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I say this because, historically, any product that I really like finishes its life cycle within a matter of weeks and is gone from every shelf in the land before I can rush back and stock up for the lean times I know, from perennially frustrated experience, will come. Very soon.. Doesn't matter whether it's food, consumer goods, whatever--it happens almost every time. I'm surprised nobody's taken fresh milk off the market, just because I like it. If that sounds pessimistic, it's not; it's only background. Hang on a minute and you'll see. Having spent much of my life taking notes for long periods of time without a break, by hand, while people spoke rapidly, I developed a co-dependent relationship early on that involved juicy pens that shed lots of ink when and where I needed it, on demand. Another plus was pens that were comfortable in my hand, that didn't cause me to cramp up after a couple of hours. When Sensa presented its first ballpoint with the squishy, wiggly cushion around the holdy part, I was delighted. I didn't buy one at first because there was no outlet in my then-state of residence where one could be found and the Internet hadn't yet arrived (although the Pony Express was, it was rumoured, on its way out, with newfangled autos said to be on their way in). Eventually, I reached more civilized climes and purchased a Sensa ballpoint. I love that pen. Not only does the squishy part give you something to play with during long, boring meetings, but it's so easy on the hand that I've been known to get through grueling three-hour interviews without cramps in my very muscled fingers.
At the time, I thought, Gee, why
don't these guys make a fountain pen? This was too good to miss. Immediately, I bought one as a reward for having survived (I think) the Great Water Heater War of 2002.
The Meridian is an attractive but unimposing pen. It won't leap out of your shirt pocket or purse or off your desktop and shout "Notice me!" the way the Visconti Titanic will. It will, however, quickly become your fingers' best friend. A medium-sized pen, the straight-cylindrical Meridian (whose name I'm still trying to figure out--as far as I can tell, it bears no relationship to anything except possibly the barrel trim rings, which could conceivably be said to form meridians around the pen) comes in four finishes: crystal (chrome with a clear squishy holdy part and silver-colored trim), carbon black (matte black with silver trim and a black squishy holdy part), champagne (gold blind cap and squishy holdy part with a matte taupe-colored cap and barrel, and gold trim), and black and gold (same as the carbon black but with gold trim). The rounded barrel end gives the pen a rather bullet-like appearance (one thinks of the Lone Ranger and his silver [or gold] bullets), with S E N S A engraved on the side. The barrel trim rings divide the pen into almost equal thirds: one-third cap, one-third squishy holdy part ( henceforth SHP), one-third barrel end with bullet appearance. The SHP itself almost dictates this kind of form, as it requires the "fence" of the barrel trim to keep it in place.
The cap is quite attractive, with a hefty arched clip that attaches at the end by means of a ring. In fact, the graceful arch on the clip is probably the pen's strongest design element (I don't count the SHP as a design element; it's more a recreational or ergonomic element). The cap tassie on all but the crystal is a softish clear plastic cabochon-shaped bit that slightly magnifies the wavy Sensa logo printed beneath. It, too, is a tactile toy in a long, boring meeting. The crystal version has a flat end, just like the old flat-top pens from the early days, with a screenprinted logo on it.
The pens I tested had medium steel Schmidt nibs; mine is a fine. They are definitely too small visually for this pen's size and weight; they're only about half an inch long and quite narrow, smaller than a #2 size. Dipped, they were smooth and sweet, as one would expect. The medium seemed slightly on the fine side of medium to me, but the fine seems about like the usual American fine. Over the course of several pages, my
fine-nibbed Meridian performed flawlessly, showing not a whit of that
"write a page and quit" phenomenon that's so common and
so annoying and that has occurred in new Conklins, new Viscontis,
new OMASes in particular, new Auroras… you have your own list,
I'm sure. It's a cartridge/converter filler meant to take international carts. However, I put a Pelikan cart in mine because I wanted violet ink, not the ho-hum blue or black that always comes with pens, and it fits perfectly (and holds more ink than an international cartridge). I've not tried the converter yet, but the SHP makes for a nice, deep socket in which to seat both cartridge and converter, and the converter goes in (and comes out) with a good, solid snick.
Posted, the cap holds securely and covers the bullet-shaped end, which acts as a receiver for the cap although there's no mechanical attachment such as threads or a clutch ring. Without the cap, the pen is fairly short, so I tend to write with the cap posted even though normally I don't. Either way, it's a great writer and immediately found its way into my daily line-up. I did run into a small annoyance with my own pen right away: The thin metal of the cap makes for shallow threads and it's easy to cross-thread it when replacing the cap on the barrel. Once you know to be aware of this, it's not really a problem, but it did take me a little time to realize I was going to have to look at it to recap it.
I haven't quite figured this out yet. Once wet, as in touched to a tongue, it seems to start all right so it may be that the cap has enough space to allow the nib to dry out (although that wouldn't explain drying up in the midst of operations). It also leaves some interesting colored stripes on my tongue, which I intend to use to prove I'm sick the next time I want a day off. It could also be that since I write quickly there's a slight airflow inadequacy. But this pen is well worth futzing with to get it right. It is so-o-o-o comfortable, a good weight, a good balance, sturdy, attractive… it's a great little pen and Sensa deserves a pat on the back for building it. Now, my question is whether, given my
product history, I should rush out and buy six against the day when
they're discontinued.
copyright 2002 Dyas Anna Lawson |
If
manufacturers were smart, they would hire me to rate their products.
Those I chose as best of the best, they would then discontinue before
they ever got to market.
Shortly
thereafter, I had the opportunity to do our usual last-minute, 15-minutes-no-more
assessment and review of all four of the new Sensa Meridian models.
I was delighted to have my own pen to test more fully and be able
to give a better perspective on the pen's actual character and characteristics,
as opposed to the dip-only method.
When
you unscrew the cylindrical metal cap, your eye is greeted by a truncated
bullet-shaped section that holds the nib, feeds into the SHP, and
contains the cap threads. It's separated from the nib itself by a
thin black ring, which I suspect is an anchor for the feed system.
The
other problem is less small. I love the way this pen feels, love the
way it writes, love the way it balances in my hand… but yesterday,
in the middle of a letter and with three-fourths of that long cartridge
left, it just dried up. Not slowed down or went to scanty flow; dried
up.