Rotring Tikky colors 2024 edition

 

Rotring Tikky (3rd generaion) just got a color update in 2024 with these 4 colors: Tea Rose, Sea Blue, Opal Blue and Orchid Bloom. Even thoug Opal Blue looks more like a Mint Green to me it's still a nice pallet of colors.

So if you fancy any of these give the pencil a try

The new Rotring Tikky

rOtring Tikky Retro is the brand new mechanical pencil retro inspired from the Tikky lineup. It was launched this year, and for now it comes in just these 3 colors (red, grey and blue).

We do not know for know if the rOtring Tikky Retro is the successor of the Tikky 3rd generation, or is a limited offering.

The new Rotring Tikky Retro comes with a retractable tip making it easier to EDC it. This feature is nothing new to the Tikky line. The first generation had variants that offered this feature, but it was later forgot to the more robust and sturdy fixed sleeve which was better suited for technical work. Nowadays when the pencil will most likely be used for writing, taking notes, homework the retractable nib is a nice thing to have.

From the looks of it based it takes inspiration from all of the previous models. The tip cone and the retractable sleeve are inspired from the original as well as the end of the barre, the wavy grip section without rubber seems to be taken from the rOtring Tikky II, while the clip is from third generation of  Tikky.

The pencil comes with 0.5 and 0.7 lead even though for now 0.5 seems to be the easier version to find.

The features of the pencil taken from rOtring's website

Features

• Lightweight pencil with a rippled grip, just like the much-loved original Tikky
• Retractable tip helps prevents breakage
• Built-in eraser under the push-button cap
• Refillable; loaded with high-polymer 2B leads
• Available in a range of bold retro colours to match your style

Most popular office pencil

 

I went through the pen holders on my colleagues desks, and found that the most popular pencil in the office is ... the Rotring Tikky 3. Four out of seven people, or just a bit over 57% of the people in the office use the Rotring Tikky. Affordable, reliable and available in a multitude of colors, this Rotring is the perfect companion in the office, school or anywhere for that matter.

Starting with my 0.7 mm Light Blue pencil. The color was introduced by Rotring in 2017 (code 2007252 for 0.7 mm and 2007253 for 0.5 mm pencil). It is a pale, almost pastel blue color. To my eyes, it looks a lot like baby blue.

The second pencil is the Rotring Tikky 3 Blue 0.5 mm (code 1904701 for 0.5 mm and 1904508 for 0.7 mm). This shade of blue is much darker and more saturated and vibrant looking. A classic royal blue never gets old.

Third pencil in the lineup is the Tikky 3 Red 0.5 mm (code 1904699 for 0.5 mm and 1904507 for 0.7 mm)

The last one in the bunch is the updated Red 0.7 mm. The updated color was introduced in 2017 (code for the updated version remain the same as for the previous red, 1904699 for 0.5 mm and 1904507 for 0.7 mm). Comparing the updated red to the old red, the new color is a bit brighter and more vibrant. Also, the color of the rubber grip has changed to a darker gray.

The love for 0.5 and 0.7 mm lead is equal, 2 of the pencils being 0.5 mm and the other 2 0.7 mm. The same thing can be said about the colors, half of the pencils being blue and half being red.

Comparing the shades to each other.

All the colors look very nice. It is hard to pick a winner. Both blues are interesting in their own way, and both reds look very nice.

Do you have a favorite color? It doesn't have to be one of these.

 

More on the Rotring Tikky

How many leads should you keep in a mechanical pencil

How many leads should I store in my mechanical pencil, is a question that I ask myself regularly. Well maybe not as often, or not at all, but why not find out.

Depending, from where you get your information, you will find out that you can store as many leads as you want or there is a strict number that you should put in two or three pieces at most.

The main worry with keeping more leads inside the pencil is that the leads will break and produce fine dust which will clog the pencil eventually, the mechanism will jam, or the leads will be unusable due to breakage.

Rotring in the product care states that you should refill with two or three leads. "We recommend refilling your pencil with 3 fine leads. It’s the best balance for longer use without creating too much dust inside the tube due to an overload of refills."

Staedtler for example, doesn't mention the number of leads that you should keep inside your pencil, but the refill is designed to dump the entire content in one go. "Simple “12-a-go" refilling for many Staedtler mechanical pencils such as Mars micro 775 and graphite 779"

I do believe that the producers of pencils are taking all the needed precautions in advising you to keep just a few leads inside.

