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If you had to use a ballpoint what's the smoothest


Centurion

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I am not sure if Parker still makes the refill, but they used alcohol in the paste ink to make it write smoother. Montblanc refill is pretty smooth, at least in the beginning. Not much experience with Waterman, Lamy, Pelikan, or any other ballpoint refill. I suspect the differences in smoothness to be not that great, but still it would be interesting if we could rank order them. :D

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Parker Gel refills for ballpoints. They fit all brand's BPs which use Parker style (Pelikan, Aurora etc.). I even could tweak my Caran D'Ache Hexagonal BPs to accept a Turquoise colour refill, although it's 1 mm too long for them.

Edited by saintsimon
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I don't own any high-end ballpoint pens. My most expensive BP is a Dr. Grip. The rest are cute pens from Japan. They all write a fine line and pretty smooth.

 

My favorite ink refill is the Dr. Grip Center of Gravity. It's only available in Black, but the black is really black & it's so smooth. I love it!

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I'm partial to the Uni-Ball Signo 207 - it is smooth for me, and the ink will bond to the paper much like Noodler's Black or Legal Lapis.

Geaux Tigers! Visça el Barça!

WTB: MB Kafka, Lamy Safari 2009 Orange, Pilot MYU (Black or Clear/White Stripe), Seiko FrankenTuna SKZ253 / SKZ255

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Schneider Topball is an excellent rollerball refill.

"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Rom. 5:8, NKJV)
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The Parker Gel refills are very smooth, but they don't do all the things a normal BP will. Specifically, I've had problems writing with a Gel on plastic delivery envelopes (of the kind used by our Post Office and some courier companies). Sometimes you *have* to use a true BP (which are the only times you *should*;)).

 

TTTT (to tell the truth), a good Bic is as smooth as any high-end BP refill I've tried, but I like the Dr Grip holder (which is kinder to my hands than a Sensa).

 

Best

 

Michael

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I'm partial to the Uni-Ball Signo 207 - it is smooth for me, and the ink will bond to the paper much like Noodler's Black or Legal Lapis.

The nice thing about a Uni-Ball Signo 207 is that the the pen insert actually fits inside a Parker Sonnet rollerball. I've "retrofit" all of my Sonnet RB's to take the 207 refill. It writes a lot smoother than the standard Parker rollerball refill.

 

As far as ballpoint pens goes, I've always had pretty good luck with the parker ballpoints. They write reasonable well, (for a ballpoint) and as someone said, you have the option of swapping it out for a Parker gel refill.

 

TMann

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Parker Gel refills for ballpoints. They fit all brand's BPs which use Parker style (Pelikan, Aurora etc.). I even could tweak my Caran D'Ache Hexagonal BPs to accept a Turquoise colour refill, although it's 1 mm too long for them.

I had a Caran d'Ache BP once but couldn't tweak it to fit a Parker style refill. How did you do it? Alas, it was years ago and I threw out the pen because I dropped it and something bent. It was one of their trademark hexagonal pens, and I see there about $100 these days.

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I'm using a Parker Gel refill in my pen and I was amazed at how well it writes, it takes nearly as little pressure as a FP and is indistinguishable in the line it makes

 

-Bruce

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Is the Uni-Ball Signo 207 a traditional paste ballpoint ink, or is it more gel like, perhaps a hybrid? Asking because in situations where I have to use a BP like writing on those plastic delivery envelopes, a gel ink won't work.

 

Hmm, would the Uni-Ball Signo 207 fit a Parker BP or only a Parker Roller?

 

So if I need a BP, sounds like even a Bic is smooth, but if I want a BP that's fancier looking, then getting a BP that fits Parker type refills is the most flexible. From the above posts, Parker, Pelikan, Aurora, and Fisher space (with adapter) are all interchangeable. Caran d'Arche with some adjustments. Any other brands that are interchangeable with Parker types? How about Waterman? I don't think Sheaffers are interchangeable. And Cross' very thin refills won't fit.

