Woolworths 'Worth It' Pen

[Tournevis]

My friend who lives in Edinburgh bought me one WorthIt pen and two extremely similar ones but in a soft rubber finish. The latter are essentially WorthIt pens with an additional rubber coat over it. I'm thinking it might prevent the barel from splitting as much.

 

She could not find the better, heavier pens mentioned and reviewed by garyc however.

[richardandtracy]

After the demise of the last Woolworths stores today, there will be no more of this 48p pen.

Sad day for those of us who loved 'Woolies'.

 

Regards

 

Richard.

 

[krom101]

The English branch of the originally Pennsylvania-founded Woolworths stores, F W Woolworth & Co, Ltd was founded by Frank Woolworth in Liverpool, England in 1909 primarily due to Frank Woolworth's ancestry linking to Wooley, Cambridgeshire - Frank himself claiming he had traced his ancestry through the Founding Fathers of the district to a small farm in middle-England.

 

When Frank eventually travelled to England in 1890, he docked in Liverpool and travelled by train to Stoke on Trent for the purchase of China and glassware for Woolworths ranges, but also noted his love of England in his diary and his aspirations for bringing the Woolworths name to England;

 

“ I believe that a good penny and sixpence store, run by a live Yankee, would be a sensation here. ”

 

Can't get much for a penny or sixpence in "Woolies" these days :roflmho:

 

See Wikipedia for the rest of the story...

 

- Stuart

I did as you suggested with Wikipedia, but before I got there I ran across an AP report saying that the last British Woolworth's stores were shuttered last Tuesday. I too was surprised that these stores lived on in England after they closed in the States in 1997. Both my wife and mother-in-law worked at Woolworth's locally many years ago.

[Sailor Kenshin]

All you have to do now is add a Hello Kitty sticker and you have a Grail Pen!

 

Want! ^__^

[Silvermink]

For the price, it's a great pen. On any other scale, I'd say you get what you pay for. It's certainly worth the cost of 4 disposable ball point pens, but not a lot more. As a school pen, it's adequate, though after a few weeks you may be looking for something more durable.

If you want to experiment with learning how to be a nib meister and/or create flexible nibs, then this is the best starting place I can think of.

 

So, in other words, it was Worth It, then.

 

Someone had to say it.

 

[richardandtracy]

So, in other words, it was Worth It, then.

 

Someone had to say it.

Groan!

 

Regards

 

Richard.

 

[amyx231]

staples or something should take the example!

u know, im surprised there arent kids' plastic-nibbed pens in toy stores.

[laureat]

I respect this review. What makes a good fountainpen... it is not only a famous brand or a high pricetag. How original to review "a pen" and review it serieously. Good for you. OK, it is an unbeleavable cheapy-cheapy pen. But still, it produces a line.

[Fuddlestack]

<!--quoteo(post=465022:date=Jan 2 2008, 02:12 PM:name=Shangas)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Shangas @ Jan 2 2008, 02:12 PM) 465022[/snapback]</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Perhaps it's just me, but that pen SCREAMS - 'cheap and disposable and no-thought-put-into-it-whatsoever'.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

I agree about the cheap & disposable, but a great deal of thought has been put into the production engineering behind the pen. The economics of making a profit on a 48 pence pen require outstanding production engineering, cheap labour and a superbly efficient distribution chain.

 

Regards

 

Richard.

 

What I have noticed about supermarket pens is that with very few exceptions they all write well straight out of the packet - you just shove the cart in and write. As you say, outstanding production engineering.

[Flounder]

I've been thinking about using these cheap supermarket FPs in pen repair, specifically if my Targa starts leaking again. I was thinking, you could dip the disposable FP nib in sealant, then 'write' the disposable nib along the diamond shape of the Targa's inlaid nib for a neat application.

 

[edited for grammar mishap]

 

 

Edited March 1, 2011 by Flounder

[richardandtracy]

It may be possible, but I imagine using 'Captain Trolley's Creeping Crack Cure' (or something similar) with a brush may be better.

 

Regards,

 

Richard.

[dezzick3]

Can't buy this pen anymore

[ThirdeYe]

Woolworth's used to have a large store here in downtown Grand Rapids, MI. It has been out of business for many years, sadly. Thanks for posting the review, it was interesting.

[rwilsonedn]

Can't buy this pen anymore

I believe you can still buy essentially the same pen as the "Fountain Pen" in Daiso Japanese Dollar stores in the USA. Also, as someone mentioned earlier in this thread, they show up from time to time on eBay bundled with a large number of ink cartridges.

ron

[richardandtracy]

In the UK it now seems to be sold in many pound stores and Wilkinson's stores.

 

Regards,

 

Richard.