Papermate Flair Pen

[Studio97]

I recently acquired the black paper mate flair in M. Smooth writer and can be used as a bold sketching medium in a moleskine sketchbook. But the least moisture can make the ink run. I remember using Flair pens years ago. I know I have better options than these. The color selection is good and work well in the new run of coloring books created predominantly for adults.

[Garageboy]

I like the idea of them, I love the nostalgia (lots of engineers used them in the past to do mark ups) - but I never know what to do with them. I also love Pentel's similar Sign Pen

[inkstainedruth]

I used Flair pens all through middle and high school, and even a bit in college. Loved the range of colors.

I finally quit though, the time I went camping and there was a storm. My friends and I dropped the blue tarp canopy we'd been sitting under and it wasn't until afterwards that I discovered my checkbook (in a suede bag) had been on the ground *under* the canopy. Fortunately, the last entry in the register had been in ballpoint, NOT with a Flair pen. A guy camped near us made fun of me for using something that wasn't permanent (he was a corporate CPA). That ended my use of Flair pens pretty much for good.

Ironically, a few years ago, I was in an antiques mall in the Pittsburgh vicinity, looking for fountain pens (there are two locations: a smallish store along the main drag, and a much larger one up the hill in what was obviously a home at some point in the past). I didn't find any FPs in the smaller location -- but I did see a couple of (probably dead) Flair pens with the Westinghouse logo on them, which I sort of blinked at.... I guess they would maybe have been of interest to people who collect Westinghouse memorabilia. As for me, I did better in the other location, where I found my first Sheaffer Snorkel, a grey Valiant. And because it was Christmastime, they had a sale -- everything was 25% off!

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Sailor Kenshin]

Outside of the fountain pen, the only other pen I use (and equally feshitize) is the flair pen. It too seems to have a cult following and emerges in so many places: Woody Allen is said to use them; Quentin Tarantino writes his scripts with them; the feature prominently in the film "All the President's Men" (which has some nice stationery shots); Jonathan Kozol only uses them; Lewis Lampham has been recorded using one. Unfortunately, a few years ago, Papermate switched from the rich, ribbed black barrels to a smooth matte barely with their ugly name and logo on it! But, it still writes wonderful. Anyone else love this pen and have other videos/images of people using it? Long live the Flair!

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jjezD3myPk

 

 

(see 11:05-17:33)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0X6H6xplUcQ

 

 

http://media.gettyimages.com/photos/american-film-director-writer-and-actor-woody-allen-working-at-his-picture-id3202180

 

I have fond Flair memories from my pre-fountain pen days, and even now long for a set of happy, Tropicale colors like lime, turquoise and fuschia. I know I had them at some point!

[pajaro]

I used different colors of Flairs to make detailed notes for my Spanish Literature classes in college. These notes are still helpful to me in refreshing my memory about many Spanish and Iberoamerican novels. The Flair colors made the notes easy to read. Heady days in 1969.

[tonydent84]

I love Flair pens, but haven't used them that often recently because they seem to be a little too broad for me. I also bought boxes of Papermate's Flair Ultra Fine which I like a lot along with a box of Papermate's Liquid Flair X-fine which are very wet and smooth.

 

Have you seen the old commercials for the Flair pens on YouTube? And I remember a TV show as a kid where all the kids would use what looked like Papermate Flair pens to talk to a ghost (the show was called "Ghostwriter").

 

I never knew it had such a cult following.

[dogpoet]

It's seen as a design classic, believe it or not. I recall there being a minor fuss when Papermate announced they were revamping the design and assimilating it into a unified line. Most of this seemed to be coming from broadsheet hacks of a certain age rather than idiot hipsters, as well.

[lovemy51]

Never liked them.

+1

[Stephen2020]

I can't remember exactly when I first had them but around 1971-72 so great nostalgia.

I have built up a collection of them in recent times, original Flairs, Tempos (renamed but looking the same), Nylons (nearly the same, ribbed body now smooth [terrible idea]) and the current Flairs. Also some of the cream bodied Ultra Fine - I got rid of my modern Ultra Fines because they look so utterly bad! I have got some of the rollerbal Flairs, known as the Metal Roller which are excellent so no idea why they stopped making them? I bought one of the Liquid Flairs which I very rarely use, nothing against it just not inspired to use it.

My favourite modern colour Flair is the Cranberry colour ink.

[pajaro]

After a while I remember I got sick of the Flairs. Writing with them started to feel like drawing a fingernail over a chalkboard or like running my foot over dry sand on the beach. Worse if it were coquina sand. Dry sand. Heebie jeebies.

[Retro-user]

I found a couple of Flair pens in red and black, and I'm having good luck journaling with them, and even writing on index cards. The tip seems smooth and there's plenty of ink flow.