My friend Alex from Economy Pens recently reviewed the Alvin Penstix and was kind enough to send one my way to check out. Alex wasn’t too high on the Penstix, and after spending a short amount of time with it, neither am I.
The Alvin Penstix has potential. My handwriting looked as good as I have seen it in a long while. The plastic fiber tip leaves a sharp, clean line but there are too many oddities in the overall package to put it in the regular rotation.
First of all, the black ink color is almost brown. My photo doesn’t do it justice but this is not a dark ink. I joked in the handwritten review that they should just called it sepia. It is not that bad but it is by no means black.
Secondly, this is one of the most overdone barrel designs I have ever seen. There is too much text, a horrible clip, and a weird cap. I’m not sure what the designers of this pen were thinking but none of it is flattering. This is a simple pen with an overblown design.
If Alvin could fix the ink darkness I could overlook some of the barrel flaws. If they could fix the ink darkness and some of the barrel issues, I might kick my Bic Z4 to the curb.
