posted 10-29-2010 03:36 PM               

Romain Jerome DP MoonFighter

The moon is the sun's dream.

On July 20th 1969, after two hours and thirty-one minutes of eternity, Buzz Aldrin climbed back into confined space of the lunar module, where he accidentally broke the key in the ignition and ended up having to jiggle around a pen tip in order to start the ascent engine that would enable him and Armstrong to take off from the moon.

Some 40 years later, Manuel Emch nurtures our childhood dreams by creating the MoonFighter, a new RJ-ROMAIN JEROME writing instrument that lives up to its space-inspired origins. He is thereby bringing to life a dreamlike symbol of a pen that served as a bridge between the moon and the earth.

This instantly appealing fountain pen radiates absolute aesthetic purity, while naturally commanding respect by its powerful lines.

From moon to earth... from Moon Silver to MoonFighter

Stemming from a meticulously executed fusion between moon dust (a certified sample) and silver, MOON SILVERRJ is an alloy that is the exclusive property of RJ-ROMAIN JEROME. Designed on the basis of this alloy and also comprising authentic fragments from Apollo II, the MoonFighter will forever bear vivid testimony to its historical origins.

A technical check before takeoff

The curved, streamlined barrel of the MoonFighter is studded with 48 hand-fixed rivets and extends an irresistible invitation to savour the pleasure of writing. Conveying a blend of aesthetic perfection and historical inspiration, MoonFighter features a forward-jutting profile with toothed plates like the ventilation apertures on an aircraft fuselage.

The pen is topped by a cap equipped with three small blades, engraved with the initials RJ and tipped with a titanium point endowing the MoonFighter with an airy feel and user-friendliness that make light of gravity. Nestling in its docking station with an evocative winged design, much like a fighter plane awaiting takeoff, the MoonFighter is one of those rare objects capable of inspiring both admiration and desire.

Conquering the MoonFighter writing instrument is like taking the controls of an aesthete's dream, issued in limited editions of 888 for each of its three versions: Black Metal, Vintage and Heavy Metal.

posted 10-29-2010 05:27 PM            

Buzz Aldrin climbed back into confined space of the lunar module, where he accidentally broke the key in the ignition and ended up having to jiggle around a pen tip in order to start the ascent engine...

posted 10-29-2010 05:50 PM               

112:56:28 Aldrin: Houston, Tranquility. Do you have a way of showing the configuration of the engine arm circuit breaker? Over. (Pause) The reason I'm asking is because the end of it appears to be broken off. I think we can push it back in again. I'm not sure we could pull it out if we pushed it in, though. Over.

112:56:56 McCandless: Roger. We copy. Stand by please. (Long Pause)

[With space limited in the cabin, a person wearing a PLSS has ample opportunity to hit a circuit breaker without being aware of it. The engine arm circuit breaker is seventh from the left in second row of Panel 16, which is on Buzz's side. Because Neil was never on that side of the spacecraft, it has to have been Buzz who hit it.]

[Aldrin - "There weren't guards over any of the circuit breakers. One got pushed in and one got broken off. So I must have pushed one in and broke one off (with his PLSS prior to doffing)."]

We discovered during a long checklist recitation that the ascent engine's arming circuit breaker was broken off on the panel. The little plastic pin (or knob) simply wasn't there. This circuit would send electrical power to the engine that would lift us off the moon...We looked around for something to punch in this circuit breaker. Luckily, a felt-tipped pen fit into the slot.

posted 10-29-2010 05:56 PM               

I like this pen, but I don't care for the name. When did we start building spacecraft designed for lunar combat? Will this result in the Russians or Chinese building their versions of moon fighters and start a new buildup of armed spacecraft? In my opinion, it looks more like a Star Wars or Star Trek spacecraft than a moon fighter. I wonder if it comes with action figures or at least transform into some other cool toy.