Review: A.G. Spalding Roller Ball

I received both the A.G. Spalding & Bros. Maple Wood Beige Body and the Bullet Style from JetPens, and I have to say I am very impressed with the design and performance of these pens. They are perfectly balanced in my hand when writing, and the ink flows extremely smooth. The only quibble I have is that despite identical ink cartridges in both models, the one in the Bullet roller writes a slightly finer line with less to no feathering. That is just a minor gripe which I wouldn't have noticed if I wasn't comparing the two side by side. Overall, I am very happy with these pens and will be using them quite a bit.

You can see more photos of these pens from when I originally received them in this post.

Ink Links

I will be gone for the next week, so here are a few links to tide you over.....

The Art of Pen Spinning (Notebookism)

Pen monogamy? Surely, you jest! (LIUniverse)

Hot new stuff from JetPens (JetPens.com)


A very cool Leap Year Gig Poster from Flora (Happy Doodle Land)

Hi-Tec-C sketches from San Francisco (Mike Neumann)

Faber-Castell Connector Pens review (Who Needs Friends...)

Hello Kitty and Hi-Tec-C? Sylvia has it. (Life Observations)

Drawing and drinking with the Mistubishi Pure Malt 2.0mm leadholder (Pencil Talk)

Ryan has a nice video review of the Levenger Plumpster fountain pen (Brassing Adds Character)

Special thanks to the gang at PenSketch.com for noticing my addiction.

Review: Pentel Hybrid Technica 0.3mm

Another decent pen from Pentel, but the Hybrid Technica line is still not quite up to par with the Slicci line, or with the Pilot Hi-Tec-C or G-2 lines. The best part about this pen is that the Slicci cartridge is a perfect fit - no modifications required. So for those of you wanting a wider barrel for your Slicci, here it is: Perfect Pentel Slicci Hack

Review: Uni-Ball Signo RT 0.38mm Blue

This is a great all-around pen. It's nothing fancy - no bells or whistles - but it lays down a solid line and is very sturdy. I have had a couple of the black models of this pen banging around my backpack for the past year, and they perform as well as the day I got them. I can safely recommend this pen for just about any task you can throw at it.

Thank You JetPens!!!

If you haven't noticed, I am a huge fan of JetPens.com. Their selection and service are second to none, and I can't praise them highly enough as an online business. It seems that JetPens has noticed my little home on the web as well, and has ever so nicely sent me some sample pens to try out. I had no idea what to expect, but was completely blown away. Included in my care package were the following:

(1) A.G. Spalding & Bros Roller Ball Pen - Maple Wood - Beige Body
(1) A.G. Spalding & Bros Bullet Style Roller Ball Pen
(1) Zebra Sarasa 3+S 3 Color Gel Ink Multi Pen + Pencil - Blue Body
(1) Uni-ball Boxy Roller Ball Pen - 0.5 mm - Black Ink

How cool is that!!!

The A.G. Spalding pens are absolutely gorgeous, and write wonderfully as well with an 0.5mm black gel cartridge. The Zebra Sarasa and the Uni-Ball Boxy are great also, with the Sarasa already disappearing a couple of times into my wife's hands.

Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks to the crew at JetPens - keep up the great work! And, since posts like these often make readers wonder, I have absolutely no business relationship with JetPens other than being a customer and a big fan. When people do things the right way I feel they should be praised, and that's how I feel about JetPens.

I have a very busy next two weeks, so it might be a while before I get the writing samples up for these new models. I have two different pens ready to post later this week, so the four listed above may have to wait until the following week. Hopefully these pictures will tide you over.

Ink Links

200+ new products from JetPens.com in February, including a bunch of new multi-pens I'll have to try out (JetPens February Newsletter)

The Notebooks of Christian Webber - over 1 meters wourth! (Moleskinerie)

Pencil Talk reviews the Lamy Safari Fountain Pen/Ballpoint Pen set (Pencil Talk)

I love the simplicity of sticker art (too8pe @ Flickr)

Review: Pentel Slicci 0.25mm Blue/Black

(Click on image above for larger view)

I spoke too soon on two fronts with this pen. One, I did order the blue/black ink, and two, it turns out I actually like this color! I used this pen at work almost exclusively all of last week, and the ink color didn't bother me at all. This 0.25mm version writes just as well as the 0.3mm Slicci, but I prefer the slightly wider version in the grand scheme of things, mainly because I can write a bit faster and still maintain a solid line. Overall, this pen lives up to my already high expectations of the Pentel Slicci line.

