Rotring 600 / Ohto GS02

Even though the bulk of my blog centers around mechanical pencils, I have been cheating. I've been writing with pen a lot more lately as I find they are better for taking sporadic notes and writing for long periods of time. Also, it's nice to change things up. I have worn the paint off of my Zebra G750 and put about a gallon of ink through my TWSBI Eco. I love writing with gel pens, but I have never found a ballpoint that clicked (pun intended) with me. I recently satisfied both of these "needs" with two new pens that greatly exceeded my expectations.

What is a Ballpoint Pen?

A ballpoint pen works by dispersing small amounts of ink via a small rotating ball located in the tip. They were invented as a more reliable alternative to fountain pens, and their utility has stood the test of time. The first ballpoint was patented in 1888 by John J. Loud who created it to write on rough surfaces, since doing so with a quill or fountain type pen would damage the sensitive nib. This version proved to be too rough on paper and wasn't successful at the time.
The second iteration came in 1938. A Hungarian journalist named László Bíró, and his brother György, created a version that used fast-drying ink and a smaller ball. This is the same version we use today. In the 1950's, Bic created the Bic Crystal, and the rest was history.

Rotring 600 Ballpoint

My first "nice" mechanical pencil was a Rotring. I saved up money from raking leaves to get the holy grail: a black Rotring 800. I have used that pencil for over 5 years and it still functions like it did the day I got it. I figured, why not try out their pens? The 600 comes in the same cool colors as the 600 pencil, which I like. I sprung for the Pearl White one, and I was / am very pleased.
I have used several mid-tier "premium" pens (Zebra Sarasa Grand, Pentel EnerGel Metal, etc.) but this one has risen to the top of my personal rankings. It looks good, feels good, and writes good. There are several quality of life features that really elevate this thing.

Like all Rotring x00 series writing instruments, it has a hexagonal body. This was originally designed to keep them from rolling off of angled drafting desks, but they still serve the same purpose for non-drafters. This thing will not roll. At all. Unless you tip it near vertical, which is expected. Another feature that I like is the spring in the pusher. Instead of the pusher being able to freely slide around when the pen is open, it springs back in place. This small feature makes this pen feel way more premium than it actually is.
My final note on the Rotring 600 Ballpoint is the colors. See below:

I am pretty sure these are all of them. While there are a few more colors of the pencil version, this range is certainly broad enough for most people.
Overall, I would recommend this pen to anyone. My personal gushing aside, it objectively performs very well and will likely hold up for many years.

Ohto GS02

Ohto is an interesting brand. They brought us the infamous "SUPER PROMECHA," which has apparently been discontinued. I wrote about it here. They also made the GSO1, a decent-at-best needle ballpoint. That being said, my expectations going in were not very high.
I was wrong. Very wrong. I know I say this a lot, but this is an amazing pen. Keep in mind that this is a one-generation difference going from the GS01 to the GS02. It's heavy. It's matte. It has most everything you could want out of a 15 dollar pen. Someone at Ohto must have read all the hate the GS01 got and really taken it to heart because this is something else. I don't want to base my entire review on the comparison between my two Ohtos, but it is a decent metric. This pen comes with a 0.5mm ceramic roller gel refill that is smooth as butter. It uses the same refill as the GS01, but the one that came with it is metal. This adds a bit of weight to the pen, but without it its still a solid pen. It also has the same spring pusher mechanism to cut down on rattle. That was a main gripe of mine with the GS01. Is rattled a lot and just felt cheap.

If you are trying to decide between this pen and the Rotring, go for this one. It typically runs about 5-10 dollars cheaper and is a much better value. They also have several colors, and it is taking everything in me not to scoop them up before these inevitably get discontinued.

Closing Note

These are two great pens that don't break the bank, and I recommend anyone in the market check them out! I hope you enjoyed this rambling article about my new pens. Please remember to follow me on Instagram, share this post with your pals, and Stay Sharp!

Also, I have a pretty big project in the works, so stay on t