One popular question we get with people who are interested in pen mechanics is: Do any rollerballs use fountain pen ink? The answer is yes, but fewer than you’d expect. Here are a list of some of the top rollerballs that can be filled with fountain pen ink.
Continue reading “Rollerball Pens That Use Fountain Pen Ink”
If you have ever written on a receipt you’ll know that it’s a particularly annoying surface. Receipts have a combination in slippery paper and a small surface area that is quite a challenge. In fact many pen types will completely unacceptable with receipt paper. So what pen should you get for filling out your tip, total, and signature?
Pilot’s Iroshizuku is a line of high quality fountain pen inks. They are some of the best priced, best performing inks sold today, but with 24 inks in the line it’s hard to try them all.
Well, we bought all the inks and are going to review the full family below, with commentary on each of the 24 Pilot Iroshizuku fountain pen inks.
There is a good chance that some time in the past year you’ve run into a pen made by Kaco. Despite a general unfamiliarity with the company, they are been making many rather good pens lately.
So… who is Kaco, where are they based, what’s their website? We had many questions and wanted to learn the basics about this pen company, whose pens we’ve been enjoying for some time now.
You’ve almost certainly heard of Moleskine notebooks, and you probably have owned at least a few of them, but have you spent any time learning about the company behind this iconic paper product?
Continue reading “What’s The Deal with Moleskine Notebooks?”
Zebra’s Emulsion ink is a bit of an enigma. Most companies neatly categorize their inks ink “ballpoint,” “gel,” and “rollerball” and some even throw in “hybrid” but Zebra ended up with “emulsion.” Does that mean something specific? Is it a translation quirk or brand name? Let’s dig into it a bit.
The re-release of the Rotring 600 ballpoint in 2018 was a historic moment for pen collectors. The Rotring 600 ballpoint returned to the market, to the excitement of everyone who didn’t get one in the late 1980s or early 1990s (or didn’t spend a fortunate on Ebay).
Since that point Rotring did little with the 600 and 800 ballpoint (the 800 being the re-release of the Rotring 600 gold edition), but that could be changing early next year.
Continue reading “Rotring 600 Red, Blue, and Green Editions Coming Soon”
Lamy sells a lot of ballpoint pens, many of which have been available for decades. Which are them are worth buying? Which have simply gained momentum over the years but aren’t worth your money? Let’s dig into Lamy’s best ballpoint pens.
Have you heard of Cello Pens? If you aren’t based in India, there is a good chance that the company is entirely new to you, but it’s a big outfit and its worth having on your radar.
Moleskine notebooks are excellent and easy to find, but they have notoriously lightweight paper. The company doesn’t say exactly what the weight is, but give most premium notebooks (Clairefontaine, etc.) are in the 90 grams per square meter (gsm) range, Moleskine feels to be about 70 gsm. This number might not feel too light, but it’s under a critical number at which many fountain pens and broad — often even medium — rollerballs will bleed through.
So, with that lightweight, possibly uncoated, paper in mind, what are the best pens for using in Moleskine Classic notebooks?
Continue reading “What Are The Best Pens for Moleskine Notebooks?”
One of the more common questions people have about pens is, “Who invented the ballpoint?” We honestly can’t say why this gets asked so often but it most certainly does, so let’s dive in.
Continue reading “Who Invented The Ballpoint Pen? Origins Of A Modern Writing Instrument”
Bullet journals are a wildly popular method for organizing your life. It’s one of those things that you never heard of before but then a few months later it’s a foundation of your sanity. It’s not hard or complex, but as with all systems, the right tools can make a difference.
Here are our picks for the right pens for your bullet journal journey…
Neil deGrasse Tyson is a well-known fountain pen collector and user. What pens does he use? Are the pens astronomy inspired, like the Visconti Starry Night, as you might guess of the director of the Hayden Planetarium? Or does this world-famous astrophysicist and author use the same pens as you or I?
Continue reading “What Fountain Pens Does Neil deGrasse Tyson Use?”
Pen storage is serious business. Everyone has their own preferences and space restrictions. Additionally, you might have more “bulk” pens and less fancy urushi pens than someone else so your storage demands might be completely different.
Here are our favorite pen storage containers that can be mixed and matched to tailor a solution that’s best for you.
If you have been exploring the world of affordable pens in the past few years there is a good chance that you’ve landed on Linc pens. While the company is not a household name in the United States, they have been growing and becoming more of a presence.
So, who is Linc and what’s the deal with their pens? Continue reading “What’s The Deal with Linc Pens?”