Pens

Ok, so I got lazy a little while... but I'm back.
I'm on a quest for a good pen. I have a pretty strict set of criteria in qualifying a pen as a good pen. Now, I'm not really one of those serious collectors of pens. These guys prefer expensive fountain pens (I think). I'm more practical in my taste. Here is my list of criteria:

• Multi-function ball-point pen including a PDA stylus
• Large diameter
• Heftiness
• Good balance
• Smooth mechanical feel
• Good craftmanship

I have not found a perfect one yet. A few came close. The one that I bought from www.styluscentral.com is pretty good, but I dropped it on the floor and it crushed the tip of the ball-point pen. I should get the replacement cartridge, but I have temporarily retired the pen. I have purchased a few more pens from the same vendor. One is a small pen which I though was supposed to be much bigger. The other one had a laser pointer and a flashlight in it. Really neat, and it's a great conversation piece, but it's too big, too top heavy and the battery ran out too quickly.

I recently got another pen from Levenger for $24. The appearance is almost perfect. It seems a little too light than my taste, but the balance is good. The craftmanship seems pretty good. When you click, it OFTEN gives me a smooth, addictive feel. I say OFTEN, because sometimes it gives me the metal-to-metal grinding feel. And the sophisticated mechanism (it's a 4-in-1 gravity-utilizing pen) seems too fragile. It's my favorite pen for now.

I will continue with my search for the perfect pen. I wonder if it's out there...