I just wanted to make the comment that on CultPens.com this pencil is not half-price. It is less than 28 pounds, which at the current exchange rate of 1.62 USD to 1 GBP makes the pencil about $45. Standard shipping to the US is 10 pounds, so the total price would be about $60. While it can be found for slightly less (I think pixie mall sells it for $49), rating an item low just based on the price is not standard practice. Feel free to include comments about price vs. quality, but please don't make that your only comment. It is not helpful. Review the actual product.

I own many different 600, 800 and also Rapid Pro. I really can’t understand how somebody can say that the 800 is superior to the Rapid Pro. The 800 has a nice grip, nice quality, heavy stuff. But the tip of the 0.5 of the 800 compared to the tip of the Rapid Pro is “butter”. The 800 has this great “pocked safe” feature. But it is only great to save your pockets. When you can draw and/or write simultaneously with the 800 and the Rapid Pro you can really tell the difference. The Rapid Pro in my opinion is the best Rotring pencils available at the moment. Very stable, very comfortable, really a pleasure to use. Far superior from the 0.5 800. I am giving 4 stars because of the price. Please notice that the RapidPro price is 24.9 euro in Europe (less than 33 dollars). If you purchase them in stock you can get for sure a better price. I think that a selling price of 40 dollars should be fine.

I have to disagree with some of the reviews written here. This mechanical pencil, in my limited opinion, is WAY superior than the Rotring 600. I had the two of them, and I fell this one superior in almost every aspect. At least for my tastes this is a better pencil. Is longer, wider, and lighter than the rotting 600, AND it's pocket safe. I written a full head to head comparison in my site, feel free to check at nnil.es

The only negative point is the price, other than that, I can't recommend enough this puppy. But black of course!.

I have tried a lot of 0.5 drafting mechanical pencils (including Rotring 600/800, Graphgear 1000, Promecha 1500, etc) and to me this is the winner. In fact, I love it so much that I've just got the second one (the silver version this time). I'm using it almost exclusively for drawing / sketching / drafting, usually loaded with 4B, sometimes 2B.
Pros:
- The grip is awesome, it has a very nice feel and never slipping, it's like becoming part of your hand.
- The grip is starting very close to the nose. Sometimes I like to hold the pencil very close to its nose and having the grip there is great. This combined with a shorter than usual pipe (most drafting pencils have 4mm) really works for me.
- It's long. I have rather large hands and I rotate the pencils while drawing. I hate it when the clip gets in the way, but with this pencil it's far away and low profile too.
- The grip diameter is just right.
- There is a cushion mechanism inside. When I placed the order I was actually worried about this feature (since I like precise feedback in my pencils) but it turned out to be OK. It just adds a bit of smoothness when I land on the paper really hard, somewhat like a suspension, but very subtle. It also prevents lead breakage.
- The pipe glides and the tip is retractable.
- Although rather heavy, it's nicely balanced in my hands.
- Looks great. The one I've just bought has the silver (metal) body, so no more black paint to chip in time.
- It oozes quality. Rotring is a German company and probably the pencil is designed there, although I heard this model is actually designed in Japan. Anyway, it's made in Japan - as written on the box.
Cons:
- No lead hardiness window.
- A bit expensive, but it worth every cent in my opinion.
This is easily my favorite drawing mechanical pencil. I also use Pentel Graphgear 1000 (and Uni Kuru Toga Roulette for writing, usually loaded with HB).

This is my favorite - at least so far.
I've tried Graphgear, Super Promecha, Rotring 600. Pilot S20, Platinum Pro,

It's hard to describe, but the way the Rapid Pro sits in the hand and it's weight makes it much easier to write. I use it for taking notes - not drafting.