page_title: Retractable pen
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Retractable pen / History
caption_attribution_description: Pilot G-2 and Pilot G-2 XSPilot G-2 and the brand new Pilot G-2 XS (Pixie)
context_page_description: Retractable pens are a type of ink pen which have a spring-loaded ink cartridge which retracts and extends outside a protective housing. By clicking downward on the top of the pen, the tip is extended and locks in place at the bottom of the housing for use.
context_section_description: The retractable pen was first invented and patented in 1888 by John J. Loud. However, the design was seen as imperfect and the retractable pen would not be marketed until sixty years later. Lazlo Biro and his brother Gyorgy Biro solved the technical problems of the first ball point by using thicker ink and an easier way to store it. This resulted in the use of capillary action which slowly pulled the ink out of the pen and onto the paper. The brothers sold their pen only in Europe. Milton Reynolds, an American entrepreneur, changed the design to a gravity feed and it became successful in the US market. The Frawley Pen Company, founded in 1949 by Patrick J. Frawley, claims to have made the "first pen with a retractable ballpoint tip" in 1950.
caption: Retractable Pilot Pens
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