When the U.S. military finds a good piece of gear, it tends to hang on to it for as long as possible. Generations of veterans have used weapons like the M1911 sidearm, the M16 family of rifles and the M2 “Ma Deuce” machine gun.
When it comes to nonlethal equipment, helmets and body armor come and go, but there’s one piece that has remained unchanged since around the time the M16 was first introduced: the Skilcraft pen.
It would be very difficult to believe anyone who’s served in the military or worked in federal service hasn’t come across the workhorse of U.S. military bureaucracy at some point in their career. The government’s go-to ballpoint turns 55 years old in 2023 and shows no signs of being replaced any time soon.
First introduced in April 1968, they are made by the National Industries for the Blind (Skilcraft is the NIB’s trade name), a nonprofit that provides training and employment for the visually impaired. They churn out a great product at just 60 cents per unit while living up to 16 full pages of government-mandated requirements.
The pens must be able to write a continuous line one mile long and be able to do it in temperatures ranging from -40 degrees to 160 degrees Fahrenheit. Its ink must dry within five seconds without smearing or blotting; it can be submerged in water for up to 48 hours and will withstand two bleachings. They also have to be 5⅛ inches long, so they can be fully inserted into a uniform pocket.
Because somebody at skilcraft is paying off a politician (or two or three)somewhere. Everybody knows that’s how government contracts work.