Review: rOtring Rapid Pro 1.0mm Ballpoint Pen - Black Body @JetPens

SEXY TIME.

ABOUT

Body Material: Metal
Trim: Metal
Length: 5.7"
Diameter (barrel): 0.3"
Diameter (section): 0.3"
Weight: 1.85 oz
Fill type: Ballpoint refills
Price: $40.50USD
Where to buy: JetPens

PACKAGING

I was pretty unimpressed by the very bland packaging of this rOtring pen. It was just plain cardboard/paper, a pale grey, and folded over on itself. Not something worth keeping. I mean, the pen is beyond cool and I knew it would be so this is easy to overlook and the packaging did not spoil my excitement whatsoever, but let's face it: it's not exciting packaging.

On the other hand, I usually throw out my packaging anyway, so I'm glad fewer resources were wasted on the packaging. I suppose I'm torn.

APPEARANCE

This pen is wicked cool. Damn. I've been watching it for awhile and I just kept thinking "$40 for a ballpoint... you could get a fountain pen for that". Alas, this is true, but in the end, I got it and I'm most happy because it is le awesome.

It leans slightly on the slender side, with a super sexy knurled grip, sleek body, low profile clip, and an all black powder-coated black body. Talk about sexy. Not to be missed, the classic red ring is just above the knurled grip on this pen. I love its appearance. It is just really cool.

PERFORMANCE


I really enjoy writing with this pen. I'm not against ballpoints (you know, like some fountain pen lovers are...). I love the weight of the pen and the knurled grip. The refill is pretty decent and I have no complaints about its performance - I have experienced no blobbing or skipping at all. Ballpoints are great about starting up immediately and this one doesn't fail in that department. Great performance overall.

IN HAND

The combination of the weight of this pen and its broad nib, super smooth refill  means one thing: comfortable writing. Why? Very little pressure is needed to actually write. In addition, the knurled grip holds your fingers in place without you having to death grip the pen. The pen's weight provides writing momentum. It is a wicked combination. There is some cool engineering behind this thing, isn't there rOtring? That's a lot of work to type.

I would imagine for larger hands, the somewhat slender body could be an issue for long writing sessions. I would hope the knurled grip would help alleviate that but it might not. For me, it's not a problem because my hands aren't that big.

PROS

• Sexy appearance. 
• Quiet knocker. 
• Fantastic writing experience. 
• Very cool. Will increase your coolness exponentially.
• Refillable.
• Also available in a silver body. And drafting pencils if you're completely insane and need ALL.
• Accept several different refill types (Moleskine, Parker, Rotring).

CONS

• Price.  
• Potentially too slender a body for large hands. 

OVERALL

I'll keep this simple: wicked pen, looks awesome, super comfortable to write with, especially with the rOtring refill in there. It flows so smoothly with this broad tip. Juicy smooth. Love it. Get one. I want the silver to match it. Also the pencils.