Pen Storage Options: "The Divide" by Dudek Modern Goods

Well, I was planning blog content for the next couple of months and I realized that I had never written about one of my primary tools for pen (and pencil) storage: Mike Dudek’s handmade wooden pen stands. You may also know Mike from his blog, The Clicky Post, but if you've not had the opportunity to check out his creations over at Dudek Modern Goods, do so now. I’ve owned a few of Mike’s pieces over the years, but my most recent acquisition, The Divide, is by far my favorite. 

Pens, Pencils, and Notebooks, Together! 

The Divide holds up to six pencils on one side, six pens on the other, with a slot in the middle for pocket notebooks and/or index cards. For me, the Divide serves as the "dock" that holds whatever primary writing tools I'm using at the moment. It's a larger pen stand, measuring H 2.5" x W 5.25 " x D 3", and exact details, such as the diameter of the pen slots, are customizable. For example, if you favor larger fountain pens, Mike can drill the holes a bit wider. Here, I have three larger-gauge holes that can fit fountain pens as big as the Pelikan M800, Montblanc 146, or Visconti Homo Sapiens. The other three spots on the pen side are designed to hold slimmer pens like the Parker Sonnet or Pilot Metropolitan. For pencils, the Divide can keep three "Jumbos" and three standard pencils sharpened and ready to go.  

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Like all of Mike’s other products, the Divide is handmade from solid walnut, “finished with a smooth satin poly finish,” and branded with the Dudek Modern Goods logo on the bottom. These pen stands are versatile and classy looking, and probably receive the most compliments of any item I keep on my desk.  

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Of course, my standard Dudek "Cube" has special meaning, since I won it in the raffle at last year's Atlanta Pen Show! 

How to Order

If you’re interested in adding one of Mike’s pen stands to your collection - and every true pen/pencil addict should own one of these, IMHO - head on over to Dudek Modern Goods and place your order now. Each of Mike’s handmade pen stands is made to order, so turnaround time may take up to 3-5 weeks. The Divide runs $65 + shipping, with other models ranging from $45 for the standard “Cube,” all the way up to $99 for the “Workspace.” Given that these are classic pieces that will last forever, Mike's prices are a bargain.

Disclaimer: Mike Dudek is a friend of mine and sponsor of the blog, and he provided me with the Divide featured in this review free of charge. That said, I was a customer of Mike’s long before I knew him personally, and have always recommended his work. 

Announcing the Baron Fig "Alphabet" Squire Limited Edition

Last week, Baron Fig released the "Alphabet": their first limited edition Squire rollerball/ballpoint pen featuring a new matte black finish with the alphabet etched in white down the side. It's a cool looking pen, and I'm glad to see that Baron Fig went the "understated" route, rather than the somewhat over-the-top approach taken by other companies with their limited editions. 

The finish on the "Alphabet" version of the Squire is "grippier" than the finish on my standard model. I think I prefer the matte black over my standard charcoal, though both are great. 

The "Alphabet" is available as part of the Squire subscription service, in which you can sign up to receive a new limited edition pen each quarter. So far, Baron Fig has more than met my expectations with their subscription service offerings, having released two versions of the Confidant (the Work/Play II and the Askew), one of the Vanguard (the Black Box), and now the Squire. Of all their existing product categories, the Squire was the one that gave me the most heartburn as part of a subscription service. It's Baron Fig's priciest product at $60, and I suspect it might be a hard sell to get many people to commit to pre-purchasing four of them per year. That said, the Alphabet makes for a great start: it maintains the classic style of the standard Squire while offering two new design elements, the "A to Z" detailing and the matte finish. It's distinct enough to convince existing Squire owners to pick up another, and for those who don't have a Squire already, well, it's a great pen. Personally, I'd take the Squire over the Retro 51 Tornado any day, but that's a matter of personal preference.     

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If you're inclined to keep the packaging, it makes for a great desktop stand for your pen. 

You can purchase the Squire "Alphabet" limited edition directly through Baron Fig's website. A single pen is $60, but the price drops to $50 per pen if you subscribe and pre-pay for four quarterly limited editions. Baron Fig fans should keep a hand on their wallets: I have it on good authority that the second Vanguard edition will be released shortly, and I suspect the first limited edition set of Archer pencils will follow. Stay tuned! 

Disclaimer: Baron Fig sent me this product free of charge for review purposes.

