Break out the field glasses, Jenkins
One of the dangers of several stationery obsessives contributing to the same blog is that every now and again two or more of us will obsess about the same thing at the same time. Simultaneous geekery is one of the hazards of the field, you could say - and if you do, here's a field journal to write it in. It's worth banging-on about, though.
Lochby really know their stuff, and their kit turns out to be just the thing for the job they have in mind. Like the Quattro pen case, this is made of waxed canvass and standard military-issue components; the Quattro also has a bit of proper paracord while the Field Journal employs 25mm webbing and a hook clip which could probably take the weight of the writer suspended from it. The pen loop is big enough to accommodate the fattest pen in your collection (obviously it's great if that is shaped like a Zeppelin, but that's optional), the cover is splash-proof and there's an impressively commodious back pocket too.
That admirable attention to detail extends to the inside as well, of course. There are lots of pockets, one of them big enough to carry a spare refill. Better still, there are elastic loops ready to house four A5 exercise books, which should be plenty for most purposes. Mine is in use in the field right now, with a different book for each of the main projects that I'm working on; I find this conducive to greater sanity but it's still easier to have them all in the same ready-to-roll package. If the words get too weighty, the Field Journal even has a carrying handle which would double to provide a palm-top writing platform in, ya know, an actual field. When the 'WFH' experience eases up a bit and we can actually work in far-flung exotic locations like, err, the next town, this will be ready to roll.
To complete the package, Lochby have really excelled themselves with their choice of standard insert. The Field Journal comes complete with a single but top-notch A5 exercise book, sewn in Taiwan using the slightly heavier Tomoe River paper. It dries a little slowly, as is normal, but has the advantage of being so thin that there is ample space for three quite substantial other cahiers to accompany it. Better still, as well as the dot-grid example this test unit came equipped with, it's also available in plain or, the ideal for serious field notation, ruled (i.e. lined) formats. Nothing at all has been left to chance. 'Hard not to admire that, isn't it?
