Described by its creators as a "minimal everyday pen, over-engineered to last generations," CW&T’s Pen Type-B is one of those products that I resisted for years. Despite the pen receiving rave reviews, I didn’t feel the need to invest in a high-end housing for Pilot’s Hi-Tec-C gel refill, even though I’ve long been a fan of needle tip gel pens and rollerballs. At times, Pen Type-B even seemed a bit “too popular,” with Kickstarter hype driving a lot of the sales. Was this a pen for me? And would I end up using it enough to justify the relatively high price point?
If there’s a matte-black option, I’m in. Shown here is the black Cerakote-finished titanium model, with an Esterbrook single-pen sleeve (which fits perfectly).
Brooklyn-based design group CW&T (short for Chei-Wei Wang and Taylor Levy, the team behind their ever-expanding range of products) bills Pen Type-B as the “ultimate pen for illustrators, designers, and architects." I'm none of those things, and the marketing initially kept me away. It shouldn’t have. The lore surrounding the Hi-Tec-C has long focused on Pilot’s needle-tip gel pen as the perfect pen for visual-art creatives, but many writers enjoy this refill as well, myself included. Pen Type-B is no different, and for those of us who use the Hi-Tec-C for writing, an upgraded pen body with some heft can make for a much more comfortable writing experience than the standard plastic barrels or some of the less refined machined pen options.
A Truly Minimalist Industrial Aesthetic
Pen Type-B consists of a cylindrical metal pen component inside a machined pneumatic sleeve with zero visible branding anywhere. It’s a very clean look, and the facet on the sleeve allows you to rest the pen on your desk without fear of it rolling away. I rarely use clipless pens these days unless they have some roll-stop function - it may seem like a little thing, but when you work at a desk for a living, the little things are often what differentiate the nice pens that sit in a case and never get used from those that become core workhorses.
To replace the refill, you unscrew the back of Pen Type-B. In addition to the Pilot Hi-Tec-C, Pen Type-B will accept a range of other refills, though you will have to use a spacer. CW&T has posted details on their website.
In terms of writing, whether you find Pen Type-B enjoyable will likely depend on your feelings about the Pilot Hi-Tec-C refill. As we Hi-Tec-C enthusiasts know quite well, it’s one of the more finicky gel pen refills on the market. When it works, it’s absolutely amazing, but you will inevitably get a few duds. If you’re already a Hi-Tec-C devotee, however, there’s nothing to dislike here. In addition to the bulletproof build quality, Pen Type-B offers a genuinely enjoyable writing experience. You can use this pen in two ways: (1) unposted, in which case the cylindrical "pen" component is exceptionally light; or (2) posted, with the sleeve reversed, which adds a fair bit of weight and creates a writing experience I would compare to the Lamy Dialog 3 in terms of weight and balance. I use Pen Type-B both ways, but when at my desk I prefer to use the lightweight titanium insert for longer writing sessions. (Note: On the version with the brass sleeve, the insert is made from stainless steel, which will be heavier than titanium.)
The "over-engineered" tagline refers to the pneumatic sleeve, which alone will offer you hours of entertainment if you find yourself bored at work (or, more likely these days, at home). The machining is so precise that the sleeve is basically airtight. It makes a popping noise if you pull the pen out quickly, and when you recap, you can watch it slowly slide back into the sleeve like a piston. This also serves a functional purpose: It keeps the refill from drying out.
Posted, the facet on the Pen Type-B creates a comfortable place to rest your grip while writing. (At least for me. YMMV in terms of comfort, depending on how you grip the pen.)
Takeaways and Where to Buy
Is Pen Type-B unnecessary for some (or maybe most) people? Sure. Ever since it launched on Kickstarter, Pen Type-B and it's predecessor, Pen Type-A, have courted controversy on whether these admittedly over-the-top pens are just "too much,” even going so far as to turn it into a bit of a marketing pitch. But if you're a Hi-Tec-C aficionado - clearly the target audience - it doesn't get much better than this. And while I used to balk at the price, which starts at $160 for a brass/stainless steel version and can cost as much as $230 for the black Cerakote titanium pen, other makers in this market segment have started to creep upward to the Pen Type-B's price point, not the other way around. (For example, the most recent line of Tactile Turn pens, for some combinations of materials, break the $300 ceiling and appear to be selling quite well). Given the level of craftsmanship and durability, I'm comfortable recommending, and now selling, these pens at CW&T’s standard pricing, provided that people understand on the front end that this is a pen aimed at a very specific audience.
As I noted above, Pen Type-B and Pen Type-A are the first pens I'm carrying in the TGS Curated Shop as part of my regular retail lineup, with all four finishes in stock and available to ship immediately. The pen featured in this review is the titanium model finished in black Cerakote.
To give you a sense of scale, Pen Type-B is shown here alongside a Write Notepads Reporter Notebook. I wouldn’t call Pen Type-B a pocket pen, but it is relatively portable.
