Customer Reviews

The only complaint I have about this pencil is when the cap is posted, it is able to wiggle around as you write. Actually, the whole top half of the pencil rotates, not just the silver part that you take off to put in new lead. Other than that, this pencil is great, and people always comment on it.

The build quality is fantastic, It is what you would expect from the Tasche line if you own one of them. Very sleek and elegant and make good use of a all aluminum body. The body width is very standard to many plastic bodied pencils on the market with a hidden eraser at the top hidden by the rubber grommet cap.

The way the pencil is designed feels slightly odd and maybe uncomfortable for those who use the thumb to press the cap mechanism. There is ample space where your hand rests but the click mechanism rests just above your index finger in the middle of the pencil body. This may result in the pencil feeling fragile and unbalanced.

The amount of lead being fed out is very generous, not too much or not to little. The quality of lead being used will greatly increase your usage pleasure as the pencil flows across the page instead of inferior leads scratching the surface.

See my other review for the Ohto Tasche Needle Ballpoint Pen. Again, Ohto "outdid" them on this one. The point for the pencil is positioned far enough in so I don't feel like I'm writing with a foot of metal out in front of my fingers, but yet the pipe that carries the lead is long enough for any drafting or mechanical engineering applications.

The photographs do not show the location of the eraser, but it is underneath the silver cap which holds that black rubber O-Ring. When you twist off the cap you can easily tell by "feel" alone that the threads were machined properly; there's no "scratchy" grinding.

Another outstanding feature is when you press the cap to advance lead. You get just the right amount. You don't get 2mm of lead, which will inevitably break; rather, your supplied with about .75 to 1mm of lead. . . that's PERFECT.

Having read the older reviews about poor writing ability, I felt compelled to write a more recent review stating I find the Ohto Tasche writing ability to be excellent.

Using the default Ohto ink cartridge I find this pen puts down a fine line, about the same as the Ohto F-Spirit. I suspect that when the Ohto cartridge runs out and I replace the ink in it with Noodler's Black, it may write a slightly thicker line, but, I anticipate it'll be just like the Ohto F-Spirit in this regard.

Given how inexpensive this fountain pen is, it's a great deal. No idea if its steel nib maybe more prone to damage if too much pressure is applied to it, but, over the last three weeks, it's writing just fine for me.

My only regret about this pen is that it won't take an ink converter. I'm going to have to resort to using a syringe to refill a used cartridge when I want to use bottled ink. However, I do find that the Ohto black ink is fine (aside from lack of water proof qualities). For the price and the size, that's a small price to pay.

I bought this guy during a long stint in Korea at one of the many Home Plus shopping centers because: 1. It looks really cool and folds down small, and 2. I write exclusively with fountain pens and collect them. I picked a few days before I left and decided to leave it in its packaging until I got home in the USA where I could unbox it and play with it.

The result with cheap ink and a stiff nib was something that was unwritable. I'm left handed, but my writing style rarely effects the flow of decent fountain pens--this guy had almost no ink come out of its extremely stiff nib. I handed it off to my brother who is right handed and he stated that it wrote well for him and that was that.

A month later, I noticed he was no longer using it and instead was stealing one of my other nice steel fountain pens. I asked him why, and he noted that the ink skipped--a lot. To the point where the pen was unusable in any environment. So I asked for it back to see what was going on.

Like other users have noted, the nib is so tight that little to no ink can flow through the nib without extreme amounts of pressure (and again this nib is very hard, so it will easily damage the paper underneath). The solution to this problem, like another reviewer stated is using a small piece of brass (you can use a very fine piece of steel to, or even a fine razor) to open the gap and customize the pen to your liking. Take the nib and press it against your work desk until the nib separates enough to stick whatever little thing you're using and let it rest on it. Keep doing it with various sizes, testing every step along the way until you get it right where you want it. If it's too much, just press the nib together and fold it over one another and BAM it's smaller.

It takes some time adjusting it right, but once it is done it's a decent writer for the price and style (seriously styling).

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Not usable out of the box, but if you don't mind a little tweaking a nifty little pen.
When it arrived I was disappointed. The line was very weak and skippy, like a used-up ballpoint, and I had to press on it to get it to write at all. If it had been a more expensive pen I would have sent it back but I decided "what the heck, maybe I can make it work".
After some research on FPN I figured out that the tines of the nib were adjusted too tightly, thus starving the point of ink. I used the same resource to find out how to "floss" the nib with a piece of .001" brass shim stock (I happened to have some, but it's available in most hardware stores). It took a little trial and error but now that I have the nib dialed in, it writes just fine even with the (underwhelming) factory ink.
PRO - I like the design, especially the compact size which fits right into my pocket or planner.
- If you don't mind tinkering with it a little, it's a fun little pen. Mine works fine now. If it had written this way out of the box I would have given it 4 stars.
CON - I docked the score because I had to work on it to make it usable at all, let alone "just right".
- The cap threads felt gritty; a tiny dab of petroleum jelly fixed that.
Although this is a mixed review, believe it or not I like the Tasche and will probably get another one. Now that I know what to do, tweaking a new Tasche would be a 5 minute job. For a $15 pen I don't mind doing a little tinkering, but YMMV.
Just don't expect this pen to be perfect out of the box.

