podcasters.

Myke Hurley: Mm hmm. Um. And uh. If you want to find Brad online. Go to penaddict.com. Knock.co. There's some exciting knock stuff happening.

Brad Dowdy: Yeah. I'm going to. You know. This doesn't matter to our. Our. Later on podcast listeners. But our live listeners. I'm going to Periscope after. And I might tease a little knock action.

Myke Hurley: Oh. See. Now I'm going to have to watch the Periscope. Mm hmm. Um. Will that be available? Will people be able to find it maybe?

Brad Dowdy: Yes. Yeah. Now Periscope saves their videos. So they should be able to find it.

Myke Hurley: There you go. So I'll put a link to your Periscope. In the. Uh. In the show notes. So people can go and see what's saved. Um. If you want to find Brad on Twitter. He is at penaddict. Oh. You're at dowdyism. There you go. D-O-W-D-Y-I-S-M. The same as. The same as on Periscope. Right. Right. The dowdyism on Periscope as well. Yes. Because it's linked into your Twitter. Uh. Your Pen Addict on Instagram. And uh. I am at imike. I am Y-K-E. Thank you so much. For listening to this show. As always. And we'll be back next time. Until then. Say goodbye Brad.

Brad Dowdy: Goodbye Brad. Goodbye Brad.