even mass produced japanese products are beautifully designed. my last acquisition is the beautiful Pilot MYU. Vintage, but new. Gorgeous. I am so worried about the integrated nib that i am not enjoying it as much as I probably should..only one other matches the passions the MYU can evoke. Parker 51. American.
My personal favourite is Uni's Kurutoga (クルトガ) mechanical pencil that automatically turns the pencil lead a fraction every time you lift it. This means that the tip is always neatly rounded and never slanted.
I recently saw a short TV documentary about the Kurutoga and industry competitors' R&D staff were being interviewed, remarking that that innovation truly sent shockwaves through the entire industry.
I love this pencil so much that I have three, with different lead in each. It’s completely brilliant. And a bargain, or it was. I really like the venerable Pentel P200 series but I only use the 0.7 and 0.9 because there’s no Kurutoga.
Like Parker.. the design is based on the nose of jet planes. I am horrified now as I remember how ..as a child..I used to play with my grandfather’s MYU..lidless and nib tearing the air while nosediving.
turns out they did a limited release of the pilot myu in 2008. $180 is a bargain. https://www.penaddict.com/blog/2013/1/30/my-fountain-pen-edu...