With Barack Obama being an icon for people of all walks of life, it is not surprising that we have noticed a number of people reaching out to ask what pen Obama uses. With the number of people reaching out steadily increasing with each passing month, we have decided to publish this dedicated article going over the various pens that Barack Obama has been seen to use as well as the surprising choice he uses for his personal writing.
Although a customized Cross Townsend with the particular presidents signature and the presidential seal has been the standard for signing official documents for many presidents spanning over decades, it does seem that Obama doe prefers other pens. Although he has been seen using a Cross Townsend multiple times when signing official paper work, he has also been seen with a Montblanc Meisterstück 149 as well as confirming that he prefers to write with a $3 pen, the black uni-ball vision elite rollerball pen with a micro-point!
We will bo going into this in more detail below in the article as Obama tends to use each pen for their own unique purpose rather than constantly using the same pen each day. Please note, this is not an extensive list of pens that Barack Obama has used either, it is just the three main pens that he has been seen to use.
What Pen Does Obama Use To Write Books?
In an interview with the New York Times when promoting his book a land promised Obama confirmed that he did the vast majority of the draft writing for the book using a black uni-ball vision elite rollerball pen with a micro-point while writing on standard yellow legal pads. This did surprise a large number of people as the uni-ball vision elite usually costs less than $3 and Obama has been photographed using pens that cost over $1000 in the past.
That said though, the uni-ball vision elite is an excellent pen that has one of the best reputations available amongst entry-level pens due to its low price tag and outstanding writing experience. Although the uni-ball vision elite has been known to have issues with gushing, it tends to be a great pen that writes well on all types of paper without bleeding or ghosting.
On top of that, the uni-ball vision elite is airplane safe and will not leak due to pressure changes making it an ideal option for Barack Obama who has to travel around via various aircraft on a regular basis. Obama did confirm during the interview that he does prefer the micro-point variant of the pen that is also surprising as medium nibs tend to be the more popular option for most people.
In our opinion, the uni-ball vision elite is probably a close second to the Pilot Precise V5 when it comes to the best budget-friendly rollerball pens but the uni-ball vision elite is still a solid option. If you are a huge Barack Obama fan and want a great budget-friendly pen that he has confirmed that he prefers to use then the uni-ball vision elite is for you.
What Pen Does Obama Use To Sign Official Documents
When it comes to actually signing official documents, Barack Obama does seem to stick with the tradition of using a customized Cross Townsend as he has been seen signing the clean energy bill as well as various health care bills using the pen. Although the Cross Townsend had been the pen of choice for sitting US presidents for decades due to being an all American pen company, they started to outsource their general pen production to China in the early 2010’s and their reputation has started to drop off.
As a regular Cross Townsend can usually retail at around $150 for the base version of the pen, we would not actually recommend that our readers add one to their collection. In our opinion, something like the Lamy 2000 will offer much better performance at that price point and get you the most bang for your buck.
Switching over to using a Lamy at this price point in the market may not be as out of character as some may thing for Obama either. He can clearly be seen using a Lamy in this photograph when signing an official document with Chancellor Merkel of Germany. That said though, the choice of a Lamy pen may just be due to Lamy being a German brand it may be Chancellor Merkel’s pen of choice.
Just like many US presidents, it does seem that they only used the Cross Townsend due to it being an American pen brand rather than due to actually enjoying the writing experience of the pen. Although the customized Cross pens for presidents and other politicians is still done in New England, the regular pens are all made in China now and tend not to perform as well as their older American or Irish made pens prior to moving production to China.
Does Obama Use A Montblanc?
Although Barack Obama has confirmed that he preferred to use a uni-ball vision elite when writing his book, he has confirmed that is he somewhat of a Montblanc enthusiast multiple times. We would guess that if he was free to choose his pen of choice for signing official documentation free from political push back, he would have used his Montblanc Meisterstück 149.
Barack Obama has been photographed multiple times with a Montblanc 149 with this particular photograph of him with the pen string up a little controversy. This was due to the suit he is wearing in the photograph being a Gold Trumpeter that can be picked up for as little as $250 where as the Montblanc 149 seen in the pocket of the suit having a price tag of $1200 and up depending on the specific variant that you opt for.
Our theory of Barack Obama preferring to use a Montblanc for official business rather than a Cross pen when away from the cameras seems to be backed up by this photograph from a meeting with the president of Sweden back in September 2013. The photograph was snapped by the Swedish press rather than the US press and as you can see, all of the pens on the tablet are Montblancs without a Cross pen insight.
There is also this photograph of Barack Obama and Chancellor Merkel from back in 2009 that was captured by the German press rather than the US press. It clearly shows Obama signing the document with a Montblanc pen rather than a Cross. When this pen was originally captured it was dismissed by the penthusiast community due to Montblanc having strong ties to Germany and other European counties. Since then though, there has been mounting evidence since 2009 that does suggest Obama does prefer his Montblanc 149 over the Cross Townsend.
Conclusion
That brings our article going over the various pens that Obama has used to a close. We hope that you have found it helpful and although Obama definitely does seem to be a huge fan of his Montblanc 149, he has confirmed that the majority of the writing for his book was done using a $3 uni-ball vision elite that really is an excellent pen for its price point in the market.
If you are wanting to use one of the pens that Obama has confirmed he enjoys to write with then the uni-ball vision elite is probably going to be the better option for most of our readers. It is much more budget-friendly than the other pens featured in our article and it does seem that the pen is the favourite of Barack Obama for general writing.
