The Tru Red (sometimes written as TRU RED) is Staple’s in-house brand of pens, notebooks, and other office products. The Tru Red Quick Dry Gel Retractable Pen is, as you might have guess, the mainstay gel pen in the line. It’s a standard gel pen that sells for about $6-8 for a 5-pack, but it’s sold in many different colors and packs.
The Tru Red gel pen is extremely similar to the Paper Mate Ink Joy gel pen — enough so that we suspect Paper Mate may actually be producing these pens.
The Energel Pro Permanent, sometimes call simply the Energel Pro or Energel Permanent, is a variant of the Energel liquid gel pen that uses a permanent pigment-based ink. The ink is quick-drying like that of all Energel pens, but it’s also waterproof, fade-resistant, and fraud-proof.
The Pentel EnerGel-X is a popular gel pen that has won over many fans because of its excellent, quick-drying ink. The body is entirely plastic and not particularly notable, but it’s comfortable, affordable, and has a lot of availability in the US, Japan, and other places. The Energel-X is specifically a retractable version of the Energel series.
The Energel-X is one of our picks for best gel pens, though we particularly like the limited edition version, known as the Energel Infree.
The LRP5 refill is part of Pentel’s LR family of gel ink refills with one big difference: it uses permanent ink. This is the same refill as the Energel LR5 aside from the move from a normal dye-based liquid gel ink to a permanent ink that is pigment-based and highly water-resistant.
Continue reading “Pentel EnerGel LRP5 Permanent Gel Pen Refill”
The LRP7 refill is part of Pentel’s LR family of gel ink refills with one big difference: it uses permanent ink. This is the same refill as the Energel LR7 aside from the move from a normal dye-based liquid gel ink to a permanent ink that is pigment-based and highly water-resistant.
Continue reading “Pentel EnerGel LRP7 Permanent Gel Pen Refill”
The JLV-0.4 is the dye-based gel ink refill sold in the Sarasa Dry pen. This is one of Zebra’s DRYJELL inks, which are dye-based and said to dry up to 85% faster than a traditional link. This makes the refill ideal for lefthanded writes as it is highly smudge- and smear-resistant.
The LRN7 is a type of Pentel Energel gel refill (known as the LR refill) in a 0.7 mm size. The LRN refills specifically refer to the needle-tip (aka needle-point) variety of the refill, with the number indicating the tip size.
This is a liquid gel ink refill that will fit G2 rollerball pens, including any Pentel Energel. This refill is wide enough that it typically fit Japanese gel and rollerball pen bodies but not European ones. It is similar in size to a Pilot G2 refill.
Continue reading “Pentel EnerGel LRN7 Needle-tip Liquid Gel Pen Refill”
The LR10 is the Pentel Energel gel refill (known as the LR refill) in a 1.0 mm size. This is a bold, very wet gel ink refill that will fit most G2 rollerball pens, including any Pentel Energel. This refill is on the wide side so it will typically fit Japanese gel and rollerball pen bodies but not European ones.
Continue reading “Pentel EnerGel LR10 Liquid Gel Pen Refill”
The Tul retractable gel pen is a popular option from Office Max/Office Depot’s in-house brand. One of the top pens in the line is the retractable gel pen, which is a competitor to other mainstream, office-focused gel pens, like PaperMate InkJoy Gel and Pilot G2.
The pen is sometimes called the Tul GL1 retractable gel pen, but that model number is not always used.
The JLV-0.7 is the dye-based gel ink refill sold in the Sarasa Dry pen. This is one of Zebra’s DRYJELL inks, which are dye-based and said to dry up to 85% faster than a traditional link. This makes the refill ideal for lefthanded writes as it is highly smudge- and smear-resistant.
The JLV-0.5 is the dye-based gel ink refill sold in the Sarasa Dry pen. This is one of Zebra’s DRYJELL inks, which are dye-based and said to dry up to 85% faster than a traditional link. This makes the refill ideal for left-handed writes as it is highly smudge- and smear-resistant.
The Sarasa Dry is one of the best gel pens so this refill is, as you might suspect, quite good. The JLV combines very good color with fast drying and a smooth writing experience. It is not prone to blobbing and is very smear-resistant.
The Pilot G2 is a rollerball style refill designed to fit in Pilot G2 retractable pens. While not technically a standardized size, many refills are commonly referred to as being Pilot G2-sized or Pilot G2 compatible.
Please note: Pilot’s G2 is completely different from the ISO standard ballpoint refill, which is generally known as the Parker-style G2. It’s unfortunately that they are both referred to as G2, but they are clearly different and not interchangeable if viewed outside of a pen body.
The Pentel LRN7TL is the 0.7 mm version of the Energel Infree refill. This is the same refill as the Pentel LRN7 needle-tip gel refill, but it comes in a limited edition set of special colors.
Continue reading “Pentel EnerGel Infree LR7TL Liquid Gel Pen Refill”
The LRN3 is a type of Pentel Energel gel refill (known as the LR refill) in a 0.3 mm size. The LRN refills specifically refer to the needle-tip (aka needle-point) variety of the refill, with the number indicating the tip size.
This is a wet gel ink refill that will fit G2 rollerball pens, including any Pentel Energel. This refill is wide enough that it typically fit Japanese gel and rollerball pen bodies but not European ones. It is similar in size to a Pilot G2 refill.
Continue reading “Pentel EnerGel LRN3 Needle-tip Liquid Gel Pen Refill”
The LRN5 is a type of Pentel Energel gel refill (known as the LR refill) in a 0.5 mm size. The LRN refills specifically refer to the needle-tip (aka needle-point) variety of the refill, with the number indicating the tip size.
This is a liquid gel ink refill that will fit G2 rollerball pens, including any Pentel Energel. This refill is wide enough that it typically fit Japanese gel and rollerball pen bodies but not European ones. It is similar in size to a Pilot G2 refill.
Continue reading “Pentel EnerGel LRN5 Needle-Point Gel Pen Refill”