The Wallet Pen

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The Sterling Silver Wallet Pen is an item I have been on the fence with for a while, but at its price point it seemed a bit far fetched for a pen to just sit in your wallet as I carry a main pen daily as it is, but as most of us know the line between needs and wants can get blurred quite easy. So after it all I took the plunge and now feel I am able to give a good review of this fine little gem. Videos can be found online about it (two to be exact) and they really do a good job of showing it (however they do sell them so there may be some bias) but they don’t actually review it.

When I buy a product I like to judge the maker or the company who makes the item beforehand to see if they are someone I want to deal with, sometimes the maker is a joy to deal with (Atwood, McGizmo, DFK to name a few) and sometimes they are horrific to deal with (Starlingear, Hinderer, LensLight to name a few) this company however I didn’t communicate with beforehand. I put the order through a reseller versus the Wallet Pen company itself due to shorter and cheaper shipping options (Yes on a pen this small and this “pricy’ they still charge shipping) so even at order the actual maker was absent from my interaction. When I got the pen in around four days later and opened the rather large shipping box I came to the decorative gift box,

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Packaging was exquisite, it was enough to me to see this was a quality piece, and it is. It is subtile and just enough without being to much.
You get the packaging experience like most other high end writing instruments and they even throw in an extra refill (hear that Mont Blanc) and speaking of refills its a Schmidt so smoothness is not an issue (the Germans make the finest pens IMHO). It has a card and all looks very nice.

The size is quite the shock as well, you expect it to be small but you cant really prepare for exactly how small it really is until you take it out. When compared to a class leading small pen the ever nice Valiant Concepts keychain pen you see this instrument (and yes it is above being a simple pen) is tiny…yet longer. The design as stated in the very name of the company is to fit inside your wallet and it does that perfectly. The size may tend to lead to the thought that it would be uncomfortable to write with, now I’m not saying I will be writing dissertations by hand with this pen but for its purpose it writes very well and actually can be used comfortably as a pen unlike the Valiant Concepts which is more at home as a third line of defense. the reason being is the slight increase in length. The refill however being smooth is still not a replacement for the reliability of the Valiant Concepts Fisher refill as the Schmidt will need some coaxing to get going after being stored in the wallet for a period of time.

This pen also isn’t what I would call shabby in versatility either, as it has an integrated clip for the purpose of clipping in a wallet it still can be used like any other pocket clip by being placed on the fabric of shirts, pants and on thin book covers or pages. It wont be a replacement for the Valiant Concepts on a keychain though.

The looks of it is nice as well, its Sterling Silver after all, so it looks like it is worth the price. The branding shown is that of the Wallet Pen’s logo and the number .925. There is only one moving part and that is the actual barrel that pushes to expose the refill and pulls to tuck the refill away, and the whole operation is tight so accidental operation is minimal (however when letting others handle it inform them on operation as no one has yet to operate it as a “click” instead of a cap). And as an added bonus the refill doesn’t unwillingly drop from the pen when taken apart. In addition to the quality looks it also has a quality weight which makes it feel nice in the hand.

One flaw however is the issue that when my wallet is fully loaded the flared out portion at the end of the clip pushes against the spine of my wallets leather making me feel uncomfortable about the longevity of my billfold while using this, however the solution is to flip the pen so that its on the inside and not the out. And surprisingly it doesn’t add much if any bulk to the actual wallet when its inside.

This to this

Now back to how the maker and company handles itself, I cant find much about this company which made me a little leery yet form the things I have seen the company has been making these things for over 20 years. Upon contacting the company via their contact form I got a rather surprising response, an actual personalized answer (not the generic “thank you for your question and to better serve you please call this number 1-800-bla-blah”) it was addressed to me and was specific to my comment and best of all it was the owner who actually emailed all of two hours later. This ladies and gentlemen is what customer service should be. He was a joy to talk to and it was clear he believed in what he was trying to do, create the nicest pen you can keep in your wallet.

After the whole experience and the product itself I couldn’t recommend it more, I understand its a more specialized item but it makes those minimalist days even smoother as you can have a fully functional pen that writes well incorporated in an item you will almost always have with you.
So there it is, a Solid Sterling Silver pen that is handcrafted in the USA by a man who actually cares about what he’s doing.

Thank you for taking the time to read and as always if you have any questions and comments do not hesitate to ask.

Oh and if you’re a fan of Oprah its one of her favorite things. Take that however you will.

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