Before you ask, the Tuff-Writer tactical pens are not meant to be used as weapons, for various practical and legal reasons. They are, however, perfect as an everyday writing instrument.
You may be wondering why it says 'Dad' on one side?
Well, having successfully drawn Dad into my stationery obsession, I like to give him new pens. He may not be quite as obsessed as I am (yet) but he can certainly appreciate a good-quality pen that writes nicely as much as I do. So I decided to ask Jack of Tuff-Writer to personlise a black Precision Press pen for me as a little surprise...
That surprise arrived a few days ago, and I was impressed as soon as I opened the cardboard box. The pen was packed in a very, very solid plastic tube. I don't usually like packaging like this very much, but in this case, the tube is reusable because the plastic is tough, so I don't mind. It is black and has the company logo printed on it, and to access the pen inside you simply pull the two halves apart.
Warning: It will open with a fun 'thwump' sound. Certain individuals (such as myself) may be distracted by this. If you have work to do, place the tube somewhere out of reach. Your productivity will thank you.
I took the pen out, then examined the engraving. It had been done perfectly! The letters had been cleanly etched out of the black coating.
The entire pen is made out of 6061-T6 Aerospace Aluminium, so while it has a bit of weight to it, it isn't too heavy either - 51.02 grams (1.8oz) to be precise. The pen is anodized, resulting in a finely textured black coating.
After I had finished admiring the engraving, I clicked the mechanism. Except it didn't click! It is quiet, and only produces a tiny sound. The mechanism, however, wasn't perfectly smooth. I pressed the button a few more times, and the refill got stuck outside the pen. I had to press it again for it to retract properly.
As a result, I decided to spend a while clicking the refill in and out, to see if the fault was a fluke. Unfortunately, it continued to have problems - sometimes the tip of the refill wouldn't stay outside of the pen for writing when I pressed the button, and often it would get stuck outside and require two or three clicks to retract.
I suspect that this problem was caused by an uneven or rough bit of metal inside. I took it apart to investigate.
Since there are only a few parts inside and I couldn't reach the inside of the button, I couldn't figure out any way of remedying the fault. I put it back together again. Also, if anybody is wondering, the plastic piece with the nail in it goes back with the nail touching the cartridge. I didn't note this when I took it out, so I asked Jack from Tuff-Writer who told me which way round it was meant to go. He says it doesn't matter much either way, but he usually puts it in nail-down.
I then tried clicking the pen again. It didn't feel any smoother, but the refill wasn't getting stuck either. I rotated the button at the top a few times, spinning it clockwise with my fingers, and it felt a bit smoother afterwards.
Since I fiddled with it, the refill hasn't got stuck again! I'm not sure why this is. Yes, the mechanism still feels as if it is a bit rough inside, but it works fine.
Now I can get down to the important part: how it writes! These pens use Fisher Space Pen refills, which tend to be good. This one was no different - it gives a black, solid line, consistently and reliably.
Overall, I'm pleased with this pen. There are lots of small features I like, such as a tight, springy clip, and little rubber rings where you grip the pen which prevent your hand sliding down the nose cone. The anodized coating feels great, and the engraving is ace.
Are mechanism probems in a new pen of this value ideal? No, but since the rest of the pen is such good quality, I wonder if the one I got just happened to have a fault. Of course, there is no guarantee that other Precision Press pens don't have this issues but it does seem to be fixable. Comment below if you have one and tell me how it worked when you got it, I'd be interested in hearing your experience!
I'd still recommend adding this to your collection if you're looking for a good ballpoint pen, or you could give one as a gift as I did. The sturdy design and strong materials make it a pen that can handle anything you throw at it!
DISCLAMER: This pen was sent to me for the purposes of review by Tuff-Writer. All opinions expressed in this article are my own.