This and this. I found the early Pilot multipens (1+1 and 2+1) not as appealing as the early Sharbos and I was happy to ignore them. And then I discovered the 3- and 4-colour steel multis 
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Prices for the 4-color āHosobutoā have been rising steadily. I wasnāt keen on it because of the oddball ābig-smallā circles to denote finer and broader tips. But it grows on you.
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Interesting to hear of the rising prices observation. Theyāve been so ubiquitous on the auction market for yearsā¦ maybe inventory is starting to thin out? I have one of these and itās a pretty respectable girth given that thereās 4 D1 refills supported inside it. But the twist mechanism makes it impossible to convert for use with D1 MP.
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Iāve noticed this version (3 blacks of different thickness and one red) in the 1982 Pilot catalogue and I was wondering what the rationale is for this. I have an Ohto Biz4 which has a somewhat similar setup: red, blue and two blacks (0.5 and 0.7mm).
I never understood the point (obviously you can use any ink/thickness combination in a multipen but the fact that there are specific products for this seems to indicate a common use case).
Itās selling for around $70ā¦ insane.
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And Iāve found another one here: a Sailor with just 3 blacks, 0.5, 0.7 and 1 mm.
I still have to find an explanation for this pattern
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I have to confess that cytherianās post about the rotring Core range almost convinced me that I had spent a quarter century being completely wrong about its inexcusably awful design and that it is actually a bona fide work of genius.
I still havenāt managed to buy oneā¦ yet.
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Iām intrigued. Iād sincerely like to hear your impression that caused you to shift from awful design to ābona fide work of genius.ā
I do have to confess that as far as mechanical pencil writing experiences go, the core is rather controversial. It goes without saying that this is the last pencil youād pick for technical drawing. For doodling, sporadic note taking, and other short lived tasks? Itās OK. I much prefer the core as a ballpoint or rollerball. The offset finger position for the fountain pen is really innovative in its own right. But I have just one core fountain pen and donāt intend to buy any more. As you can see from my topic, Iām more enamored with the capless ballpoint. Something about the design exudes joviality. And, itās nicely put together. The body is solid. Some refills cause a little tip wobble, because of the gap, but a little kapton tape can fix that.
e.g. youād say many works of art are crap until you are alerted to aspects you didnāt realise before. Sometimes itās just the text ā the way it is articulated and how new ideas appear to you have valid reference points.
I say: Pollock paintings are crap. Guy just leaned over the canvas and sort of ejaculated paint as if he was some sort of Hemingway who just fist-fights everybody that opposes him. But when you realise he was doing a performance (and not actually trying to paint) (and that painting was just a tradition that was being made accessory by his performance), things change. You now realise the impact it had in the assessment and validity of Painting in a late-modernity context or how Performance Art got vindicated after Pollock āacted instead of paintingā. The actual object remains the same, but by now you realise it has another value besides the object itself.
I still wouldnāt buy a Pollock for my living room. But I would buy one of those bizarre Rotrings. You were probably just too convincing 
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^ ^ ^ yes, probably that.
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Yeah, I get the idea of the performative aspectā¦ but once on the wall, we donāt know his arm strokes that made it so. The painting is just an echo that loses much context. But what really boils me is when someone puts a few large colored rectangles on a canvasā¦ sometimes a canvas just divided in 2 colors. And thatās it. Now, I get the āconceptualā aspect, but I would never buy such a simple piece of art like that, which I could easily make myself.
The big bonus is that the core can still be found for pretty reasonable prices, at least here in the USA. Iāve been averaging prices between $11 and $14 USD. And if you buy a bunch together, you can save even more. Now, back in 2010 when Iād picked up a couple more to ācompleteā my Tecnor collection, Iād also grabbed a group of 3 coridium ballpoints for a song by a total fluke ā $11 shipped for all 3. They were all new, but not in original box.
Now that was a very unusual score at the time (I think the seller was offloading consignment and may have missed $7.50 each, and did $7.50 for all 3). But given prices today, they are going up. I think now is a good time to buy if you find a sub $15 price.
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Iām a simple soul, if I see something that has a knurled grip, I buy it. Iām still looking for the illusive all-knurled barrel, grip, clip and knock button. Hell, give me knurled lead to put in it.
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You have a PLOTTER 2002, yes? 
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Now I do!
Thank you!
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Do you know about the Pilot H109x? Itās not as hardcore as the plotter, but still very much embraces the same spirit. Itās a miracle that thing doesnāt have a knurled clip.
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I think that was the first pencil I got after rOtring 600s hooked me on knurled grips. Long since lost and never replaced. I found it left behind with other stuff in an office draw at an old job and had no idea what the model was, so thanks I will keep an eye out for it.
Not having much luck finding a plotter 2002 at a halfway reasonable price, but itās in my eBay wishlist now.
I suppose this thread can be considered self fulfilling haha.
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