At the same time, I have a feeling that the leads have improved a lot over the years. The resistance is a lot better, while the quality of the writing (line darkness and smoothness) remained the same if not improved over time. A good argument for my opinion is the lack of the needle that used to be present in all mechanical pencil erasers, used to clear clogs in the advance mechanism,. Nowadays, the needle is missing basically from all modern mechanical pencils. Some producers still keep it around, but it is more and more a rarity.

To see if the recommendations are still valid today, I will do a test for a 4 week with two Rotring Tikky III 0.5. One of them will be loaded with 3 leads (1 in the chamber ready to write and 2 loose in the barrel), while the second one will carry an entire refill,12 leads. I will carry around both pencils and use them in rotation, trying to keep it as impartial as possible.

From the beginning I can feel the mass of leads slushing around in the pencil which holds an entire refill pack, and defiantly they create more noise and commotion compared with the 3 leads pencil.

I feel like I am a master of the mechanical pencil, like badass movie characters that know the difference between an empty gun and a fully loaded gun (Lian Neeson Taken reference)

Ant the results are in...

So from what you can see, the leads came out just fine from both pencils. None of them broke, and no dust came out of the barrel (white paper test). In conclusion, I wouldn't care too much of how many leads there are in a pencil, as this non-scientific tests seems to point that even a big number of leads will do just fine in day to day scenario, stored inside your favorite pencil. Generally, it is a good idea to keep a few extra leads on hand, or in this case in the pencil, so that you don't have to worry about longer writing sessions.

New colors for the Rotring 500 and 600 in 2022

Rotring now offers the infamous Rotring 600 and Rotring 500 mechanical pencils in new colors. The Rotring 600 featured on the cover of the catalog is now available also in: white, gold, and rose gold. I think the white one especially stands out with a very clean and professional look.

The Rotring 600 3 in 1 has received 2 new colors, the royal blue and the dark green. Until now it could be purchased in black and silver.

Rotring hasn't forgotten about the little brother, the 500 which was available only in black. Now it can be purchased in pink, royal blue, and dark green. Compared to the 600 the 500 still keeps the grip section, the clip, the lead hardness indicator and cap in the standard back color. Probably a cost saving decision, to keep the pencil affordable. Even so, the pencil looks rather nice, I especially am intrigued by the green / black version.

Rotring Isograph in Netflix Dark series

Best possible things to do on a rainy weekend? I started watching the german series Dark on Netflix. It is quite an interesting TV Show. It is a bit difficult to keep up with the plot, being a time travel movie. But in the end, it is worth it. By the second season, everything starts to be clearer.

In 1986, Charlotte is analyzing and keeping track of the birds that are dying.

In the middle of the forest, Charlotte is drawing and writing in the journal all the details with a Rotring 2000 Isograph in 0.25 mm size.

Rotring Isograph is a technical pen that uses pigmented ink. Being a technical pen it comes in all the possible sizes from 0.1 mm to 2.0 mm and everything in between. It uses refillable cartridges.

It is nice that the producers of the show have gone to the length of finding correct writing instruments for the period of time presented, and not only that, but they used such an iconic product.

Rotring polimer leads

When it comes to polymer leads Rotrings are the ones I love. They are average-priced but exceptional writers. The leads write very smoothly, and it's hard to emphasize this enough. I do not have problems with the leads breaking under pressure, but this is usually not a problem anymore with modern half-decent products. If you haven't written using the Rotring leads I recommend giving them a chance.  So I give them 10 out of 10.

When rOtring introduced its first mechanical pencil, of course, it had to come up with the leads for it. So in 1979 when the Tikky was introduced to the public the first polymers from rOtring came to market as well. The leads came in a package that resembled the 2 mm.

In the catalog, rOtring specifies that the leads are resistant to breaking, and they come in size 0.3 / 0.5 / 0.7 and have different hardness levels.

As you can see back then rOtring was marketing their sizes differently 0.3 instead of 0.35 nowadays and 1.0 instead of 0.9 nowadays.

