Can anyone recommend a good click pen?

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Knucklefish

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My daughter is a nurse and she claims they prefer the click type pens at the hospital. I bought 4 of the CUSA "Click Pen" kits and turned and assembled them over the weekend. I have to say I am a bit disapppointed with the mechanism. They are noisy and lock-up (meaning wont push the pen out of the writing tip) occasionally. I know, I am cheap and pair $4.75 each. Can anyone recommend a better clicker pen?
 
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My brother is a doctor and also prefers the click pen. I first gave him a Sierra click pen and he dropped it and somehow broke off the clicker. The most recent one I made for him is the CUSA long clicker (similar to the one pictured below). I think (just my opinion) it actually has a better mechanism just based on fit than the other click pens. So far my brother likes it. Is this the same type of kit you purchased?

1_DSC_0146_S.jpg
 
John, I agree with you completely. My daughter also told me the other nurses prefer clickers but after making a few of the ones you mentioned, I'm not real impressed!

If you try one, let me know what you think of the long clicker Mark and Gary have recommended. :smile:
 
I've built just about every "clicky pen" made (never for sale, BTW). All have failed at some point, with the exception of the Elegent Beauty. And that may very well be because it's new...but a man can dream!

People who really want "clicky" pens (my customers for these are Dr's, Nurses, EMTs, PAs, firefighters, utility workers and other "one handed" workers), These people really put them through the paces. So far, I found NOTHING that remotely rivals the free "drug" pens that pharmacutical reps give away. The longest lasting model was the "long click" but if failed long before (actually nearly a year before) the "free" pen.

I've got several of the " Big Pharma" pens dissected to see what makes those pens work so flawlessly and how to replicate that action.

If you sell pens, there is no plausable reason to make a $50 or $75 pens that never works as well as the giveways.

THERE IS a big, wanting market for high end "clicky" pens. So far, just not real product offerings. It may be time to regress to the ways of when I first started "retrofitting" Zebras, Pentels, et. al with "snazzy" bodies".

AND by the way, THOSE people usually write through 3-part NCR paper which eliminates gels, roller balls and most things, EXCEPT REALLY GOOD BP PENS.
 
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Slimline pro

I think the Slimline Pro from PSI has about as good a click mechanism as any and has the advantage that you can use the easyflow 9000 refills as well.
 
I have also made several different ones and my favorite by far is the Slimline Pro as well. The mechanism is smooth and so has worked really well for me. I like the long click for the single barrel style but the click is not nearly as smooth to me. imho
 
I really should "back track" here and give PSI their due. Their "clicky pen" works better than most. I had touble getting them, so I changed to another supplier.

For a click pen, that pen really should be recognized....It is better than most. It takes a lot of money, and even more convincing for me to make a click pen. We really should be able offer product that compares to a "free" pen.
 
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I have to go with the Vertex click from PSI. Very smooth and I have yet to have a problem with one.
 

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It is something I just don't understand. Why can they make a cheap, even free, click pens that last forever, but the kit clicks don't?

I haven't had a problem with the Vertex, but I don't give them the hard use that a nurse or doctor would.
 
I'll add my kudos to the long click (CSUSA or LauLau for better platings)

I've had two on my desk since I made the first ones. The first stopped working due to theft (at least it's hard to click when you don't know where the Heck it is), and the second gets used a good bit and hasn't stopped working yet.

I have noticed that it can be finicky about the refill. Some refills will hang up in it, but when I replace it with a private reserve, it works flawlessly. I don't know where they get the stock refills from or why they hang, but it does happen occasionally.
 
Don't give the free or inexpensive click pens too much credit. I've had plenty of them fail on me. Because they're so inexpensive, we don't think twice about throwing a broken one away until we finally get to one that lasts for us.

I agree with others. I'd pay good money for a metal and brass clicker mechanism that would last forever and work smoothly and reliably.
 
The Vertex click pen from PSI works great but is more popular with men than women. Super smooth click mechanism and is a one piece barrel. I have been carrying on for awhile now and never had any issues with it.
 