See my other review for the Ohto Tasche Needle Ballpoint Pen. Again, Ohto "outdid" them on this one. The point for the pencil is positioned far enough in so I don't feel like I'm writing with a foot of metal out in front of my fingers, but yet the pipe that carries the lead is long enough for any drafting or mechanical engineering applications.

The photographs do not show the location of the eraser, but it is underneath the silver cap which holds that black rubber O-Ring. When you twist off the cap you can easily tell by "feel" alone that the threads were machined properly; there's no "scratchy" grinding.

Another outstanding feature is when you press the cap to advance lead. You get just the right amount. You don't get 2mm of lead, which will inevitably break; rather, your supplied with about .75 to 1mm of lead. . . that's PERFECT.

This pen nib is well into the medium size, and is somewhat scratchy to write with. OHTO ink is very watery and therefore flows well, but sometimes skips, and dry time is completely horrible. I did a smear test and it took 60 seconds to dry on paper from an Eccolo World Traveler notebook. On paper with great gain, like standard 3x5 cards, the ink was mostly dry in 15 seconds.

Because I am left handed, I have to take extreme care when writing with the OHTO ink. I tried to write three checks with this pen- Just say no to that! I'm going to try the different cartridges and see how it goes.

I did not have to adjust the nib, like other writers have.

I like the feel of the pen, which is very light. Weight is balanced towards the nib, slightly but not obtrusively. The compact nature of the pen is great for carrying in a jeans pocket.

I'm a very new convert to fountain pens- I ordered this pen, and the Sailor Candy as my noob starters. I like the look of this pen, and the way it packs up so tiny. But it doesn't sit in my hand well, and the cap doesn't stay on tight when posted. The ink leaks and gets all over my hands, and the line isn't consistent (or, at least the nib isn't as forgiving as the Sailor and the ink skips quite a bit when not held perfectly.) I am sad, as I wanted this to be my in-purse-carry-around for a more professional look. I just don't want to think that hard about how I'm holding my pen.

I have 8 fountain pens, and this is my favorite. I had some trouble with dry ink flow, so I flossed the tines of the nib with nylon thread I had from quilting. It wrote very nicely then, with an even flow. Then I switched from Noodler's Blue to Aurora Black ink. Now it writes like my friend's expensive Waterman, just wet enough and very, very smooth.

I love the cobalt blue color and the silver barrel, and the pen's overall design is very attractive. I like how compact it is. I wish it could use a converter, but that's a tradeoff in a pen this compact.

I'd been coveting one of these pens for awhile because they are super pretty but was wary of actually getting one because of all the subpar reviews. I ended up finally biting the bullet and getting one and have to say I'm actually pretty impressed. Like the previous reviewers have said, it's pretty much unusable out of the box, but if you bend the tines slightly the writing improves significantly. I will admit it took awhile to get it just right, but now it's one of my go to pens.

I have been using this pen for a few months now, mainly writing in my Moleskine watercolor journal to annotate my sketches. I love the pink color and compact size of the pen--it fits neatly in my small watercolor sketch kit. It writes beautifully and reliably in response to a light touch. Too much pressure and it feels somewhat scratchy unless the paper is extremely smooth. I'm generally writing on generously sized, somewhat textured watercolor paper with it. It is fine on that with a light touch...I get a nice consistent line and ink flow whether I am writing cursively or in block letters. Here is an example page from my journal:

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/brindlestudio/7094902931/" title="19 APR 2012: Allium by CarolePivarnik, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7114/7094902931_74b0aba141.jpg" width="500" height="310" alt="19 APR 2012: Allium"></a>

Recently, I refilled a cartridge with Noodler's Lexington Gray (using a syringe). It took some effort to flush out the original non-waterproof ink but once the Lex Gray started flowing through I finally had reasonably waterproof ink in my pen. That allows me to sketch in watercolor as usual and not worry that writing already in place may smear. And frankly, I feel the pen writes more smoothly with the Lex Gray than it does with its "native" cartridge ink.

The pen has stood up fairly well to my not-so-careful handling and frequent exposure to water, but it is worth noting that the words "Ohto Tasche" which are silkscreened onto the cap have partially flaked off. I'm not fussed about it (and didn't take any stars off) because my concern is mainly how well the pen writes and serves as a daily journaling tool. In that capacity it is great. Of course, if the pen were handled more carefully than I do mine, the paint flaking off might not be an issue.