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Parker Gel refills for ballpoints. They fit all brand's BPs which use Parker style (Pelikan, Aurora etc.). I even could tweak my Caran D'Ache Hexagonal BPs to accept a Turquoise colour refill, although it's 1 mm too long for them.

I had a Caran d'Ache BP once but couldn't tweak it to fit a Parker style refill. How did you do it? Alas, it was years ago and I threw out the pen because I dropped it and something bent. It was one of their trademark hexagonal pens, and I see there about $100 these days.

Oh, there is not much science to do :) , to insert a refill into a Hexagonal (the real 'Hex' by name, although similar to the Ecridor) you only have to unscrew the knob unit on the top. As the refills have the same form, the Parker being a little longer, you just don't screw the knob unit completely back. You can regulate this until the tip stays within the body.

 

Concerning Waterman, their BP refill is quite large and unique, but nothing special.

Edited by saintsimon
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i am surprised at how smooth the refill is on the Fisher Space Pen hubby bought for me. It requires very little pressure to write with. I hope that any refills in the future will work as well as this one does. Otherwise, I tend to use gels but they have limited applications sometimes (they don't write through my admittedly crummy duplicate checks.)

KCat
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i am surprised at how smooth the refill is on the Fisher Space Pen hubby bought for me. It requires very little pressure to write with. I hope that any refills in the future will work as well as this one does. Otherwise, I tend to use gels but they have limited applications sometimes (they don't write through my admittedly crummy duplicate checks.)

the Fisher refills are pressurized with a gas inside, only problem is that even when you're not writing the gas is exerting its pressure so pushes out some ink that crusts over. when you start to write again with the pen you get the crusty stuff on your paper. at least that's how i remember fisher refills, maybe they have solved that problem.

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the Fisher refills are pressurized with a gas inside, only problem is that even when you're not writing the gas is exerting its pressure so pushes out some ink that crusts over. when you start to write again with the pen you get the crusty stuff on your paper. at least that's how i remember fisher refills, maybe they have solved that problem.

i had that problem with them in a sensa pen but that was some time ago and i haven't tried them since. This one didn't have the little plastic "bit" that sometimes covers them but then hubby may have tested it. In fact, he nodded enthusiastically when I said how smooth it is so i bet he did. :)

KCat
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KCat

 

Do you have the problem I found with the Fisher refills? For me they produce a lot more of the build-up of crud around the ball than most good BPs. Pity, because the thought of being able to write upside-down in water in zero gravity is kind of appealing.

 

Best

 

Michael

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KCat

 

Do you have the problem I found with the Fisher refills? For me they produce a lot more of the build-up of crud around the ball than most good BPs. Pity, because the thought of being able to write upside-down in water in zero gravity is kind of appealing.

 

Best

 

Michael

I haven't really had enough experience with them. I have a non-Fisher pen with the same kind of refill that stays in my wallet and I've only noticed a problem if it hasn't been used for some time. And I see that with all sorts of pens. I guess I would rate them no more troublesome than gels as a lot of the gels I've used tend to get gloopy. or is that gloppy? I haven't really used other kinds of BPs except for a Cross that I've had now for several years with the same original refill (obviously it only gets used occasionally) and it's always been very trustworthy. Point being, I haven't much to compare it with. Even before I got into FPs I relied mostly on MPs and porous point pens.

KCat
Save animal lives - support your local animal shelter

My personal blog https://kcdockalscribbling.com

My nature blog https://kcbeachscribbles.com
Venerable are letters, infinitely brave, forlorn, and lost. V. Woolf, Jacob's Room

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I was composing my post at the same time as Centurion, evidently. And it would seem the crud problem isn't just in my imagination. I'd call it gloopy, myself, since I would think of gloppy as being a bit more liquid.

 

Best

 

Michael

 

ever eager about fine distinctions

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The smoothest ballpoint I've used is a uni-ball Jet Stream. If it wasn't for fountain pens the Jet Stream would be my writing instrument of choice. And I've tried all the others mentioned.

Edited by Sidney

"The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun." - Wayne LaPierre, NRA Executive Vice President

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