Pens at altitude
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Egcc
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I felt impelled to add my experiences to this thread............
Had the Spacepen as a Crimbo prezzie from the Brother-in-law who felt very proud that he had found me the 'ideal' present. Just how often he thought I experienced zero gravity on the way to Tenerife I shall never know. I was unfortunately not impressed with it. I found it had to be kept almost perpendicular to the page to get it to write and I tend to hold my pen at quite an angle so the 'seating' for the ball point would touch the paper and not the ball. Banished to the 'pen' drawer at home.
I found the best pens were the black plastic Hilton pens that were doing the rounds in Europe a year or two back. They were fine point (which I like) and twist top (not as good as push top which can easily be used with one hand) but acceptible nonetheless, and black (a must). They fitted neatly into the pen-clip, the top pocket (hence retractible nib required) and also just clipped into the yolk mounted chart holder 'slider groove' with a pleasing 'thupp' sound on the 757. they were made for each other. Why, oh why, oh why...................
Sadly the Hilton have gone green and now produce those god awful cardboard toilet rolls with a cheap and nasty BLUE refill, non-retractible and after any more than a couple of sectors use, totally unable to keep the refill held in due to 'cardboard swell'. They go fuzzy on the outside and resemble a chip wrapper after a day's use with the amount of grease and dirt they hold in the now decaying cardboard outer. They are not doing the environment any good at all as they get binned well before they run out and another one begins its short lifespan! They even say 'made from recycled cardboard' on the side! Fine, but do I really have to recycle it every day to have a useable pen.........!
So they have been banished to our recycling bin. Just about all the other hotel pens have equally gone down in quality. The 'Black Marriott' is a bendy Bic with a seperate top (ok to just bin the top and leave in the pen clip but no good for the old shirt pocket). The Tivoli is a blue version of the same
(don't like blue). The 'Fat Radisson' is black in colour (promising) but the ink is blue (disappointing) and the twist top (hmmn, not bad) lets you down when you find it twists the opposite way to what one would expect..........damn! Even more disappointing is the fact that I have just found another two in the pen drawer. Ahh, the Holiday Inn. Bendy Bic (
ahhhhhh), but black (hoorahhh!), still got a seperate top though 
(oooooohh). Old style Marriott, found at the back under the pencil shavings, looked good at a glance
, but failed to deliver on closer inspection
. Ohhh, a new contender. Euopcar, Gatwick circa 2002 I venture. Chunky, firm and grippable, ultra smooth action push-top, clip for the pocket, fine nib, it's got it all.................sh!te it's blue!!!!! Best Western. Ditto.
Ahhh, the definitive. Papermate Flexgrip ultra. Push-top, pleasing 'click' action, firm rubber feel in the hand
(oo-err), comfortable, reliable, black
, fine enough. My dream pen
.............
Jeremy Clarkson
Had the Spacepen as a Crimbo prezzie from the Brother-in-law who felt very proud that he had found me the 'ideal' present. Just how often he thought I experienced zero gravity on the way to Tenerife I shall never know. I was unfortunately not impressed with it. I found it had to be kept almost perpendicular to the page to get it to write and I tend to hold my pen at quite an angle so the 'seating' for the ball point would touch the paper and not the ball. Banished to the 'pen' drawer at home.
I found the best pens were the black plastic Hilton pens that were doing the rounds in Europe a year or two back. They were fine point (which I like) and twist top (not as good as push top which can easily be used with one hand) but acceptible nonetheless, and black (a must). They fitted neatly into the pen-clip, the top pocket (hence retractible nib required) and also just clipped into the yolk mounted chart holder 'slider groove' with a pleasing 'thupp' sound on the 757. they were made for each other. Why, oh why, oh why...................
Sadly the Hilton have gone green and now produce those god awful cardboard toilet rolls with a cheap and nasty BLUE refill, non-retractible and after any more than a couple of sectors use, totally unable to keep the refill held in due to 'cardboard swell'. They go fuzzy on the outside and resemble a chip wrapper after a day's use with the amount of grease and dirt they hold in the now decaying cardboard outer. They are not doing the environment any good at all as they get binned well before they run out and another one begins its short lifespan! They even say 'made from recycled cardboard' on the side! Fine, but do I really have to recycle it every day to have a useable pen.........!
So they have been banished to our recycling bin. Just about all the other hotel pens have equally gone down in quality. The 'Black Marriott' is a bendy Bic with a seperate top (ok to just bin the top and leave in the pen clip but no good for the old shirt pocket). The Tivoli is a blue version of the same
(don't like blue). The 'Fat Radisson' is black in colour (promising) but the ink is blue (disappointing) and the twist top (hmmn, not bad) lets you down when you find it twists the opposite way to what one would expect..........damn! Even more disappointing is the fact that I have just found another two in the pen drawer. Ahh, the Holiday Inn. Bendy Bic ( ahhhhhh), but black (hoorahhh!), still got a seperate top though (oooooohh). Old style Marriott, found at the back under the pencil shavings, looked good at a glance , but failed to deliver on closer inspection . Ohhh, a new contender. Euopcar, Gatwick circa 2002 I venture. Chunky, firm and grippable, ultra smooth action push-top, clip for the pocket, fine nib, it's got it all.................sh!te it's blue!!!!! Best Western. Ditto. Ahhh, the definitive. Papermate Flexgrip ultra. Push-top, pleasing 'click' action, firm rubber feel in the hand
(oo-err), comfortable, reliable, black , fine enough. My dream pen .............Jeremy Clarkson
