Newest Acquisitions (Virtual "Show & Tell") ~ part 145

Happy Groundhog Day! Here's a very quick shot of Punxsutawney Phil holding an inexpensive fountain pen I picked up on eBay last June, a model '325A' fountain pen made by Pirre Paul's (and yes, there is an apostrophe in the company name)...

(photos by Maja ~ please click on images to enlarge)

I didn't know much about the manufacturer before I bought the pen---I was just looking for a cheap white fountain pen on eBay--- but I found some information on their official website after the pen arrived from China (two and a half months after paying for it). Turns out that Pirre Paul's is a Taiwanese company, founded in 1991 (happy 30th anniversary!) that produces a variety of fountain pen, rollerball and ballpoint models (most of which are quite conservative in design, and rather nondescript, if I'm being perfectly honest). 

Nevertheless, this particular pen caught my eye because of its glossy white appearance and the orange ring near the cap top; I'd been on a white-pen-buying kick over the last couple of years but I love the colour orange, so this pen satisfied both of my colour obsessions preferences....all for the low, low price of $4 USD (plus $5 shipping).

 

Being a plastic pen, it's very light (15 grams, according to my kitchen scale) and although it can be used unposted, it's only 11 cm/4 ¼ inches long uncapped, which might be a bit too short for some folks. Posted, it's 15 ¼ cm/6 inches long, but really well-balanced, so I much prefer to use it that way. Also, I think it looks even better when posted--posting the pen creates near-seamless continuity from cap top to section end, as you can see in the photo above.

Aside from the thin orange ring and "pirre paul's" written on the cap, the pen is all white. This colour and the model's clean design and (nearly) unadorned look gives it a space age-y (think "2001: A Space Odyssey") vibe, which I love. The steel clip is flexible yet secure, and is stamped with an "R". The pen caps securely with a soft "click" and unposts with a satisfying "pop". You can't really see it in the photos, but the cap's finial is a small, recessed steel ball that is very smooth to the touch--handy if you need something to fidget with during a boring office/Zoom meeting.

The nib is a simple steel nib (engraved "R" and "P.P" below that) that writes smoothly out of the box. The pen takes short or long international cartridges, and it probably takes a converter, but mine didn't come with one. In addition to white, the '325A" fountain pen also comes in black, blue, blue-black, red and teal (it also comes in rollerball form... at a much lower price, if you can believe it!). All in all, I really like this pen and would recommend it if you're looking for an inexpensive, everyday, knockabout fountain pen to carry around with you.

(~review & pics by Maja)