Parker Ballpoint Refill As Good As Bic Cristal

[RudolfSchmidt]

I just bought a cheap Cross Bill Blass ballpoint, which I've been led to believe takes Parker-type refills. The refill it came with bears no markings, but it writes pretty poorly. In contrast, the blue Bic Cristals I just bought write great. Is there any Parker refill that writes as well as the Bic Cristal?

[Xing]

I used Parker style refills made by Parker, and found them to be superior to all Bics I have encountered. I don't know who made your refill, but many makers make Parker styled refills, and you can probably find ones of very good quality. I no longer use ball point refills though, since Parker also makes their gel refills in the same size/dimension, and I have taken a liking to them. They are way better than ballpoints of any kind (in my opinion), and they serve me in the times when using a fountain pen is just not practical.

[RudolfSchmidt]

By "gel refills" you mean a rollerball instead of a ballpoint cartridge? I've liked the rollerballs I've used in the past (although I haven't bought any new for years) but they soaked through notebook paper, which made them pretty useless for my purposes. Do these gel refills sit on top of the paper, like a ballpoint ink, or soak through?

[kaissa]

By "gel refills" you mean a rollerball instead of a ballpoint cartridge?

 

No, rollerball and ballpoint refills are diffrent physically. Gel refills are same size as Parker ballpoint refills and are supposed to write like a gel pen. I have ordered but not received these gel refills, and have high expectations from them.

 

http://www.parkerrefills.co.uk/parker_gel_pen_refills.htm

[LDB415]

I just bought a cheap Cross Bill Blass ballpoint, which I've been led to believe takes Parker-type refills. The refill it came with bears no markings, but it writes pretty poorly. In contrast, the blue Bic Cristals I just bought write great. Is there any Parker refill that writes as well as the Bic Cristal?

 

A generic refill of either Cross or Parker is going to write very poorly compared to the legitimate thing in most cases. You say it's a Cross and if so it does not take a "Parker-type" refill it takes a Cross refill. Is the refill threaded, about the size of a large pencil lead it's entire length, and screws into the pen? If so, it's a Cross refill. If it is not threaded at all, is closer to the size of the pencil than the lead, and has a taper to it near the end it may be a Parker refill. Either way, going with the branded unit rather than an unmarked cheap copy will likely greatly improve your writing experience. Good luck.

[Ernst Bitterman]

The Parker gel refills are pretty nice-- they do soak in rather than lie atop, and the colour is fairly dense. I'll still stick to a fountain pen.

[Tommy]

Itoya makes a nice gel refill that replaces the Parker ballpoint.

[daclark52]

I use a parker style gel refills that does not soak through the paper (unless very cheap paper) and they cost only $12 for 15 in either blue or black.

 

I still prefer my fountain pen but I do use these daily and often give them to clients to replace the parker style refills in their pens. Never had anyone not prefer it to the regular Parker refill.

[RudolfSchmidt]

You say it's a Cross and if so it does not take a "Parker-type" refill it takes a Cross refill. Is the refill threaded, about the size of a large pencil lead it's entire length, and screws into the pen? If so, it's a Cross refill. If it is not threaded at all, is closer to the size of the pencil than the lead, and has a taper to it near the end it may be a Parker refill.

 

It looks just like the "Parker Ball Pen Refills" photo at the parkerrefills.co.uk link above, except that there's no name printed on it. It does not resemble in any way your description of a Cross refill.

 

Thanks for clarifying the difference between rollerball and ballpoint. The prices for either look pretty high, compared to the Bic Cristals, which cost 10 cents a piece. Where's the cheapest place to buy online?

 

As for fountain pens: I like them in theory but I had a bad experience with a Sheaffer years ago and I have enough headaches in my life already without wrestling with my writing instruments.

Edited September 14, 2009 by RudolfSchmidt

[daclark52]

You say it's a Cross and if so it does not take a "Parker-type" refill it takes a Cross refill. Is the refill threaded, about the size of a large pencil lead it's entire length, and screws into the pen? If so, it's a Cross refill. If it is not threaded at all, is closer to the size of the pencil than the lead, and has a taper to it near the end it may be a Parker refill.

 

It looks just like the "Parker Ball Pen Refills" photo at the parkerrefills.co.uk link above, except that there's no name printed on it. It does not resemble in any way your description of a Cross refill.

 

Thanks for clarifying the difference between rollerball and ballpoint. The prices for either look pretty high, compared to the Bic Cristals, which cost 10 cents a piece. Where's the cheapest place to buy online?

 

As for fountain pens: I like them in theory but I had a bad experience with a Sheaffer years ago and I have enough headaches in my life already without wrestling with my writing instruments.

 

I buy my parker style gel refills from www.cotapaxi.com. I believe this is the item, 15 for $11.99 US. I've used them for a couple of years and they are great and cheap. Still prefer my fountain pen but for multi-part forms or other special needs I use my Parker Duofoild ball point with these refills.

[Indigo]

I have found that the best ball point and gel refills are Monteverde. Colorado Pen (no affiliation) (www.coloradopen.com) carries them in a huge variety of colors and tip sizes - conventional and gel. They even have ones that are compatible with Cross and Waterman.

[mr T.]

Is there any Parker refill that writes as well as the Bic Cristal?

 

Parker refills are overrated and expensive. The writing length of a Parker gel refill is less than the writing length of a Bic Cristal. Schneider refills are cheaper and last longer (and write as well as a Bic Cristal). The writing length of the Schneider Express 735 is about 10.000 meters.

[leicamaster]

The Parker Gel refills are nice. I use them in my Jotter. I have to say though, the newer ones have a bolder point than the one from about 1 year ago.