Rotring Rapid Pro Ballpoint Pen - 1.0 mm - Black Body - Blue Ink

I've had my Rapid Pro for about a month now and am, overall, quite pleased. I was not overwhelmed by the ink the pen came with. I replaced it with a Parker Gel refill and am much happier with the writing. The pen is a joy to write with. Great weight. Lovely texture. Looks sharp. I have a few minor complaints. The first is that the clicky on the top of the pen feels a bit loose. No real problems with it yet, but it doesn't give the most confidence for long-term durability. The second is that the Rapid Pro is just not as nice feeling a writing implement as the Rotring 600 pencil. I miss the crisp lines and narrow styling of 600. The Rapid Pro is just slightly larger in diameter and the hexagonal shape is slightly rounded at the edge. Otherwise, I anticipate this being a pen that I will use for years to come.

I purchased this pen about 3 months ago, and since then it has become the pen I go to for everyday writing. Prior to this pen, I was using the Retro 51 Hex-o-matic Black Ballpoint pen. My main complaint about this pen was that it felt scratchy when I moved the pen across the page. This is not the case with this pen.

The ink quality is smooth and bold. The weight is perfect, and the textured grip feels great between my fingers. My only complaint is that it takes a moment for the ink to start flowing. Whereas, the ink immediately began to flow from the Retro 51 Hexomatic.

The speed at which the ink begins to flow from the pen is less of an issue with me as is the feeling of moving the pen across the page.

I confidently give this pen 5/5 stars!

The best 2mm lead holder... EVER!!

I love this lead holder. It is heaver than the Staedtler 925-35 -- which I like. It is mechanically excellent, and has never failed to function. The lead sharpener in the cap works, but I prefer to use a dedicated sharpener -- less messy. The grip is standard Rotring.

This is the best lead holder I have ever found (I just bought 3 more just in case they ever stop making them)...

Background info: own Rotring 600 0.5mm silver (purchased from JetPens), 2000 vintage Rotring 0.5mm silver retractable mech. pencil (unsure of the model #), and Uni Kuru Toga (purchased from JetPens), engineer by trade so I take a lot of notes and draw a lot.

Purchased the Rapid Pro 0.5mm black after a lot of research as I was considering the Rotring 800 as I need a good retractable version of the Rotring 600. I love my 600 (and those around me who comment about it) in every way except for the non-retractable tip that scares me when I walk away from my office. Nothing compares to the feel of a good writing instrument.

People complain about the Rapid Pro's lightness (lighter than my 600, but a tank compared to most everything else), the less aggressive knurled grip (no issues as it still is knurled and provides good grip), too much plastic (the 600 has plastic parts internally and the only Rapid Pro plastic that you can touch without disassembly is the red strip. the body is all metal albeit thinner than the 600).

The Rotring 800 was too expensive and heavy...plus to extract the tip required you to twist the top. I prefer just to press down on the top in a single handed motion to extend the tip instead of 2 hands for the 800.

My older Rotring retractable has zero knurling on the grip, so it looks cool, but has zero grip. I wish the Rapid Pro had this type of retractable tip as the extension and retraction are made with simply pushing down on the top where as the Rapid Pro I have to push the tip in manually while pushing down on the top to retract the tip.

The only thing I don't like about the Rapid Pro is the hole in the top of the cap that shows off the eraser. Probably would have chosen the silver version if I knew of that hole. In general I like using it more than my 600 which is now been moved to home office duty...both awesome pencils, but the retractable tip is the trump card for workplace duty.

SparcEE

Yet another lead holder that doesn't fit a standard rotary lead pointer. it's a nice pencil, the knurled grip isn't as harsh as the 600, has nice weight to it, and it looks nice. those are it's good points, but the bad points seem to outweigh the good. the the interior is plastic. everything inside the pencil except for the jaws are plastic. the male threads that hold the knurled grip to the body are plastic, and that's never good, especially for the price of the pencil. the pencil isn't very responsive, has a harsh click that scraps the body as you advance the lead. the jaws that hold the lead in place seem weak. i placed the pencil in a pierce electric lead pointer and the lead itself would just spin. the jaws don't provide the hold needed to sharpen the pencil. if we look at the staedtler 925, ( which doesn't fit into a rotary lead pointer either ) it does the same job this one does, but a lot better, and for a lot less. all the components are brass, no plastic in the assembly, has a strong clutch and operates very smoothly when advancing the lead. you would think that the rotring would do a much better job considering it's price, but unfortunately it doesn't . unless you want to just buy this piece to add to a collection, i say pass this one by, and jet pens, you should really buy one standard rotary lead pointer at an art store, and test the pencils to make sure they fit before telling your customers that they do.

mariochavez.deviantart.com