If you think mechanical pencils are boring, or the designs are static, then you have been missing out of great innovations over the past decade.
The Uni Kuru Toga gets all of the press, and rightfully so. Its lead-rotating mechanism works exceptionally well, and Uni continues to design around it. They even turned it up to eleven with a product like the Kuru Toga Dive.
While the Pentel Orenz doesn’t offer rotation, it does offer something else: breakage protection. That’s important for many graphite lead sizes, especially sub-0.5 mm sizes. That why you’ll see the Orenz lineup lean into those 0.2 mm and 0.3 mm sizes.
The Pentel Orenz works by using a sliding sleeve that protects the lead from breaking. Unlike traditional mechanical pencils, you don’t want to extend the lead past the end of the pipe. The lead should go right up to the end of the pipe, and from there, you are essentially writing with the lead pipe on the page.
This works for two reasons. One, the end of the pipe that touches the page is rounded on the edges, not cut straight across-and sharp-like a traditional mechanical pencil pipe. Two, the pipe retracts ever so slightly as you write, allowing the graphite to write, and continues to to extend the lead every time you lift the pencil from the page.
This is what the tip should look like when writing. The lead doesn’t need to extend more than this. As you write, the lead pipe manages the length consistently.
It may sound like a complex idea, but in practice, it just works. You just have to wrap your head around it a little bit.
The Orenz Nero is Pentel’s upgraded barrel over their standard. The barrel is a unique one-piece design, featuring a material that is a special resin-metal blend. It feels like a plastic composite, but is slightly heavier than a traditional plastic-only barrel, but much lighter than a metal one. It does feel rock solid, and looks amazing. I especially enjoy the grip ridges, which provide just the right amount of grip and comfort.
So, why would you use the Pentel Orenz over more traditional mechanical pencils? If you need, or enjoy, 0.2 mm or 0.3 mm graphite sizes, it is almost a must-have. If you have tried leads that fine in regular mechanical pencils, you have broken more than your share of graphite when writing, to the point where you toss the pencil down in frustration, and swear off those fine lines forever.
The Orenz solves that issue, and does it well. The pipe-on-the-page style doesn’t get in the way of your controlled lines or handwriting. It feels like a normal pencil when writing. For those micro sizes, it is an easy recommendation. For 0.5 mm leads and up, I do prefer more traditional mechanical pencils. It’s a visual thing, and I don’t break those 0.5 mm leads at a rate anywhere near I do the smaller sizes.
One issue I had when writing is that my vertical (downstrokes) didn’t always take. I think it is more of a pace thing than an angle thing. If I slowed down, it was fine.
The final consideration is the cost of the Nero. At $28.50, it is a pricey pencil. The Rotring 600, aka the best mechanical pencil ever made, is only $3 more. But, it primarily comes in 0.5 mm, and 0.7 mm sizes, with 0.35 mm tip options available, sometimes. If you don’t need protection for the finer sizes, I would choose the 600 every time.
It’s 0.3 mm, so the lines should be light. Also, you need to rotate the pencil in hand when writing, which I do naturally. This keeps a more rounded tip instead of an edge, or a flat spot. My biggest takeaway of the Orenz is to have a reason to own one. If I simply want to pick up and write, this isn’t the choice. If I need that fine line, then this is the best choice.
If you do need to use 0.2 mm and 0.3 mm sizes, then the Orenz is the choice. The basic pencil starts at $7, with a mix of shapes, styles, and materials on up the bracket until the top-end Nero. The Metal Grip is an excellent sweet spot at at $15.
The Pentel Orenz is one of the more interesting mechanical pencil lineups on the market. It hasn’t fully cracked my own writing rotation, but I do find myself reaching for it more frequently. If you are a fan and user of the Orenz I would love to hear your thoughts and how you use this pencil.
(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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