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WildChinoise
241
May 18, 2016
I have a Rotring I bought an age ago (more than 10 years). I used it daily for years to write notes, draw system engineering diagrams, and draft letters &documents long before migrating over to computerized SW and eMail systems. It held up really well and work faithfully. Back in the day, the pencil leads never jammed and rarely fractured during use. But I think the pencil leads are not so well made now. Now long retired, the Rotring made its way to my home and is put to work solving puzzles and crosswords. I don't know if they are still so well made, but I expect mine to last forever.
DmitryV
14
May 20, 2016
WildChinoise... or you could sell it on ebay :) (you will be surprised with current prices for classic Rotring's. At least, it surprises me a lot :( ) Quality of modern Rotring's is good (and new 800+ are even a bit better than old ones), they are now made in Japan. In an enormously narrower product range.
Clockwork.APEX
11
May 20, 2016
DmitryVThe original model that has been discontinued (Rotring 600) was overall a great mechanical pencil. The resurrected version, Rotring 800 (prior to this one) had a fair share of issues, unfortunately - the twist mechanism was implemented to hide the tip whenever not in use to prevent fall damage, but it also introduced gaps. Albeit minuscule, it was very noticeable when drawing precise lines or writing small letters. Not sure how the 800+ would've handled this issue, and the stylus part might appeal to some people for its intended purposes but just looks plain ugly to me.
Still contemplating whether I want to join the drop and see the quality for myself, or stick with the current triple lineup of Uni Kuru Toga High Grade / Zebra Delguard LX / Pentel Graph 1000 CS. These are, of course, much cheaper mechanical pencils (around U$10 each) not without their own issues, but easier to replace or purchase out of whim.
Personally, the absolute grail of mechanical pencil would be the Faber-Castell Alpha-Matic Titanium, but I cannot justify spending 300+ euros for a bloody pencil that was in the hands of someone else for years.
DmitryV
14
May 21, 2016
Clockwork.APEXYou are not right about Rotring 600 - it is still in production.
"Not sure how the 800+ would've handled this issue" - it is the same, minor gaps depending on angle. And the same solution - add tape or rubber ring on the mechanism.
Overall, 800+ and 800 are really nice pencils. (I bought 800+ from Amazon on a good deal and it was the thing that started my "rotring obsesion" :) ) So far I have: Rotring 800+ pencil, Rotring RapidPro pen, Rotring 600 pen (classic), Rotring 700 pen (classic), Retro51 Hex-o-matic pen, RedCircle pencil (chinese copy), Levenger L-tech pen. And I must admit that would buy Rotring 800 pencil or pen in the same style at a right price without any hesitations.
"the absolute grail of mechanical pencil would be the Faber-Castell Alpha-Matic Titanium" - it is not hexagonal :)
Clockwork.APEX
11
May 21, 2016
DmitryVTechnically yes, we can still get the 600 from Japan - but I hesitate to call them the same as the original Germany production models (or, if you really want to be picky, the W.Germany batch). And correct me if I am wrong, but wasn't the 800 lineup created prior to bringing the 600 back? Then again, I suppose we have to also differentiate the 600 and 600G if to follow that line of thought.
And the grail part - that's why I said "personally" in front, I am not partial to hexagonal shape as precision drawing takes less priority and I get to write small letters a lot more in finer print. Add in Asian characters as a bonus, then round shape with knurling grip does fit my usage a lot better :P
DmitryV
14
May 21, 2016
Clockwork.APEX"Technically yes, we can still get the 600 from Japan - but I hesitate to call them the same" Why not? If we take Rotring 600 pencils - there is no difference in quality. And 800(+) was even slightly improved. So even after company changed its owners several times, these products are the same. With the same "spare" front parts with lead chanel (if you bend one).
"wasn't the 800 lineup created prior to bringing the 600 back" They were called 600(G) in old days. So giving them a different name index was a good idea. http://dmpencils.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/rotring-600g-vs-800.html