IS the pen mighter than the sword: EDC Tactical Pens

I haven’t quite bought into the whole tactical pen concept.  I like the idea that a pen can be used for self-defense but it wouldn’t be my first weapon of choice. The corollary to this thought is that tactical pens are best deployed when they are already in your hand.  I would consider LEO’s the demographic that would be most likely to actually deploy a tactical pen. The problem I have with this is that they (mostly) are not designed for this. Think about it. If you are writing a citation you want a click pen; something that you can use without tying up your hands or taking your eyes off your task.  But in reality wouldn't you rather drop whatever is in your hands and pull your primary weapon?

The Gen-1 pens all feature removable caps.  This takes two hands and changes the dynamics of the instrument. Twisty pens like the S&M Gen-2 are more suited to the task as long as they don’t take multiple revolutions.  Push button pens such as the Gerber Impromptu or SureFire EWP-2 would be better choices. 

I personally prefer a smaller pen.  From many years my EDC pen was the small, very worn pen in the picture that looks like a fisher space pen.  It’s not. It’s a twist pen that I picked up at an IT trade show.  It’s been replaced by the S&W twister pictured next to it.  I removed the fire starter crap that only weighted it down. Being in IT I usually have a sharpie on me. Even the plastic version has its uses for self-defense.  The gold dress pen was selected specifically for the flat end cap.  It’s perfectly adequate for self-defense. The two S&W pens in the middle came with stocking stuffer knife sets that I've received over the years. I usually carry one in my laptop bag and the other in my tool bag.