Review: Pentel Hybrid Technica 0.35mm Needle Tip

(Click on image above for larger view)

This is a decent pen, but I'm not really in a hurry to buy more of the same anytime soon. The best thing the Pentel Hybrid Technica has going for it is the barrel design. It is slightly heavier than a Pilot G2, and is very sturdy. It writes ok, but is not in the class of some of my favorites like the Pentel Slicci.

The Pen Addict Worldwide

I wasn't sure what to expect from this blog when I started it, but I have been pleasantly surprised with how it is coming along. Who knew there were so many pen addicts out there! Readership has come from all over the globe, as you can see from the visitors list just from the past few weeks:

United States
United Kingdom
Canada
Germany
Italy
Taiwan
Poland
Finland
Australia
Singapore
Austria
Malaysia
Hong Kong

So I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who has stopped by, and I hope to see you again soon. As always, if you have any comments or suggestions, please email me (address is on the sidebar), or leave a comment in any thread.

Perfect Pentel Slicci Hack!

Ryan got me thinking in a recent comment on my Pentel Slicci review about using the Slicci ink cartridge in other pen barrels. Most of the complaints about this pen are its relatively small barrel diameter compared to other fine point pens like the Pilot Hi-Tec-C. Well, as luck would have it, I found the perfect barrel match in my latest JetPens order.

I had ordered two new Pentel pens - the Hybrid Technica in a click pen model, as well as a standard capped model. I was thinking I had a fair shot at making one of these work since all the pens involved were made by Pentel, and it turns out I was right. The Hybrid Technica click pen was not a match, but the standard barrel model was a perfect fit! The Slicci ink cartridge required no length modification, and even snapped right into place in the Hybrid Technica barrel. It fit so perfect it was like it was made for the Slicci cartridge. I have a couple of pictures below, but it is really a no-brainer. The cartridge fits like a glove with zero play room - it is very solid.

So there you have it. For those who aren't crazy about the thin Pentel Slicci barrel but love how the pen writes, this is the solution for you.

(Click on images for larger view)

Ink Links

Moleskine Volants in the wild (Moleskinerie Flickr Group)

Kelly breaks out her new pack of Hi-Tec-C's from JetPens for a Doodle Test (Property of Kelly)

Moleskine fountain pen test (Moleskinerie)

Hot new stuff from JetPens (JetPens.com)


Added to the Blogroll: Brassing Adds Character, Pencil Talk, Property of Kelly, SnowAngels, Who Needs Friends.....When You Have Pens

Review: More Pilot Hi-Tec-C Coleto's

See all sizes of this photo on Flickr.

Sorry I have been so slack recently! I ordered some new two-cartridge Coleto's in my latest JetPens order, so I figured it was time for a peek. I really like how the Coleto ink cartridges write better that the regular Hi-Tec-C models. The only reason I can find is that the needle tip on the regular models is slightly longer than the Coleto models, and therefore has a little flex when I write. The Coleto cartridges don't seem to clog as much either. Oh well, maybe it's just me.

Ink Links

Giving up on the Pilot Hi-Tec-C? Blasphemous! (Cheap Pen Review)

Maura is a Pen Nerd (frag-ment-ed)

I'm finally getting around to starting a Blogroll on this site, so if you have any ideas or suggestions please let me know in the comments section.

More Goodies!!!

I just received my latest order from JetPens.com, so hopefully I will have some new reviews up next week.

Order Details:
1 x Pentel Hybrid Technica Gel Pen - 0.3 mm - Blue
1 x Pentel Hybrid Technica Gel Roller Retractable Pen - 0.35 mm - Black
1 x Uni-ball Signo DX UM-151 Gel Pen - 0.28 mm - Black
1 x Uni-ball Signo DX UM-151 Gel Pen - 0.38 mm - Black
1 x Uni-ball Signo RT UM-138 Gel Pen - 0.38 mm - Blue
1 x Pilot Hi-Tec-C Coleto Multi Pen Ink Cartridge - 0.4 mm - Orange
1 x Pilot Hi-Tec-C Coleto Multi Pen Ink Cartridge - 0.4 mm - Green
1 x Pilot Hi-Tec-C Coleto Multi Pen Ink Cartridge - 0.4 mm - Violet
1 x Pilot Hi-Tec-C Coleto Multi Pen Ink Cartridge - 0.4 mm - Red
2 x Pilot Hi-Tec-C Coleto 2 Color Multi Pen - Pen Body - Clear
1 x Pentel Slicci Gel Pen - 0.25 mm - Blue Black Ink
1 x Pentel Slicci Gel Pen - 0.25 mm - Blue Ink