Leuchtturm Drehgriffel gel pen

Nero (via Clare!) recently sent me the bright red version of this (currently sold out), but there are lots of colours available.

The pen is very slim, measuring 1cm in diameter, though as the barrel is made of aluminium, the pen is not as light in the hand as you might fear. There is a retro feel to it, with the off-white knurled end (which you rotate to expose the pen nib), and matching nose-cone (I'm sure it has a proper technical name, but you know what I mean!).

The total length of the pen is about 13cm (with the nib out). There's no pen clip, for those of you who like to clip a pen in a book or pocket, but it would fit in a pen-loop on a notebook. As you can see, there is "Leuchtturm1917 Drehgriffel Nr. 1" on the side.

The Leuchtturm site says that the gel refill is designed in Japan, and has a ceramic 0.5mm ball for extra fine lines. This is true, though for me, the line is too fine.

Now, we try our best to be honest with you guys. This is no doubt a beautifully made pen that many people will love. I, sadly, am not one of them. I'm never the biggest lover of gel pens in the first place, nor of slim-barreled pens, and my hand cramps horribly with this. I also find the gel pen a little scratchy and slow (though I accept I'm usually writing with a chunky, wet-nibbed beast of a fountain pen, so most things feel scratchy and slow in comparison).

It does indeed lay down a very fine line, and for those of you who bullet-journal, this may be an excellent feature. I don't bullet journal...

I wouldn't like you to go away with the impression that this is a bad pen! It really isn't! It's just not for me.