Workhorse Inks and Refills: When You Just Need to Get S*&T Done

I've been going through a particularly busy time in my "other" life and job, with several days that stretched into the wee hours of the morning. While that's unfortunately taken away from the time I've been able to spend with my more "fun" pens, it's also given me a chance to reflect on what I turn to when I don't have the time or the desire to think about what it is that I'm using. Sometimes you just want to reach for something easy, that you know will work, and most of all, that isn't distracting to you or the people that you're working with. Here's what I've been favoring over the past month, ranked in order of preference:  

1. Schmidt Easyflow 9000 Ballpoint. I find rollerballs too temperamental, including the Schmidt P8126 and P8127 that ships with the Retro 51 Tornado and the Baron Fig Squire. I prefer ballpoints and hybrid ballpoint pens, and typically will carry multiple pens loaded with Schmidt's ballpoint refill in my work briefcase. Currently, I have a blue Easyflow 9000 in my Squire, and a black version in my Steel & Flint pen. These smooth writing refills are great for writing longhand, and don't require much pressure to use at all (which can be a drawback for some ballpoint pens). 

2. Sailor "Chalana" D1 Refill. I've been using a LOT of multipens lately, and the one that's received the most use has been the Sailor Pro Gear Imperial Black, mainly because it has a mechanical pencil function. And at under $40, it's a relatively sturdy and inexpensive pen to travel with. Sailor's Chalana ballpoint refill is also excellent - it's a traditional ballpoint but writes smoothly and leaves a dark line, even with a very fine point. One of my purchases from the past few months that has served me well.

3. Uniball Jetstream D1 Refill. It hasn't received as much love as the Sailor Imperial Black, but my Lamy 2000 Multipen is loaded with these Uniball Jetstream D1 refills and they're great. I prefer the .5mm. 

4. Blue Fountain Pen Ink. I've gone with a generic category here because when I get really, really busy, I don't put much though into what fountain pen ink I'm using other than "will it write on most papers" and "will it be distracting for other people to look at?" Currently, I have pens loaded with various blue or blue-black inks, including Bung Box Sapphire, Blackstone Barrister's Blue, and Iroshizuku Asa-Gao. (For an in-depth look at some other "workhorse inks" that I rely on, check out this list I did a while back.)  

5. Orange Ink. Lately, I've been editing in orange ink, as opposed to red, because I've been working on a project with five or six other people and I wanted them to be able to distinguish my comments and annotations from everyone else's. On the fountain pen side, I've favored Sailor Jentle Apricot, though I've also been using the Orange .38mm Uni Style Fit refill and the Orange Uniball Vision Elite (Micro Tip).  

But what about the pens? Honestly, when I'm this busy, I pay more attention to inks and refills than I do to the pens themselves. If I'm rushing out of the house in the morning, whichever pen is convenient and/or full will probably end up going with me to work. (On a really busy day, I can empty two standard converters.) As I mentioned, my Baron Fig Squire and my Lamy and Sailor Multipens have been busy, and on the fountain pen side I've stuck to workhorses like the Lamy 2000 and my Sailor Pro Gear Imperial Black (fountain pen). I still have a ton of pens inked at the moment, so I'll have to mix things up next week. 

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. 

Ink Brand Profile: Blackstone Inks

This week I take a look at yet another Australian ink brand and come away impressed. While Robert Oster has received a lot of attention for its seemingly endless array of colors, and Bookbinders for its quirky branding and packaging, Blackstone takes a more understated approach. Of the eight inks in the Blackstone line, I've had the opportunity to try six, and can say that they definitely merit further consideration as everyday writers.

While at first glance the colors may appear to be your standard black, blue, blue-black, green, red, brown, etc., there are aspects to these inks that make them interesting. For example, "Black Stump" is a black ink with deep undertones of brown and purple, (somewhat similar to Rohrer & Klingner's Leipziger Schwartz). "Uluru Red" can alternately appear to be a bright, fire-engine red color, but in the right light (and with a wet nib) can show off some depth of color. Blackstone even has two permanent inks: Barrister's Blue and Barrister's Black. The Barrister's Blue saw a lot of use at work in my Lamy 2000 over the past couple of weeks. 

Note: Many people rave over Sydney Harbour Blue and Barrier Reef Blue, which I've not had an opportunity to try since they were sold out. As of the time of publication of this post, both colors were back in stock at Anderson Pens. 

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Blackstone Ink Samples, from the top: Barrister's Blue, Black Stump, Barrister's Black, Daintree Green, Uluru Red, and Yellow Wattle. In case you didn't notice, all of the inks have an Australian theme. ;)

Blackstone sells their inks in convenient 30ml Nalgene bottles, which many people use to repackage ink into smaller containers for travel. While some people dislike storing ink in plastic bottles due to the threat of evaporation, I've never had problems with Nalgene, and its an interesting packaging choice by Blackstone. (I imagine it significantly cuts down on the cost of shipping overseas, as opposed to shipping heavy glass.)  

