[Pen/Pencil Review] Fisher Space Pen Space Shuttle Edition

Today’s pen is the is another Fisher Space Pen – this one I bought when we went to Houston and visited the Johnson Space Center (Yay! NASA!). It is chrome over brass with a gold space shuttle on it. Which made it a must have.

This pen came with a PR4 Medium Point Black pressurized ink cartridge. This is what makes the Fisher Space Pen unique. The medium point is a 1.1mm ball point. The pressurized barrel of the ink lets this pen write in more environments and angles than other pens, and touts a longer lasting ink life. They do make a 0.9mm “fine point” refill (which I have one somewhere or need to buy a couple more but they’re not super cheap – but they also have the gas pressure, work everywhere, technology.

Fisher has been making pens for the Space program for a long time. This pen is just over 5” long retracted and 5.25” with the point extended. The cap/plunger and most of the barrel are smooth chrome over brass with a metal clip embellished with a gold space shuttle. The top of the cap is flat for easy plunger action. The grip is etched brass with chrome plating for something to hold on to.

I picked this one up at the Space Center Houston gift shop and can’t find it available anywhere else. I believe this exclusive to NASA’s gift shops and runs $30. So not cheap but not horrible for what it is – a very cool, geeky momento of the nation’s space program.

The numbers:

1. How does it work? – 1 – I haven’t tried writing with this pen underwater or in zero gravity, but it does write at all angles. I’d show you, but it’s hard to get that proof. The ink flows well. It does what it says it does.
2. Grip and feel – 0.5 – It’s got traction, not a “grip”. The grip is a ribbed etching in the chrome plating. It’s all metal, and borderline comfortable on diameter and length – but the edge of the cap to the barrel for the retractation doesn’t dig too much
3. Material – 1 – It’s brass. So it’s a sturdy but light pen – for the barrel. The colors and design make it a lovely pen that can stand up to some beating and the space shuttle detail seems secure.
4. Overall Design – 1 – It’s well-designed for what it is. It’s about the normal length of a typical retractable pen. It’s pretty. It can be used in any condition. Nothing about it feels cheap or flimsy. And it does write in a lot of ways.
5. Price Point – 0.5 – It’s not cheap. This one runs $29.00 at Paradise Pen Company. You can probably find it cheaper or on sale in other places. Refills are available – in a wide array of colors, and even some different point types for common colors – for $6-$7 a pop depending on where you get them. That’s not cheap, but for the length of time they’re useable and how many ways you can use the refills, it makes this a long term use pen that evens out the investment.

That’s 4 of 5 bronze pencils.

Tags: Ballpoint, Fisher Space Pen, Johnson Space Center, NASA, pen, Pencil, Space Shuttle