If this pen were available with a medium nib, I would certainly buy it.

I bought this pen a couple of years ago and have been very satisfied with it. The nib is smooth and lays down a fairly wet, fine-medium line, unlike many Japanese pens which tend to run to extra-fine. I used it in my planner/notebook and it never failed to write when needed. It was also beautifully made, and the cap slid smoothly and snugly over the barrel. It exudes quality. I refilled the cartridge with Waterman or Noodlers ink and never had a problem with flow.

My only caveat is that, because it's a mini pen, the barrel is narrow. But, it fits where others don't.

I'd happily buy it again and recommend it highly.

Perfect and cute! I have no issues with pen skipping :D A good converter for this pen is the Monteverde Mini Converter.

I have used this pencil for a couple of months. It is utterly unreliable, requiring constant disassembly to get the lead to advance. Every time I use it it jams, and it will not feed lead after only a few clicks. Using different leads, and cleaning out the mechanism, has not helped. It looks so nice, but it is completely useless for writing. Move along; there is nothing to see here.

Perhaps I am luckier than others here...but it works really well and smooth first time I tried it! I was prepared to work on tines of the nib to get the flow going (as mentioned somewhere else on internet) but this is great instrument! Like the metal build and look. fine nib is fine like everything else out there....although not as fine as my Pilot VP

This is the worst I have ever used.. Jammed all the time.. never worked properly... I just threw it away with the money I spent on it....

I'd just like to re-review this item.

As I said in the prior rating:
It is a beautiful pencil, loose design, and squeaky click mechanism.

Now after having using pencil for a more extensive period:
If we were rating on beauty only- this pencil would receive a 5-Star
If it were rated overall- it would be my new score: 3 stars.

The top half of the pencil (above the metal band in the center) rotates. Initially I enjoyed rotating it, but now it simply squeaks and it really irks me.
The click mechanism was initially reviewed as loose, and squeaky and I didn't mind. Now it bothers the hell out of me and feels like a weak pencil.

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Now the biggest complaints:

The grip is just simply too much form, and no function. It's smooth metal, with no rivets or anything. No grip at all. It becomes uncomfortable after a short period of time, and it feels too thick compared to my normal preference to really enjoy. It feels... unnatural.

The feel of the writing just feels really... off. I can't explain. It feels like I'm hardly applying any pressure on the paper and my writing just looks a lot lighter/more faded than normal. From further examination, I've concluded it's the length of the tip of the pencil; it's simply not long enough and my angle of writing had become too high and the lead was not applying enough pressure.

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Summary:
Don't buy a pencil based on beauty alone. This was simply not the pencil for me.

I own this pen and consider it average, but there are better alternatives--especially if you can spend more. Although 1/3 longer, the Pilot Capless "decimo" pen is far superior with an exceptionally well-made iridium-alloy tipped 18K rhodium-plated gold nib. Also, Pilot's Stella 90s is a great, little pen that is, unfortunately, ignored.
Please note that on the OHTO Tasche and other OHTO fountain pens, the steel "iridium point Germany" nib is actually made in China and quality control isn't the best. Just because it says "Germany" does not mean that it is "Made in Germany." This fact has been documented by the famous pen repair and nib expert Richard Binder in a recent issue of Stylus magazine.
BTW, there is, in fact, a very short International-sized converter that probably fits the Tasche although using one defeats the pen's 'portable' design. I believe isellpens.com may carry the correct converter.

This is a very attractive mechanical pencil body. But each time I've had one, it's gotten a terrible jam and is rendered unusable unless you have a clean out rod! If you are willing to stop and fix your pencil every so often, the design of the Ohto Tasche is gorgeous and, despite its slimness, is very comftorable to write or draw with.

I couldn't do anything to get it to write evenly, and gave up on it after about 1 hour of struggle. The pen is great to look at but using it is a horrible, frustrating experience.

I could not get this pen to write. I tried everything that my limited knowledge allowed- such as changing the cartridge, squeezing the cartridge, and finally soaking the Nib. I can't get it to do more than scratch the paper with a faint line.

my feeling is very good for thsi good shape and writing process is trendy.

People are noting that with this pen there are inkflow problems. I initially fond this with mine, but upon inspection found that the feed and nib were ill-aligned. A small amount of pressure on the side of the nib with a fingertip was sufficient to adjust its positoning, and now it works beautifully. Rather than throwing it on the "broken pen" pile, please check and adjust this first.

I love the visual design and the nib has a nice feel, but I also had problems with skipping ink flow. I took the pen apart and washed the nib section thoroughly in case there had been some manufacturing oils still present. But still no luck. It sits in my "broken pen" pile now.