heath
July 5th, 2014, 10:58 AM
For the review with all the images go here: http://penpaperinkletter.com/nock-3-x-5-dotdash-note-cards-review/
http://penpaperinkletter.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_5412-375x500.jpg
I have been looking forward to reviewing these Nock Co. 3 x 5 Note Cards (http://nockco.com/shop/3-x-5-dotdash-note-cards) for a while. Nock is a brand new company that has just finished up a complete Kickstarter campaign including delivery of product. At the end of that cycle they launched their web shop with the products from their campaign as well as a few new ones. Brad Dowdy, half of the Nock Co team gave out a few packs of these cards at the Atlanta Pen show earlier this year and he sent me a pack a few weeks back. I have used them long enough to know that I like them at least as much as a standard note card. These have a few more pros and maybe a con or two when you compare them to other note cards already on the market. Another primary aspect of them is the dot-dash pattern that they have chosen to go with, I’ll go over that in more length later.
http://penpaperinkletter.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_5411-500x267.jpg
I have to say that they are indeed a good weight and I had absolutely no bleed through with any pens or even the sharpies I used to test. I had a tiny bit of show through with the markers but not enough to keep me from using both sides. The cards are thick enough that whether the printing on both sides lines up or not it doesn’t seem to matter.
So as for the product as a note card or a standard note card replacement more likely I think these are a good alternative to big box store offerings. I’ve not tried some of the french paper note cards that I know some people hail as a great product so I have no comparisons there.
http://i0.wp.com/penpaperinkletter.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_5422.jpg?resize=496%2C486
Now on to the dot dash aspect of these cards. It’s probably the thing that makes these stand out the most and at the same time it’s not as obvious as you might think when you get used to it. The pattern is indeed dot dash but for all intents and purposes you use it just like a grid. It’s a fun pattern but it doesn’t change how you use the paper like a strait dot pattern or grid plus lines might. One thing to keep in mind though is that, at least as far as I know, there’s not really much beyond a ruled pattern on most note cards so these do make for something new on the market.
There were two issues that came up that I’ll mention so they don’t catch you off guard. The cards handle wet nibs and they did fine with a 1.5mm on a Lamy Safari but with flex nibs it can have quite bad feathering.
http://penpaperinkletter.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_5420-500x375.jpg
They also have distinct printing in the dotdash pattern which can pull through some inks and give an unattractive look. Since you likely aren’t using these for overly elegant projects it’s probably not going to bother you. An example can be seen in this shot of the Pilot Parallel 6.0 where the orange shows through and almost appears to repel the ink.
http://penpaperinkletter.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_5418-500x375.jpg
In the end I think these are great note cards and I like the versatility of the dotdash grid gives you over the standard ruled pattern on most cards. Good job Brad and Jeffrey!
-Heath
@WeThePPIL
http://penpaperinkletter.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_5412-375x500.jpg
I have been looking forward to reviewing these Nock Co. 3 x 5 Note Cards (http://nockco.com/shop/3-x-5-dotdash-note-cards) for a while. Nock is a brand new company that has just finished up a complete Kickstarter campaign including delivery of product. At the end of that cycle they launched their web shop with the products from their campaign as well as a few new ones. Brad Dowdy, half of the Nock Co team gave out a few packs of these cards at the Atlanta Pen show earlier this year and he sent me a pack a few weeks back. I have used them long enough to know that I like them at least as much as a standard note card. These have a few more pros and maybe a con or two when you compare them to other note cards already on the market. Another primary aspect of them is the dot-dash pattern that they have chosen to go with, I’ll go over that in more length later.
http://penpaperinkletter.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_5411-500x267.jpg
I have to say that they are indeed a good weight and I had absolutely no bleed through with any pens or even the sharpies I used to test. I had a tiny bit of show through with the markers but not enough to keep me from using both sides. The cards are thick enough that whether the printing on both sides lines up or not it doesn’t seem to matter.
So as for the product as a note card or a standard note card replacement more likely I think these are a good alternative to big box store offerings. I’ve not tried some of the french paper note cards that I know some people hail as a great product so I have no comparisons there.
http://i0.wp.com/penpaperinkletter.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_5422.jpg?resize=496%2C486
Now on to the dot dash aspect of these cards. It’s probably the thing that makes these stand out the most and at the same time it’s not as obvious as you might think when you get used to it. The pattern is indeed dot dash but for all intents and purposes you use it just like a grid. It’s a fun pattern but it doesn’t change how you use the paper like a strait dot pattern or grid plus lines might. One thing to keep in mind though is that, at least as far as I know, there’s not really much beyond a ruled pattern on most note cards so these do make for something new on the market.
There were two issues that came up that I’ll mention so they don’t catch you off guard. The cards handle wet nibs and they did fine with a 1.5mm on a Lamy Safari but with flex nibs it can have quite bad feathering.
http://penpaperinkletter.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_5420-500x375.jpg
They also have distinct printing in the dotdash pattern which can pull through some inks and give an unattractive look. Since you likely aren’t using these for overly elegant projects it’s probably not going to bother you. An example can be seen in this shot of the Pilot Parallel 6.0 where the orange shows through and almost appears to repel the ink.
http://penpaperinkletter.com/wp-content/uploads/IMG_5418-500x375.jpg
In the end I think these are great note cards and I like the versatility of the dotdash grid gives you over the standard ruled pattern on most cards. Good job Brad and Jeffrey!
-Heath
@WeThePPIL