I’ve been testing out the orange Spoke pen for the last few weeks. When I write testing, I really mean abusing. I’ve been carrying it with me everywhere. I’ve used it at work, on the bus, outside, and at home. Right now you can sign up to buy your own via Kickstarter. The kickstarter campaign ends on 20190309 (March 9th, 2019.)

It hasn’t disappointed.

The pen arrived swaddled in bubble wrap from The Pen Addict himself. The pen is lightweight but feels sturdy. The cap is the heaviest part of the pen and moved the balance when capped. The pen cannot be posted, which works well enough for me, but might be a deal breaker for some. The clip is simple and springy. It’s not tight but grips to things well. I carried this clipped to my shirt and it never once slipped or fell off. It stays where you clip it. I also carried this clipped into my leather Fodderstack XL (LFXL) and it stayed in my pocket. I dropped my LFXL and the pen stayed IN the pen slot.

The body of the pen consists of two parts- the grip and the body. The grip has rings to improve the grip rather than knurling. I’d love to see a deeply knurled version of this grip. The grooves feel good and are easy to like. I could also see some silicone or rubber o-rings slid into the grooves. In other words I see loads of potential for customization here.

The body of the pen has slots cut into the sides. They expose a sleeve inside the body of the pen. In this case that sleeve is black, but there are plans to offer additional colors and color combinations. I find that the slots offer a tactile fidget opportunity. I like the look and the feel.

The pen takes Uniball Signo DX or Uni-ball Signo UMR-1 refills. It ships with one 0.5 refill but others are available via Amazon or Jetpens. They are available in 0.28 on up. I like the 0.38 or 0.5. The 0.5 is slim but also smooth, while the 0.38 can be a bit scratchy.

Inside the body is a spring that holds the tip tight but also allows for different refill lengths. Everything in this pen is tight and it doesn’t make a noise as I write.

The cap deserves another mention here. It is held to the pen via rare earth magnets. The cap slides on smoothly and snaps in place after a certain point. I find myself fidgeting with this gain and again. Despite the pen being held into the cap with magnets I found that it never slid out while I was wearing it clipped to my shirt. It stayed perfectly in place.

Clearly, I like this pen. The orange is bright without being neon. I can find it easily in my bag or on my desk. I like the fact that it holds a refill that most pen bodies ignore. Like Brad, I’m a fan of the Uniball Signo, it’s a great pen and the UMR refills are among the best Uniball make. They are also a superior pen refill for sketching- laying down smooth even lines that dry water resistant.

Any refillable pen body is an investment. Like any investment one must decide how much of an investment they are willing to dive into. The Spoke pen is not cheap, at $60, it is on par with any other machined pen body. It is made and assembled in the US. It’s a gorgeous pen that is durable as hell. If you like the Uniball Signo DX this might be the refillable investment for you.

I ordered this pen on eBay for $7.12 and it arrived from China 15 days later. It was packaged in an inexpensive black gift box, of the sort that inexpensive necklaces might be packaged. Inside a velvet drawstring pouch held the pen within a thin plastic sleeve. The cheap pouch (available from the same seller for 99 cents) sits atop a bed of black foam. Altogether the package is then in a plastic bag, and inside another bubble envelope, then wrapped in bubble wrap and slid into a plastic envelope. The whole thing is very secure and my pen arrived in good condition.

I ordered a second pen from another seller on eBay for $1.66. It arrived 25 days after purchase in a bubble mailer and in a thin plastic sleeve. I was not expecting much for $1.66

The 6118 is a piston filling pen. It mashes together the looks and features of several different brands. The body of the pen looks much like a TWSBI Diamond or Eco or Pilot Prera. It uses the same piston mechanism as the Wing Sung 6008. The piston works delightfully well, sucking up a huge portion of ink, roughly 1.9ml. The body of the pen is also easy to disassemble- remove the silver ring near the fill knob and the whole mechanism pops out. This allows for easy cleaning and lubrication of the mechanism.

