I've bought like 3 of these already, very addicted. Like most Rotrings, they are heavy which I really like and feels comfortable. It's not perfect but this is the closest thing to perfect in my opinion.

Solid led holder. I am a little worried about loosing the top cover/sharpener. I wish it screwed on or something other then it being attached with friction.

This pencil is built extremely well, and I would recommend it to anyone. If you do the math, this pencil will cost less over a period of 10 years than buying 24 packs of BIC Mechanical Pencil with Colorful Barrels, Fine Point (0.5 mm), 24 Pencils . Over 10 years, the average student will go through 10-20 BIC pencils a year(not counting time out of school). This means that over 10 years, it will cost you from $27-$55 to use BIC pencils, whereas the Rotring will cost you from $20-$40(as long as you don't lose it!), meanwhile the Rotring looks extremely nice and expensive.

Now for the actual review-

The Rotring Rapid PRO feels very well balanced in your hand. Many people I have talked to think that it would be very heavy, and hard to maneuver, but that is not the case. Rotring has done a great job of balancing the pencil by placing more weight towards the writing end, so that when you write, you are moving the lighter end. Personally, I like the heavier feel anyway.

Compared to its siblings, the Rapid PRO is a great compromise. The Rotring 600 is a few dollars cheaper, but you will miss out on the retractable lead sleeve. I think that this feature is extremely important, for one reason -without it I might have already bent the tip in the first week of using it! I retract the tip every time I'm not writing with it to be safe. As far as looks go, I think that it looks awesome. The smoothed edges on the barrel look great. I thought that the chrome accents might look cheesy, but they really make the pencil look even more sleek. This pencil is not hard to hold at all, which is an aspect that other reviewers have discouraged. The knurled grip is very comfortable, and also slightly larger than that of the 600 or the much more expensive 800.

If you are having trouble deciding whether to purchase this pencil, especially if you are a student, go ahead! Even if you do not use pencils very much, or if you prefer pens, I am sure you will love using this one.

The best tool for any artist or any architectures. Quality great feel the weight has improved some of my skills especially when it comes to creating circle guidelines for proportion for portrait sketches. I recommend anyone inspiring to be an artist to use this pencil.

This is an excellent lead holder/pencil for engineers and drafting. It's substantial (it's metal) but not overly heavy. It's heavier than the standard plastic-bodied Staedtler Mars Techno pencil which makes it feel better in the hand and seems to allow better control.

It's got a very good knurled grip which is a bit rougher cut than the Staedtler too so it really stays put between your fingers and does not rotate or slip. If you've used the Mars Techno in the past, that's a fine lead holder too but this Rotring model just feels better, is more industrial and seems more purpose-built. The black matte finish is really pleasing to look at and hold.

I've been an engineer for almost 40 years and this is probably the best pencil I've used.

What's the one flaw? The knurled grip is a larger diameter than the Staedtler and it's too big to fit in the industry-standard Staedtler 502 sharpener! You are forced to use the included pointer tool in the base cap which is usable but not as handy as the 502 sharpener with the two levels of sharpening and cotton dust remover. So it's not as convenient to sharpen as the Mars Techno. I've had my sharpener since I started working 36 years ago and I'm kind of sad I can't use it with this great pencil.

Otherwise, this is a fantastic lead holder/pencil. I would buy another if something happened to this one.