I make a lot of mistakes, therefore I use a professional Pilot .5 mechanical
pencil with a push button retractable point (not just the lead, the whole
point) similar to a ball point pen. I agree the ball point pen is a
mechanical marvel.
Regards,
Bob...
-------------------------------
"In the carboniferous epoch
we were promised perpetual peace.
They swore if we gave up our weapons
that the wars of the tribes would cease.
But when we disarmed they sold us,
and delivered us, bound, to our foe.
And the gods of the copybook headings said,
'Stick to the devil you know.' "
--Rudyard Kipling
From: "Treena Harp" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> Bravo! I confess I have never seen such a comprehensive treatise on such
> underappreciated objects. I find such odd facts fascinating (I'm not
> joking.)
>
> >
> > It is clear that you know little or nothing about the ball point pen,
> > but, before going into a few details please understand that I chose
> > the pen over the pencil because the pencil points often broke and, of
> > course, always wore down. This simple fact of of pencil usage would
> > have required carrying a pencil sharpener, either a dedicated, small,
> > pocketable sharpener or a knife with which to whittle a sharp, usable
> > point. The pencil then became too complex and cumbersome to use.
> >
> > Now to the ball point pen. The ball point pen is almost as old as
> > photography itself, having been invented prior to October, 1888, the
> > date when it was patented. It was met with mixed success, although it
> > worked well for rough marking of items, as the ball was not very
> > precisely ground and the ink was rather thick. However, in 1944 an
> > Argentinean by the name of Lazlo Biro (coincidentally, a distant
> > relative to a high school classmate, Barbara Biro) was able to
> > successfully produce an accurately ground ball that would ride in a
> > brass socket. This was the first ball point pen that could achieve
> > fine enough detail for correspondence and be able to compete with the
> > fountain pen in producing even lines.
> >
> > We'll jump ahead to 1954, skipping over some of the the problems with
> > the Biro design and with marketing and economics. 1954 was a
> > watershed year for the ball-point, as that's when the Parker Pen
> > Company brought out it's first model - the Jotter. It offered a
> > number of innovative features, including the ability for the user to
> > choose point sizes and therefore individualize his or her writing
> > style. Then, in 1957 or 1958 Parker introduced the T-Ball Jotter,
> > which used a textured tungsten carbide ball, incorporated in the
> > Jotter, hence the name "T-Ball Jotter". By 1961 it became the best
> > selling ball pen around the world in the quality (over $1.00) price
> > category. Since that time parker has improved the T-Ball Jotter, and
> > changed from a brass socket to a stainless steel socket in 1963. Of
> > course there were other improvements as well.
> >
> > So, being true to form, I am using old technology which has been
> > proven over time and updated with modern materials while still
> > maintaining its original integrity. The actual pens that I use date
> > from 1963, when I bought my first T-Ball Jotter with black ink and an
> > extra fine point. What is especially nice about these simple
> > ball-point pens is, like leica and pentax, their complete
> > compatibility. Older pen bodies can use the newer cartridges. The
> > ball points that I use are almost as old as my Leicas (which were made
> > in 1959 and 1960) and older than almost all my Pentax gear.
> >
> > Now, if you'll indulge me a bit further, I'd like to return to the
> > pencil, which you suggest is a "good, old fashioned" instrument.
> > While it's true that the history of the pencil can be traced back to,
> > I believe, the early to mid 1500s, the pencil as we know it really
> > didn't come into existence before about 1812, and the first pencil
> > factory in the US was established in 1840. However, pencils of this
> > era were still rather crude, and it wasn't until many years later that
> > the pencil, as we know it today came into being, even though it has
> > gone through many changes in manufacturing technique and materials.
> > In fact, while the pencil is in fact older than the ball point pen,
> > one may argue that the ball point pen is older than the contemporary
> > pencil design. For a more detailed account of the history of the
> > pencil, I'd suggest reading Henry Petroski's book, "The Pencil - A
> > History of Design and Circumstance" published in 1990 by Alfred A.
> > Knopf. It's really an excellent book.
> >
> > In any case, both the ball point pen and the pencil fit well within
> > the technology parameters with which I'm most comfortable. I just
> > opted for convenience and a somewhat more durable and long lasting
> > technology (a Parker ball pen will produce more than 28,000 linear
> > feet of writing - one would use up many pencils to equal that),
> > although the history of how the pencil came to be what it is today is,
> > perhaps, a more interesting story. Oh, one other thing - Parker pens
> > come with a lifetime warranty. Should anything go wrong with my 1963
> > T-Ball Jotter, Parker will stand behind it. Pencils have no such
> > warranty.
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