Takeaways and Where to Buy

These Blackstone inks were very well-behaved and I didn't have any serious issues with any of them. Of these six, the ones that impressed me the most were Barrister's Blue, Uluru Red, and Black Stump. Daintree Green and Barrister's Black were nice colors but didn't really distinguish themselves for me one way or another, and I found Yellow Wattle to be too light to be useful for everyday writing (though it might make a very nice highlighting ink). I liked Barrister's Blue so much that I am considering purchasing an entire bottle once the sample runs out - it's a great permanent blue-black that I've had loaded into my Lamy 2000 for the past two weeks, but be aware that like many permanent inks, it tends to feather on very cheap paper.  

Many thanks to the folks at Anderson Pens for sending me these ink samples for review. Blackstone Ink comes in 30 oz. bottles and is priced at $12 for the "Barrister's" inks and $8.50 for standard colors.

Disclaimer: I was provided samples of the inks reviewed here free of charge, for review purposes.  

Pen Review: The Pilot Custom 74

I've reviewed a lot of Pilot pens on this blog, but for some strange reason I've never taken the opportunity to review what I consider one of their best, and certainly one of their more accessible, fountain pens. The Custom 74 is one of the first higher-end Pilots that I purchased, and I recently added another to my collection. I'm glad I did!

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This blue demonstrator might be one of the prettiest pens in my collection. 

Pilot makes several versions of the Custom 74, but only the demonstrators are available on the North American market, to my knowledge. The Japanese market offers some lower-cost pens in solid acrylics, including Dark Blue, Black, Deep Red, and Dark Green. (You can sometimes find these Japanese pens with in-between nib sizes, like SF (soft fine) or FM (fine medium).) Along with the Vanishing Point, you'll often see the Custom 74 marketed as the "entry level luxury" Pilot fountain pen, and it's a great option for those looking to buy their first $150+ fountain pen, or upgrading from a steel nib to 14k gold. 

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An older photo of the Custom 74 violet demonstrator (far left) that I no longer have. This picture offers a good size comparison of the Custom 74 to the (from left) Pilot Vanishing Point, Sailor Pro Gear Imperial Black, Sailor 1911 Large, Nakaya Portable Writer, and the Pilot Metropolitan.

The Custom 74 is a good size pen, but at the same time there's no excess length or girth, and the transparent acrylic weighs very little. I can use this pen comfortably posted and unposted, though some might find it a touch too long posted. As I mentioned, I've owned two of these colored demonstrators over the years - the blue and the violet - and both pens were stunning to look at. The sapphire-blue acrylic featured here is a personal favorite, and pairs perfectly with Sailor Bungubox Sapphire ink.

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I've always found Pilot nibs very tastefully engraved. I especially like the rhodium-plated version. 

The Custom 74 color demonstrators feature a relatively stiff, rhodium-plated 14k Pilot nib that offers a super smooth writing experience. I would say these nibs (which come in fine, medium, and broad) correspond more to western sizing, as opposed to traditional Japanese nib sizes that tend to run narrower. The pen shown here has a wet medium nib that writes a fairly broad line for a Japanese pen, but on a brightly colored pen like this one, I prefer a nib that lays down some ink. Fortunately, the Custom 74 comes paired with Pilot's high capacity CON-70 push-button converter, which only works with Pilot's larger pens. (Make sure you check compatibility before purchasing a CON-70 for another pen.)   

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The Pilot Con-70 converter on the Custom 74, showing the length. Be sure to check compatibility.

A final note on the Custom 74 nibs: these nibs tend to have a lot of tipping material, which make them excellent - and relatively inexpensive - options for nib customization. Before my next pen show, I may try to pick up a couple of Custom 74s with broad nibs to take with me, just to make sure I have a good option to give to Mike Masuyama or Mark Bacas....

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The nib on this Pilot Custom 74 writes a nice fat medium line.  

Takeaways and Where to Buy

The color demonstrators are by far the most popular options in the Custom 74 line, and are available in transparent blue, orange, smoke, and violet. This pen, in my opinion, is one of the better buys in the fountain pen world at $176 (as of 2023, available directly from us in the T.G.S. Curated Shop). You get an incredibly attractive pen with an amazing nib and a high-capacity converter. For these reasons it's made my list of Best First Fountain Pens over $100. Personally, I think the color models are attractive enough to justify the extra money, especially with the rhodium trim, but it's a matter of personal preference.    

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