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I have, I think, just completed my baby collection of pens etc. with a Retro 1951 rollerball. Apart from a Kaweco Sport EDC (kept in a Kaweco tin), I have six ‘standard’ fountain pens and six ‘other’ writing instruments, of which 2 are FP demonstrators and one is a semi-retired Sheaffer Prelude FP (gift). The ‘standard’ side The ‘non standard’ side The second group includes a Sheaffer ballpoint, a ‘Kerry’ mechanical pencil and the rollerball. Here is the rollerball on its own: The ‘Tornado by Retro 1951’ “Albert [Einstein]” in all its glory. My Tornado came from Cult Pens UK and so was very well packaged, arriving in a sealed dedicated cardboard box-cum-stand, with instruction booklet. I even got a promotional Retro key ring thrown in, along with the trademark Cult Pens sweets! The pen is all-metal construction and so fairly heavy. The action to extend and retract the rollerball itself is smooth and consistent, if somewhat heavier than my Sheaffer Prelude ballpoint. In the hand, it is slightly top-heavy: not an issue for me, but it could be a problem for someone with small hands. It is tapered to enable comfortable holding, but this is not as well achieved as, once again, the Sheaffer, which is always a pleasure to hold. By contrast, with the Retro 51, after a period of intensive writing (to test it) I found my hand becoming rather fatigued. This is not a major issue for me, as I bought it mainly for use on envelopes and in situations where a normal fountain pen might end up smudging - or worse. Extended writing is not really on the agenda - that’s what my fountain pens are for! The supplied OEM (Schmidt) rollerball is surprisingly good. I’m strictly an F or EF sort of person with fountain pen nibs, but this M rollerball was lovely. Smooth, no skipping* - even with Clairefontaine paper - and no feathering or bleed through to speak of, even on cheap and nasty paper. I was pleasantly surprised that the ink, once dry, tolerated being wiped with water-soaked tissue paper - there was some greyish smearing but the writing remained perfectly legible. Overleaf, on the same piece of paper, there was quite a lot of bleed through from the wetting, but that is not surprising. So, not ‘waterproof’, but certainly ‘water-resistant’ enough for use on envelopes, unless they are going to the Tropics! From my perspective, this rollerball makes a nice decorative and very practical addition to my modest collection. * I write with an angle of about 30 degrees, using very little pressure. Mostly cursive script, but not textbook perfect (i.e. never lifting the pen). It would seem, from a few experiments, that many variations on these conditions do produce significant skipping on some smooth papers, so Caveat Emptor.

I recently purchased a Retro 51 Deluxe Stealth Tornado Rollerball (the all-black one), which I'm enjoying. The refill says "Retro 51" on it, but is this actually made by Schmidt? My favorite roller refill is the Schmidt 8127 Long Capless Rollerball Refill in medium, blue, but that won't fit in this pen. Is there a substantially similar Schmidt that will fit the Volcano? Thanks, Gary

I really love the Retro 51 Tornado Lincoln fountain pen, I have only seen it being sold from the US. Does anyone know of a UK supplier, I don't feel like paying loads for shipping.

I was thinking of getting a retro 51 tornado lincoln for use on cheap-ish paper, and I was wondering if the copper finish will develop a patina over time or if it is coated with something to prevent that from happening. I really cannot tell just by looking at the pictures. Thank you!

So I'm not done Christmas shopping, mostly because the ones left aren't supplying ideas. But I find I'm buying for myself. Part of it is I waited too long to buy Retro 51 Space pens from US sites. I found a blog entry at some site i don't follow that had a link to a British seller, which still had the Retro 51 Gemini, Mercury and Apollo rollerball pens. First I ordered the Apollo, which is now sold out, then I convinced myself I needed the other two because of the Summer Field Notes release and the 50th anniversary of the Moon landing next year. And I was watching Cooper's Treasure on demand. I'm wondering if anyone else is doing some outside buying for themselves while still shopping for Christmas gifts for others.

At the last minute on Independence Day, I remembered my Retro 51 Signatures pen. I wanted to use it before the day was over. Using a J Herbin Lie de The cartridge, I had a bit of trouble installing it. It was a bit crooked at one point. I remember turning it back and forth to make sure it was seated. Later I notice stains on my clothes. Quite a few of them. Realizing it was most likely ink, I checked the cartridge and it was practically empty. Was it my trouble installing the cartridge that caused the rapid emptying? I've only used this pen once; it has been stored inside its tube.

Retro 51 Limited Edition Tornado Popper Surfin’ Rollerball Pen Surfin' is the only life. The only way for me. Now surf, surf with me.” -“Surfin” - The Beach Boys Acrylic barrel printed with classic board stripes Accented with antique silver trim Numbered Edition of 1,261 pieces Packaged in a matching gift tube Length: 5" Available at https://www.airlineintl.com/product/retro-51-limited-edition-tornado-popper-surfin-rollerball-pen we are only official distributor that has these unopened in stock.

Can anyone tell me the name of this pen? Any and all info would be appreciated (color, model, etc.). Thanks!

Hi, I wanted to get some advice about adhering a section into the barrel and the type of nib. I recently won a Retro 51 Double-8 L.E. NOS fountain pen off eBay. The pen is made from cellulose acetate and I was wondering if I could use shellac to glue the section to the barrel? I don't want the shellac to discolor or be seen from the outside. I don't know if I use shellac if I could heat it up later and remove it without damaging the parts. Does anyone have any suggestions or recommendations for adhesives? Secondly, the nib. Is this an early Delta Fusion nib or a full 18k nib? It really looks like it has an 18k inlaid top. I'm pretty sure its full 18k nib but I just wanted another opinion. Either way the seller never stated it as 18K and it feels and writes just like my OMAS Paragon 18k nib, so I'm very happy. Thanks, IKWarren