PSI Graduate Ballpoint (chrome)

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ghostrider

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Feb 3, 2011
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952
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Grand Rapids, Michigan
Pen State Graduate Ball point in Green Pebble solid surface.

I made this one a while ago, but haven't really had time to get around to this mini-review until now (the recent query of a fellow forum member being the motivation).

PSI's website posts the following as it's description of the Graduate.

PSI said:
" Streamlined, stylish and smart The Graduate™ is a welcome addition to the budding executive's desk. This 24kt Gold plated pen features a spring clip, Cross™ style refills and 7mm and 3/8Ó tubes for easy turning. three finishes are available to compliment any wood or acrylic barrels. Plus, the spring clip adjusts so you can turn larger profiles without effecting the clip."

Graduate 24kt Gold Twist Pen Kit at Penn State Industries

It uses a standard 7mm transmission (Slimline) with a 7mm lower tube, and 8mm upper tube. It has a spring clip, and is currently priced at $7.45 for the chrome, and $7.95 for the gun metal and 24k. Blank size required is ¾" x 4 ½".



I have not been the biggest fan of the Cross refill simply because of personal preference. However, I do make more variations of that style than any other so far, so I decided to give this kit a go.

Quality:

It's beefy, solid, and appears to be well made. By beefy, I'm talking about the clip, the center band, and the body. The clip is thick, and the spring action is not flimsy. It also allows for making the pen wider if one chooses (although I didn't my first time). The center band also has more mass due to it being a sort of "step-down" point for the transition from 8mm to 7mm.

I weighed the parts on my food scale (so it isn't exact measurements), and this is the following result. The center band weighed just below the .25oz mark, the tip was halfway between 0 and .25oz, and the clip assembly (the clip and finial come as one piece) registered right on the .25 oz mark. Not exactly precise measurements, but that's what I had to work with today. All together the three weighed slightly over .50oz. This is a very solid kit, and the chrome plating I went with appeared nicely done.

The Upper barrel is 8mm, and the lower barrel is 7mm and uses the usual 7mm transmission. This is where the center band is used to transition from the 8mm to the 7mm. The center band press fits into the upper barrel (much like a cigar CB), and operates the transition just like the upper barrel normally does on a Slimline kit. As a result of the transition from 8mm to 7mm, the center band itself is quite thick and heavy as I assume it's made of solid brass. I used solid surface for my blank material that, combined with the weight of the center band makes for a "hefty" pen. It's also simple to put together, and while anyone who's assembled the Cigar and a Slimline would have no problem with assembly, the instructions are more than adequate to guide a newcomer through the process.

The clip assembly come as one piece, and it's a spring clip (the advertising says it allows you to make a wider pen), and the spring is not what I would consider "weak" or "flimsy". I've never liked spring clips myself, but after a while, this one grew on me (probably because it's so thick).

The pen itself is what I would best describe as having smooth, clean lines, giving it an elegant, yet robust appearance. The tip, while being fitted for 7mm, doesn't have the step line (I don't know what it's called) like normal slimlines, and it more like the tip on the Atlas, Polaris, Jr. Gent ballpoint. The center band looks even cleaner than that of a Jr. Gent, being monochromatic, and still having enough roundness to give it character (rather than just straight walled). As stated before, the clip is thick. Thicker than any of the other pens I've made or seen in my limited experience. And, it flows into the finial to form the clip assembly. All together, the three make for profile that goes together nicely.

If I were to come up with any cons about this kit, the best I could come up with are the Cross refill, and the spring clip. That said, about the only reason I bother to mention is because people usually like to hear both pros, and cons, so this is the best I could come up with for cons.

My only problem with the Cross refill is that I personally like the Parker style myself. However, I find that out of all the people who have either received or obtained one of my Slimlines, none have had a problem with them. In fact, Cross an easily recognizable name that people can recognize when asking about what refills to use. There are also Private Reserve refills available from at least one of our vendors that I know of. I tried one once, so I tend to think of my personal bias as just that.

As far as the clip assembly goes, there are only two things that (really don't) bother me about it. The first is that when I've seen the spring clips, they usually look (and feel) pretty flimsy to me. I admit that my experience with them is very limited, so my viewpoint is based on that. As such, I consider my opinion on that matter as just that. "Limited". Besides, this particular clip assembly certainly is not like the others I've seen, and was in fact quite secure feeling. That is why I qualified by saying that it "really doesn't" bother me with this pen. The other thing that made me skeptical about the clip assembly is that, when I first assembled the pen, the clip seemed to easily settle to one side or the other, and make it look crooked on the pen. It wasn't that it would continuously shift that way; just that whenever I opened my pen folder (at first) that's the way it looked (probably got moved by the folder). However, after a while it seemed to happen less, and last I saw it didn't seem to be a problem. I suspect it could have been something to do with the way it was handled and stored, rather than the kit itself. And again, that's why I say that it "really doesn't" bother me. As said, the only reason I mention these two characteristics is because I find no other reason to dislike this kit.

There is one thing that some people will probably have a problem with. That is that the Graduate only comes in Chrome, 24kt, and Gun Metal. Many people prefer to use only what I consider the "premium plating's" and this kit does not come in them. Of course that can also be said about PSI's Vertex line, and it seems to be quite popular. Therefore while I (like others) prefer the more premium plating's, it doesn't mean I won't be passing on the Graduate, and it does have the advantage of keeping the cost down.


In summary, this kit offers a nice alternative to those who want something between the Slimline and the Cigar. It's different from the Euro/Designer, which seems to be getting less popular in the trends, and I personally find the smooth lines and profile somewhat, "classy". They carry premium platings, so who knows what will happen if the Graduate becomes popular. I'm actually quite surprised that it hasn't seen more attention, and believe it's due to the fact that it's simply a PSI product that isn't yet available through other vendors (I checked with the two I usually use, and they claimed that PSI maintains exclusive distribution to newer models like this one). Since there are a lot of people who prefer to deal with "vendors other than PSI", that means there are less people using the kit due to it not being available through their usually sources. It will be interesting to see how it fairs if it ever does become available through secondary sources. Hopefully it won't be too late as I think it looks like the styling that is often popular on these forums. Besides, I already have an order for one in Gun Metal, and I don't even have one of those kits yet.


Thanks for reading and looking. Any comments, questions, and/or critiques welcome.
 

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wood-of-1kind

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Jul 10, 2005
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Toronto, ON, Canada
David, thank you for taking the time to post a well written and prepared review. Like Alfred, I too will be ordering some of these kits but probably in FP style.

Cheers.
 

Buzzzz4

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Dec 7, 2008
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Grand Rapids, Mi
Nicely done with the review! I liked the feel of this pen in the hand and will probably pick some up when my current stock of sets deminishes. Thank you!
 

ghostrider

Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2011
Messages
952
Location
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Thanks all for the reply's.

Something of note:

When I bought this kit, PSI wasn't offering the Graduate in fountain or roller ball yet. They were only available in the ballpoint. I don't know when they added the fountain and roller ball, but in looking on their site, they appear (to me) to be a little different than the ballpoint. The center band looks more straight walled than rounded, and the clip assembly is also different than the ballpoint.

Something else of note is that the cap on them is listed as magnetic.
 

Lenny

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Jan 6, 2009
Messages
3,475
Location
Searsport, Maine
Very nice review! Thanks for doing it.

I like the look of this set of components but agree with you that it's a little dissapointing that it uses a cross style refill. I would be more anxious to try some if they did use the Parker style refills (They DO write better IMO), but this does make for a nice, inexpensive pen never the less.
 
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