TiScribe-HL on Kickstarter now!

And now for something totally different!

This is the first highlighter that I've reviewed on this blog, and it's the first machined highlighter that I've seen or used. I don't know what the market is for this, but it seems to be present because the kickstarter is really funded right now.

Okay, so a little bit about the project!


You might remember the previous project from Kelvin, the TiScribe fountain pen. It was a small pocket pen made from titanium, brass, or copper and it was pretty good. It was a little small for me, and it didn't post, but the work was a good proof of concept, and I hear the larger version was very popular on Kickstarter.

Well, Kelvin has taken the size of the larger version, added options like clips or (really powerful) magnets to the cap, made it post, and made it into a highlighter. It's a cool idea, and the finished product is solid.

In the pictures above and below you can see what this thing looks like. It's got o-rings at top and bottom and a few in-between.  Mine has a neodymium magnet in the cap, and it's got the power to hold the entire pen perpendicular to the metal surface that you've got it stuck to. I didn't think it was going to work with this heavy copper body, but it totally does. I hear that the production version of the pen will actually have an even larger magnet. That'll certainly do the job.

 The threads at the end are not where you're going to put your fingers, so no worries about sharp threads.

 Internals and parts:

 An o-ring keeps the refill snug in the barrel, and keeps the metal parts separated and tight. There are no rattles in this pen.

It posts! Hooray!

In-Hand

Copper pens are always going to be heavy. If you want a lighter one, go for the Ti option. I think that we need to judge a copper highlighter a little differently, though. You're not writing with this for pages. You're highlighting a few words and moving on. Thus, I don't think that weight is much to worry about. 

The Montblanc highlighter refill is bright and it seems to work really well on printed things. The catch is that performance is going to depend on the printer you have, the ink, and the paper you're using. Expect the same issues you'd have with any other highlighter. This one is replaceable, though, so that's cool. 

Okay, so if you like what you're seeing, you can go check it out at Kickstarter for the next couple of weeks. 

Let me know in the comments if there's room for a machined highlighter in your daily carry or desk usage. This thing is tough as nails, and very well designed, so it could be filling that void for you.


Here's the Video Review: