Just as we tend to like our watches of an older style (mechanical), folks in the watch world also seem to have a fascination with pens. This is a little less proscriptive, as it can be rollerball or fountain, or whatever. In many ways, it’s the shell of the pen that takes focus (or, for us lefties, whether or not we can fit a gel ink insert in there). If you really want those old school vibes, this new collaboration between Accutron and Esterbrook may be of interest.
The marketing fluff around this establishes some tenuous relationships between the two brands, so we’ll skip that for now. Suffice to say, Esterbrook pens have been used mightily by all manner of folks, including presidents and even Charles M. Schulz (creator of Peanuts). In terms of the specific Accutron tie-in here (for their 60th anniversary), we’ve got the iconic green and gold showing up in the body of the pen. In fact, while the green is the resin you’ll find in many fountain pens, the gold is actually gold, and for some additional sparkle, there’s diamond dust mixed in as well (which will sparkle like this ring, no doubt).
For those who just are not comfortable with fountain pens, fear not – there is indeed a rollerball option (no word on if you can squeeze a Pilot G2 insert in there though, so lefties may be out of luck). The rollerball version is limited to just 110 pieces, and comes in at $350. For the fountain pen fans, you’ve actually got two options. The regular fountain pen has a gold-plated steel nib and runs $395 (limited to 300 pieces), and the Oversize fountain pen has an 18kt gold nib, is limited to 100 pieces, and comes in at an eye-watering $750.
Suffice to say, these are for those fans of the Accutron brand that really want to keep their vintage vibes rolling, and don’t have a habit of misplacing their pens as they go about their day. In the realm of higher-end pens, these prices don’t seem wildly out of line. And the rollerball vs fountain pricing shows that most of the cost is coming out of the pen body. They do have some older versions as well, which you can read about here. You should be able to find these via accutronwatch.com or at your local Accutron or Esterbrook retailer.