The feed on this pen is also Lamy style and clear. I quite enjoy the clear feed. It lets me see ink flowing through the mechanism. The nib is Lamy or Platinum style. Sadly mine does not also fit Lamy nibs but it does fit and work with Platinum Preppy nibs, but not well. The feed is too long for the Preppy nib and fits awkwardly. It only properly fits Wing Sung knock off nibs. The nib on the pen I received is terrible. I do not have a heavy hand but managed to spring and bend this nib to hell and back. It took some work to get it back to somewhat normal after my springiness test. Once aligned and fitted to the feed again the nib works fine. I did order a replacement Wing Sung nib, but that took 2 weeks to arrive. (More on this later.)

The second pen ordered had a dark grey feed and a terrific nib. It worked very well right out of the envelope.

The cap is a direct riff of the Lamy Safari wire clip and cap. It screws on and off the pen in about 3 to 4 turns. The wire clip has sharper bends than a Lamy but it works just as well. I’ve clipped it to my shirt, a pocket and to my notebooks. It works great. You could post it, but posting throws the entire balance of the pen off. It posts to the silver ring that holds the piston mechanism into the pen. Pulling the cap off the back of the pen incorrectly could cause a squirt or dribble of ink.

Overall, I really like this pen. The piston filling mechanism sucks ink in perfectly each time and is smooth. The clear plastic lets me see all the ink moving around plus the mechanism working. The clear feed adds to the whole look. While the nib on this pen is junk the rest of the pen is well worth the $7 price tag. The rest of the packaging serves only to protect the pen and would not be a great presentation, depending on who you were gifting the pen. The 6008 has significantly better packaging.

I ordered 3 “Genuine” Wing Sung nibs from yet another seller on eBay for just over $3USD. The replacement was as easy as ripping off the old junk nib and sliding the new one in place. You’ve got to be gentle and careful when you slide the new nib into place, Now that I’ve done this, the pen works great. Look for a seller who sells these pens with nibs that have a Wing Sung logo.

In my search for a new nib I found another listing for the 6118, for a whole $1.66. I jumped on it and wow, the second pen is great right out of the envelope. Smooth stiff nib, good flow, and sucks up a massive 1.9ml of ink. At $10, this pen is a good deal if you get one with a good nib. This is a great cheap pen.

This pen took 21 days to arrive on my doorstep after ordering via a seller in China on eBay. The 51A cost $3.98 with free shipping. Packaging was a simple plastic sleeve over the pen and a thin lightweight bubble wrap envelope. I was surprised it arrived in one piece.

Inside the envelope and sleeve is the pen. I ordered one of the wooden versions, there are several. I particularly liked the visible graining on the “Tiger Sandalwood.” I have no idea if this is really sandalwood or not, but it looks great. The wood arrives dull but smooth. Nothing a little work can’t fix.

The nib is a standard Jinhao fine number 5 nib. Mine have all been smooth from the first inking to the last and this was no different from the other Jinhao pens I’ve ordered. I’ve watched and read a few other reviews that report this having a metal section, mine is plastic. Though there are brass threads inset into the wooden body of the pen.

The cap is brushed stainless steel with a sturdy clip. The clip features a large ball at the end, which I think looks great. It also clips securely to notebooks and shirts alike. Despite being a friction fit, when capped the pen is secure. The cap also posts securely and deeply. I find that the pen is balanced when posted and feels good. It also feels good when unposted.

This is a cartridge or converter pen, and mine arrived with a Jinhao converter already installed. After washing the pen, I filled it with Akkerman Van Vermeer Ceruleum Blauw. Flow is acceptable and it lays down a decently wet and smooth line. The pen doesn’t dry out when left for a few days.

I wanted to bring up the shine and visibility of the grain but keep the feel of the wood. I rubbed silicone grease into the pen, let it absorb and then buffed off the excess. I’m not sure you can tell the difference in the photos but in person the difference is amazing. The wood is satin, the grain pops, and it still feels like wood. The silicone grease isn’t slippery or tacky, the wood has absorbed most of it, it has left a nice tactile shine on the pen. A hard wax would give a similar shine for the same amount of work.

This pen is also available with a hooded nib.

Like the Kaco Retro I reach for the pen again and again. It’s the right size for my hand, clips securely to my shirt, and feels amazing. The balance and weight is great. The wood is a perfect fidget. The updated clip and cap really brings a nice feel to the classic Parker 51 or 21 riff. At less than $4 each you can afford to buy a hooded nib and classic nibbed version, just for giggles.