[Pen/Pencil Review] The Sharpie Stainless Steel Pen

After I wrote last week’s review of the new Sharpie Pen RT design, a Twitter follower asked if I’d tried the Stainless Steel Sharpie pen. I told him that the pen was in the queue to review, and decided to go ahead and just get it done. And now, back-to-back Sharpie reviews.

I picked up two before Christmas for our Christmas Stockings – my husband and I both wanted one – at WalMart. We wanted to try these since we have the Stainless Steel Fine Point Markers. A quick note about the Stainless Steel Sharpies – they may cost more initially than regular Sharpies, but they’re worth it. 1. They’re refillable, so you’re only investing in refills. 2. They’re a lot less likely to “wander” because they are quite noticeable. I tell stories about how many Sharpie markers I had go on tour with musicians because they were “permanently borrowed”. That doesn’t happen (yet) with the Stainless Steel ones.

So, the Sharpie Stainless Steel Pen…They’re porous point – which I mentioned in my last review are my least favorite points. I bend them, fray them, and eventually destroy them. But this one seems pretty durable, for what it is. The refill is one solid piece of work with a rubber “comfort” grip and a seemingly large ink reserve. The ink flows smoothly, doesn’t feather, skip, or bleed (as promised on packaging). The barrel is well constructed and balanced. The ridge where the refill meets the barrel is far enough back on grip to only be occasionally in the way or annoying.

The Stainless Steel pens are NOT retractable. They are capped and are just over 5.75″ capped. They’re about 6.5″ long with the cap posted. And here’s the thing, though the cap posts securely – I was bored and shook it to make sure, it doesn’t fly off – the cap doesn’t “lock” so it can LOOK wobbly and off center when posted. It doesn’t affect balance or feel, but it looks weird. But I LOVE the length and heft. This pen feels good in my hand.

Grading:
1. How does it write? – 1 – for a porous point. It performs well. Smooth flow, lives up to promise.

2. Grip and feel – 1 – the ‘comfort’ grip is actually comfortable, soft but firm. It’s also a good diameter to be comfortable in my hand. Well-balanced. Took a long time to fatigue.
3. Material – 1 – solid design and craftsmanship. We’ve had the first fine points for a while and the stainless has held up well to purse and bag battering without scratching or tarnish. The refills are a solid piece and don’t leak.
4. Overall Design – .5 – the ridge where the refill meets the barrel does SOMETIMES get in the way and dig into the thumb webbing.
5. Price Point – .5 – the initial outlay can be a bit pricey. The initial cost is ~$5-$7 depending where you find them. The refills tend to run about $2.00. It’s not outrageous, but something to consider.

Overall – 4 Bronze Pencils out of 5.

Tags: pen, Porous Point, Sharpie, Stainless Steel, writing instrument