Inky T O D - Is It Still Ink If It's Not Liquid?

[amberleadavis]

No, I'm not asking about powdered inks or even gel inks, but actual plastic.

 

Check out this new 3D pen that is in stores now.

 

I'm not sure that it's a pen.

 

http://www.the3doodler.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/preorder-pen4.png

 

I'm not sure that this is actually ink:

 

http://the3doodler.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/essentials_pla-311x542.png

At a minimum, I am positive that it isn't a fountain pen.

 

However, my son read about this pen in Weekly Reader and came home saying he "needed" one more than I needed a new Pelikan M200. Since he knew what my M200 actually was...he'll probably inherit my pens. Nevertheless, if I were in England, we would already have bought one.

 

Now, all things being considered, I don't see this coming out with MB branding, but really, why not Faber Castell? Why a kids pen?

 

Most importantly, is this ink? Or pretty hot glue?

 

Your inky thoughts?

[AllenG]

I know I want one for my fly tying bench.

I'm voting, hot glue.

[amberleadavis]

I know I want one for my fly tying bench.

I'm voting, hot glue.

 

 

Seems that way to me, but dang it is cool.

[WC Lee]

oh wow that thing is neat .... I want to know how to store the 3D sketches after they are done?

[Charles Rice]

Does it come in pink?

[amberleadavis]

Does it come in pink?

 

It doesn't look like it. I know how that disappoints you. However, you can get pink "ink".

 

http://the3doodler.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/clearly-pink.png

[Runnin_Ute]

make a pen stand?

[mark e]

from what i gathered after a quick look at the site's faq section, it's close to hot glue, but instead of glue it is actually melting plastic

[Komitadjie]

I want one. I have NO idea what I'd do with the thing, but I want one anyway. XD

[martinbir]

A wonderful toy but it does not use ink.

 

According to my 1973 Shorter Oxford English Dictionary (so short it is only 2 volumes) which I use for checking what words really mean, not what they have come to mean since English usage ceased to be taught in our schools, ink is "the coloured fluid ordinarily employed in writing with a pen on paper etc. or the viscous paste used in printing".

 

Plastic sticks don't qualify. Maybe we need a new forum "Plasticy Thoughts"?

[amberleadavis]

I agree it's not ink... but I didn't think this was a pen. I think I will be owning one...but I'm still undecided. The thought of melted plastic seems so "un-penny" for such a pretty penny.

[mark e]

I agree it's not ink... but I didn't think this was a pen. I think I will be owning one...but I'm still undecided. The thought of melted plastic seems so "un-penny" for such a pretty penny.

it is indeed plastic...i wouldnt call it a pen, either....i would call it (and more accurately, i believe) a 'sculpting tool'---although i'm not sure that would be entirely correct, either

basically, from what i can tell, you draw in the air with this tool, the heated plastic comes out the other end, and cools almost instantly on contact with the air, into whatever shape you want....like so>>>>>

 

http://deadstate.org/watch-this-3d-pen-that-allows-you-to-draw-things-in-mid-air/

 

crazy-cool, huh?

[wallylynn]

i consider it a pen, since it's fairly slender and is used to draw lines.

[leofoam]

I think the device in question has the same relation to a 3D printer as a fountain pen does to a office printer. Both the printer and the fountain pen use ink, so we can assume that the materiel used in this device should go by the name of the compound used in 3D printers. The materiel is called filament, so I would call it a filament pen technically. In reality, I call it freeking awesome