As I used rOtrings a little bit later down the line I did not use this first model but I don't remember the early leads to be that resistant as it was not unusual for the pencils to get clogged up. 

rOtring catalog 1980 Romania 

A new design of the lead box was released in the later years. I do not know exactly when the new design was launched to the market but it was before 1990. Most likely the formula changed as well as the package. The leads were not any kind of Polymer but a hi-Polymer.
The new lead boxes contained 16 leads divided evenly into two compartments that. The compartments were independent and each had its own cap, even though the caps were connected to each other.

rOtring catalog 1990

Sometime before 1996 rOtring changed the packaging of the leads again. The big change is the fact that rOtring in this period transitioned from the old labeling of sizes to the modern labeling. I mean that the previous size 0.3 was marketed as 0.3 / 0.35 mm, and the 1.0 changed to 0.9 / 1.0.
In addition to the size, color coding was added to the label. And of course, the number of leads in the package was reduced to 12 pieces instead of the previous 16.
The box kept the same design and color.

rOtring catalog 1996

In the early 2000s, a new package was introduced. A more modern design, where you slide the access door to access the 12 leads that are inside. The dual compartment was forgotten. Also, the dual-labeling of the size was dropped in favor of 0.35 mm and 0.9 mm. This is the way rOtring codes the sizes even today.

rOtring catalog 2005

Another change happened in 2008 when rOtring added the Tikky name on the label. Also, the article number was changed. This makes me believe that the product itself suffered a change, or maybe it was just integration in the Stanford article system.

rOtring catalog 2008

Rotring Artpen - the last Rotring fountain pen

Rotring has moved away from fountain pens over the years. The only fountain pen model that is still available is the Rotring Artpen, which was launched in 1984.
"...a calligraphic pen originally intended for artists. Its unparalleled ergonomics quickly make it a top seller" says Rotring
During this period the fountain pen was kept pretty much the same, but over the years different variants were offered to the public.
It has an interesting design, made entirely out of plastic, with a wavy grip section. The fountain pen as the name indicates is addressed for those who are art-oriented. The design of the fountain pen is reminiscent of a dip pen for me at least, with its long and pointy barrel. You can easily change the nib, different sizes and grinds are available.
The fountain pen takes cartridges or a converter.

Different moddels of the Rotring ArtPen:

Rotring art pen white was introduced to the market in 1988 (Rotring catalog 1988)

In the same year, Rotring introduced the Artpen Graph which featured an Isograph tip instead of the fountain pen nib. (Rotring catalog 1988)

In the same catalog, the Artpen is sold as a Sketch combi-set along with an Artpen 2 mm clutch pencil

A better photo for the Artpencil and Artpen Graph from the Rotring 1990 catalog

In 1994, 10 years after the launch of the Artpen, Rotring decided to bring to the market a limited edition called Millennium. 

"The success of the ArtPen calls for an ArtPen Millennium range. From 1994 – 2000, a new ArtPen Millennium limited edition was brought out each year, as collector’s items, presented as both signs of the times and objects d’art." (Rotring heritage website)

From 1994 until 1997 special editions of the Rotring Artpen, presented as a countdown.

Left to right 1994, 1995, 19946, 1997. Rotring 1998 catalog

Millennium 6 (1994) - Limited edition of only 3500. Metal barrel turned out of bar stock, red and black multilayer lacquer finish. It has a two-tone gold nib

Millennium 5 (1995) - Limited edition of only 3500. Barrel out of galvanized metal hand polished, multicolored stripes. It has a two-tone gold nib 1.5 mm

Millennium 4 (1996) - Limited edition of only 6000. Barrell is made out of cherry wood, and the cap is metal with 8 coats of lacquer. It has a two-tone gold nib

Millennium 3 (1997) - Unique limited edition of only 6000 worldwide. Barrel of translucent multi-colored resin with gold plated bicolor nib. Engraved on cap plug. (marble-like barrel)

In 1998 Artpen gold was introduced
" Caligraphy is the art of beautiful writing. The Rotring ArtPen brings this artistry into daily life. It accentuates its owner's personal handwriting style and underlines the joy of beautiful writing with every word brought to paper. The ArtPen is the right choice for creative, emotional writing and for words written for special occasions.
The ArtPen Gold is the writing instrument for the most exclusive requirements and most expressive pieces of writing. Gold fittings accentuate its classic shape, and the high-gloss resin finish gives the slender barrel a special touch of sophistication"

In 1999 a more simple design is released (edition 1). The fountain pen is an anodized aluminum body and cap in deep blue color, that can look almost black. With a bicolor gold nib. 6000 pieces were produced

In 2000 the last fountain pen in the series was released. A very nice cap and barrel made out of solid brass. Both sections have been etched with a guilloche pattern, and silver-coated. It has a hand-polished, bicolor gold-plated nib 

Rotring Artpen 2000 millennium limited edition

All of the special edition Artpens came in a nice box with a certificate mentioning the pen number and the total number of pens produced in the series. All of the Artpens from the Millennium edition had the production number marked on the cap.

