ATELEIA Craft + Design Brass Pen Review And Giveaway

I first noticed Chris Williams’ work when Mike Dudek got his hands on a very early prototype of what has become the ATELEIA Craft + Design Brass Pen and Leather Journal Kickstarter project. Chris reached out to me a few months back and sent a couple of prototypes my way to check out and I’m excited to see his project finally launch because this is a great pen.

The ATELEIA Brass Pen is an excercise in minimal design and quality craftmanship. The brass cylindrical barrel is a sight to behold. The clean lines are striking and the weight and feel of the pen are spot on. I use a Pilot Hi-Tec-C 0.25 mm blue black refill in mine, with other refill options possible such as the Pilot G2, Fisher Space Pen, and Schmidt 5888. More refill options are part of a stretch goal to add a new threaded insert which will fit the Uni-ball Signo lineup and more.

The shape of the pen makes it perfect for pocket carry, sliding in and out of your tightest hipster jeans with ease. Seeing the age and wear on mine after repeated use gives it a real sense of ownership and beauty too. This pen is an experience.

The only downside I can find with this pen is you will need a wrench or pliers to change the refill. And be careful too because the brass is soft and you don’t want to leave teeth marks. I recommend using a soft cloth between the pleirs and the nib. Luckily, this isn’t a dance you need to do very often.

Chris was nice enough to send me an extra pen and leather sleeve to give away to a reader of The Pen Addict. Here is how to get your own ATELEIA Brass Pen prototype before the Kickstarter wraps.

1. Leave one comment on this post anytime between now, and Monday night at 11:59 PM Eastern Time. You are limited to one entry. This contest is open to US and International readers.

2. For this contest, I will pick one winner at random from the comments section of this post. The comments will be numbered in the order they are received, i.e. the first comment is #1, the second #2, and so on. The Random Integer Generator at random.org will be used to pick the number of the winner.

3. The contest winner will be posted on Tuesday, September 23rd. The winner will have one week to email me via the Contact link at the top of the page.

Thank you to Chris for doing this and be sure to check his project out. Only 27 shopping days left!

Tactile Turn Mover and Shaker New Materials

I am a big fan of what Will Hodges did with the original Tactile Turn Mover in aluminum, and now with his latest Kickstarter he upped his materials game by adding brass, copper, and titanium into the mix.

In talking to Will about what changes he made (besides materials) from the previous project one interesting item came up. A new machine is in place to manufacture the brass and copper parts, giving those pen bodies a smooth to the touch finish. I can easily tell the difference between these and my aluminum Movers. It's not something I would have ever known, noticed, or cared about before because the original pens are so nice, but now that I have all these pens side by side I can say how good this change really is.

An ancillary result of the machine upgrade is the seam in the barrel is almost invisible. It already was barely noticeable in the first place but these are really hidden. In the prototypes I got you can see the seam in the titanium model but Will assures me that is not how the final version will appear. The brass and copper look flawless, even in this early stage of manufacturing.

The new materials Kickstarter project has already eclipsed the original aluminum barrel project, and having these pens in hand I can certainly see why. There are five days left to get in on the action - don't miss out!

The Move Pen Review

Mini pens are difficult to get right. For a product that, by design, should be very simple, it is tough to nail all the important elements and have those elements work together as a cohesive package. Size, feel, fit, finish, refill, mechanics - all of these things have to be considered, and the small size of the pen leaves no room for mistakes. The Move, designed by Oliver Sha succeeds where others have tried and come up ... short.

The premise is simple, right? Make a small pen for pocket or keychain carry. I've tried many, such as the Fisher Space Pen, Kaweco Lilliput, Lamy Pico, and more. None are able to bring to the table what The Move can. Oliver sent me the polished Titanium Move Pen to check out and I knew it was a winner the moment I opened the package.

The feel and finish of the pen were noticeable immediately. Smooth lines, well machined seams, and one of the best bolt action mechanisms I have used highlight the design of The Move. I could really tell the time and thought that was put into this pen by the smooth grinding around the keychain attachment hole. It is silky smooth and honestly I couldn't stop looking at it I was so impressed.

To keep the profile of the pen as small as possible, Oliver chose to design it around the Lamy M22 refill. I recently picked up a Lamy Pico (review coming soon) which was my first M22 experience and I was plesantly surprised. I especially like that there is an 0.5 mm blue option which is my preferred ammo. The lines are smooth, clean, and mess free. The M22 is not a pressurized refill like the Fisher Space Pen so keep that in mind if that is a requirement for you.

From L to R: Kaweco Lilliput FP and BP, The Move, Lamy Pico, Kaweco AL Sport

When writing with the pen unattched to a keychain it is just long enough for me to use comfortably. I have average size hands and could see an issue for those with larger hands than myself. Attaching it to a keyring would probably help with that. You can see where it falls in the size spectrum compared to many popular pocket pens in the picture above, although I will say The Move is in a different product category than some of those.

Right now, Oliver is weighing his options to see if it is worth making another production run. He still has some inventory left from the Kickstarter campaign so email him at osdesignstore@gmail.com if you are interested. Prices are the same as the Kickstarter campaign: $52 for the aluminum versions and $98 for the titanium, both with free US shipping.

Thanks again to Oliver for sending me this review sample. Be sure to follow his work at OS Design Store and get in touch with him soon if you would like to pick up The Move.