I can tell you what not to get. I recently purchased some "Click Pens" from CSUSA. There are not slimline clicks. The use an "O" bit drill. They are crap. I tried one last night. Once assembled it won't even click. Gets stuck every time. Take it apart and it works great. Garbage.
 
I would recommend the Wall Street II sold by Woodcraft. It is durable, attractive and easy to turn. I have carried one for over a year. It has been dropped numerous times and keeps on ticking 'er clicking.

George
 
i just made a sierra click last weekend and have been using it a little. mechanism is a little noisy but seems pretty solid. guess theres only one way to know for sure though. and one of the easier pens to turn so might be worth trying one.
 
LauLau's long "click". Great price for upgraded platings. And Aarons a good guy to deal with.

I've made several and is one of my fav's. Nice long barrel to show off a pretty blank. You nay want to stretch the spring for a heftier "click".
 
I can't find the thread by Ed, but for those of you that like the WS II clicker, I know there is a couple of options in that space.. Some have a silly little extra little piece that you can lose and some don't.
 
Dave Turner said:
Don't give the free or inexpensive click pens too much credit. I've had plenty of them fail on me. Because they're so inexpensive, we don't think twice about throwing a broken one away until we finally get to one that lasts for us.

I agree with others. I'd pay good money for a metal and brass clicker mechanism that would last forever and work smoothly and reliably.
Click to expand...
Agreed. :biggrin:
 
Well, I'm glad I found this thread. I was about to post almost the same thing. The reason is that I was helping my niece make a slim line pro. She spent a lot of time turning her pen, then the click mechanism wouldn't work correctly. It may very well have been operator error as it was her 1st pen, and she was getting help from 2 sources (me and my son). I think there is a good chance that some CA ended up in the tube, but I can't prove it. Anyway, I recently made an sierra elegant beauty, so I gave that one to her as she really wanted a click pen. But it just isn't the same as making her own.

I really like the CSUSA long click, and it's my current personal pen. But I think it's a bit too much for most women. So other than the Elegant Beauty, or the regular Sierra click, or the slim line pro, is there something women like, that also works well? I'm not really a fan of the slim line pro, but it was the only kit I had that was a click pen for her to try and make. I told her I'd get her something, and I'm leaning toward the Sierra click unless anyone knows of something different that women like.
 
Hello All!! I have made just about every click pen out there because I get alot of customers asking for them. Now I really like the vertex but the ladies don't.So after many different tries I finally started making the sierra click.I have sold about 20 of these with no call backs at all.I have been carrying one myself for almost a year and it has held up very well.They are a little longer then the regular sierra and I don't like that but I was told you could take out that little extension on the top of the refill and shorten the tube.I haven't tried that yet.
Good luck!!!
JIM
 
I'm a big fan of the Sierra Click. I'm on my third one and this isn't because they fail, I just get tired of the pen and make something diffrent. All three still work fine. My wife also uses one and it is still working fine even after a year of daily use at her office. And mine, I generally carry for a year, then make a new one.

I have also made the Slimline Pro and the double banded from Arizona Silhouette. Both clickers work great. But, be for warned. They are both sensitive to barrel length. So be extremely careful with your barrel trimmer. If you trim too short, they won't work correctly, or they won't work at all.
 
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el_d said:
LauLau's long "click". Great price for upgraded platings. And Aarons a good guy to deal with.

I've made several and is one of my fav's. Nice long barrel to show off a pretty blank. You nay want to stretch the spring for a heftier "click".
Click to expand...

I would also recommend LauLau for a great click pen, the Stretch, works great.
It is more expensive as a kit, but worth the price.
 
I've made two long clicks. One has been running a couple of years with a pilot and all over the world. No problems.

The other one quit being reliable clicking, so on Friday I swapped the refill out for another Dayacom unit I had from another pen, and walla, it was working again.

I haven't tried putting a genuine parker refill in the other one yet.
 
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