Swingline Keychain Stapler

Staplers seem to be the hip new topic of the Typosphere, so I thought I'd share the one I've been using for the past 5 years or so. I carry it with me in my backpack, and it comes in handy for stapling together math homework just before turning it in.

I often enjoy my 5 minutes of celebrity status as everyone scrambles before class to get their homework stapled; often times we lose points if our work is not stapled together. Of course, most, myself included, forget about stapling it until time comes to turn it in.

I like the folding design; most people who use it comment on the sleek lines and folding mechanism.

I'll let the pictures do the rest of the talking. (taken with my Logitech C920 webcam)

Johnny Learns to Type

"said Johnny as he lovingly touched his typewriter."

A useful guide to the parts of the typewriter. Looks kinda like a Smith-Corona Silent, right?

Typewriter Postcards from Dr. Richard Polt

Pencil FAQ

If you've ever wondered why pencils are yellow and hexagonal, or why certain pencils have erasers while others don't, check out my new video, the Pencil FAQ. I took submissions from my friends on Facebook, and answered 12 questions about pencils in this video.

College: Semester III

Whoops, crooked typing

Three Years / On changing Hobbies and a new direction

Guest Post: The Infamous "Dord" Dictionary

Hello Typosphere,
This is my brother's first post online! Since he doesn't write much, he doesn't have his own blog yet. His name is Vijay and he's in high school.
One of his hobbies (along with typewriters, of course) is lexicography. He is really into the origins of words and how dictionaries are compiled, so when he found this dictionary at a used book store, he had to get it! Without giving anything else away, here is his first typecast, on the infamous Merriam-Webster 'dord' dictionary.

 Front cover.

 Entry of dord: page 771

Interesting fact: The term would have been on page 661, but it was on 771...

Front matter of the book: the title page 

The colophon (reverse side of the title page): proof of the publication date 

Spine.

Portrait of Noah Webster, printed in many of Merriam-Webster's dictionaries in his honor.

Typewriter Day 2013

My Facebook cover photo today.

My Go-To Machine

*edit: for some reason typewritersaroundtheworld.blogspot.com is offline. Otherwise I would have provided a link to the post.

oztypewriter post 1

oztypewriter post 2

Closeup of the Insurgency sticker. My typewriter's color is more accurate in the next pic.

my camera made this machine look tomatopaste red for some reason. Here is an older photo; I've since added another sticker.

D-Day and Capa's Magnificent Eleven

Link to the Wikipedia article on the Magnificent 11 photo

Link to the Wiki on Robert Capa

Summer.

Double-Review Comeback Extravaganza Part III: Diamine Pumpkin and Jinhao Legend of the Dragon

the "gift" box, slightly worn

the nib and section

As always, typed transcript at the bottom.

closeup of the clip

the dragon sleeps in his comfortable foam bed.

"C39 Camali"

another closeup of the clip

dragon detailing on the barrel

how my hand looks holding it

writing point

it's pretty big posted.

what's in the box

Recognize this picture from the last review? I've included the left half this time, which is Diamine Pumpkin.

you can see the bright shade through the bottle 

Jinhao Legend of the Dragon fountain pen REVIEW

All righty. For this third installment of the double-review series, we'll cover the Jinhao Legend of the Dragon fountain pen and Diamine Pumpkin ink.

First, the pen. I bought it on eBay from a Chinese seller--I'd heard good things about the manufacturer Jinhao and figured I'd take a chance. 

For the princely sum of $9.99, shipping from China included, I received this pen Initially, it was a bit scratchy [the nib], but simple realignment of the tines with my thumbnails made it a great and very usable pen. It included a converter and cheap but functional "gift" box. 

My favorite feature is definitely the golden clip. Though it is actually made of relatively fragile plastic, what's not to love about its red-eyed-dragon design? Matches with the detailing of a dragon on the pen body, as well as the name (even though it's labeled a "C39 Camali" [as you can see in one of the photos], the seller called it a Jinhao Legend of the Dragon. I like the latter name better.). :)

On to some detailed components next!

NIB. I like the way the nib looks; it's a two-toned nib with a bit of scrollwork on it. Simple and classy. It writes all right--not completely scratch-free, but definitely good enough to use normally.

FEED. Sometimes I get a small flow issue whereby I have to squeeze some more ink to get it flowing, but definitely not a huge issue. The cap snaps on very securely.

SECTION. Though it is made of relatively smooth plastic (I can't feel the texture shown in the photo), my fingers never slip.

WEIGHT. I haven't got a scale, but as an ALL-METAL pen (minus the section) it is substantial. Top-heavy [and long] if you choose to post it.

OVERALL: I really like this pen. It performs well with multiple inks (I've used Noodler's Black, Camlin Royal Blue (an Indian brand), and of course Diamine Pumpkin with no problems at all), feels nice in the hand, is nicely finished and doesn't look cheap in any way. The golden clip is just a bonus. 

If you're in the market for a great pen at a bargain-basement price, get this one. 4/5.

Diamine Pumpkin ink REVIEW

And here's part II! :)

This ink is the second ink from my first order from JetPens.com ever (the first [ink] being Oxblood) and I must profess [edit: CONfess] that I LOVE the vivid hue of orange this ink provides. It's bright without being illegible--with many inks I see online, it seems that they're too bright to be tolerated for more than 1/2 a page of reading. For me, this ink does not have that issue at all. It flows pretty well and has not given me any trouble with this pen, and behaves relatively well on most papers. I think it's time for some detailed reviewing!

FLOW. Fantastic. 

DRY TIME. a non-issue. Very fast.

FEATHERING. Moderate but not horrible. Might be due to inconsistencies in the paper I'm currently writing on because it doesn't feather at all in my Miquelrius journal or on cheap notebook paper...

BLEED-THROUGH. Little to none.

LEGIBILITY. very high. (not for professional writing!! (unless you live life on the edge like me...) :) )

WATERPROOFNESS. very poor! DO NOT EXPOSE TO WATER!

And I think that covers it! 4.5/5. (well-behaved, great color, but not waterproof.)