Another fountain pen that could be considered a variation of the Artpen is the Smartpen. Even though it is marked a bit differently, basically it is the same thing but in more vibrant colors marketed towards younger customers.

"The ArtPen brings a new enjoyment to personal artistic expression with the written word. Its calligraphic nib makes any piece of writing into a work of art to delight the writer and reader alike."

rOtring Writing Sensations 2001 / 2002

Extra pictures

The Rotring fountain pen kept it's design principle over the years, and brought to market very nice-looking editions that made it even more desirable. Today though it is very hard to find one even though not many years ago the plain black version was still available in shops. When I initially wrote the blog post a few years back I said "After 33 years of service, the rOtring ArtPen remains the only fountain pen rOtring has in it's portfolio. I hope the future will bring a new special edition of the Art Pen or Art Pencil if not a brand new rOtring fountain pen.."

In 2024 the future in which rOtring revitalizes the Art Pen or brings a new pen to the market seems a distant dream as the Art Pen is dying quietly as well as the Art Pencil which has vanished from the market leaving no trace behind..

Extra information in the comments from Mark

"the original Art Pen 'Slogan' typeface was created by Helmut Mathias and first cast by Ludwig & Mayer in 1958, around the mid '90's rOtring refreshed the type cast with a new in-house design. We also had the handsome TRAXX variant from 1995, and with regards to the Smart Pen range they also included ultra rare Gloss & Semi-Transparent finishes, just in case someone is wanting to build the ultimate Art Pen collection. Oh then there's all the special edition box sets, desk sets, Art Pen Arkansas Whetstone..... its utterly fascinating
Then there's the time that the Art Pen was manufactured in Parker's Newhaven facility in the UK in the late '90's and the clip is stamped 'Made in U.K. which makes another rare sighting."

   - Mark

I also recommend taking a moment to go over the blogpost Rotring Art Pencil by unofficialrotring.

Post updates:

Updated on 12th of August 2024

Updated on the 12th of December 2021

Accessorize - fountain pen and watch combo

I think this is a bit of an extravaganza when it comes to watches and fountain pens. Both the watch and the fountain pen are hard to get as they are not in production anymore (Seiko actually announced that they will reissue the watch)
I am talking about the Seiko Alien watch worn by Ripley in the Aliens movie, designed by Giugiaro.

In my mind, I immediately thought maybe there is an equally interesting fountain pen designed by Giugiaro.
After a little research on the internet, I found out that Giugiaro actually worked with 3 stationary companies. The companies are Aurora (Italian company based in Torino), Parker and Sylvapen. Not much information is about what products made by these companies were his design. I wasn't happy with this answer so I looked for the fountain pen some were else.
The watch has a bold design, is a chronograph what makes a lot of sense based on the fact Giugiaro is known especially for his car designs. The dial and subdials have a feeling that they were taken out of a car. And the bold colors combined with the sterile silver case make it unique. Not to mention the buttons on the side...

I think the best bet for a fountain pen to go with the Alien watch is Rotring 600.
It matches the simple and unique style of the watch. Sharp corners on the barrel and cap with knurled elements on the grip, cap and barrel end. A nice hint of yellow on the cap and nice golden nib and the traditional Rotring ring and the writing in red.
It looks very much like a tool but at the same time is a thing of beauty and I could say a cult has been formed around these beautiful instruments.
If you have other suggestions please let me know in the comments. You can add pictures as well.

Gutberlet manufacturer of mechanical pencils for Rotring and Staedtler?

Fact: In 1995 Gutberlet GmbH acquired the rights to the Kaweco name.
Enter the Gutberlet site and you are welcomed by an outdated, plain looking site of an unknown manufacturer.
If you look at the products you are up for a treat
"Components for pens – technical components – decoration foils / heat-transfer-foils – packaging – OEM-production for pens."

"Push pencil aluminium with 0,3/0,5/0,7 und 0,9mm leads"

rOtring Tikky T (first version)

rOtring Esprit

Staedtler 925 25 03

Staedtler 925 05 and Staedler 925 65

Staedtler and Rotring

All of the images were taken from the Goultberg presentation portfolio link


Related post: kaweco OEM