Bic Makes Fountain Pens?

[DaleR]

Checking out the Staples web site, I came across these Bic Disposable Fountain Pens:

 

http://www.staples.c.../product_355577

 

2 for $5.99. Has anyone tried these pens? How do they compare to the Pilot Varsity/V-Pen?

 

Dale

Edited June 3, 2012 by DaleR

[inkstainedruth]

There was a thread on here about these awhile back (sorry, you'd have to search for the topic).

I looked at a pack a few weeks ago. There was an open blister pack so I pulled one out just to see what it was like. The red pen had a lot of ink on the nib, which I took to be Not a Good Sign (I had had to return a package of BP refills to Staples awhile back because the ink was leaking into the blister pack, and since the BIC FP made me think of those BP refills I decided to pass).

But yeah, they are cheap....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[inBOIL]

Apparently, the Canadian branch of Staples doesn't carry them. (Not on the site, anyway.)

 

i kinda' like the IDEA of a Bic fountain pen ... but i also like the idea of seeing a pit-bull wearing a cat-skin coat. (With little matching booties, of course.)

 

Anyway ... i'd certainly buy one or two for a couple bucks.

[isellpens]

Bic a French company actually owns Sheaffer. I personally do not like the idea of disposable fountain pens as they end up in the land fills just like all the other Bic ballpoints I loath. But I suppose they do have demand for them but I will not be selling any---jumping off my soap box. :bonk:

Just my opinion!

Best Regards,

Todd

[inBOIL]

Well, you KNOW nobody HERE would ever toss out a pen. (They'd just get a blow-torch and some duct-tape, and ... make it into an eyedropper or something.) (Probably with a replacement Pelikan nib, at that.)

 

(i wouldn't REALLY buy a Bic fountain pen, of course--i just "like" the irony.)

[pokermind]

I've tried these pens, and I find them to be quite good writers (as have others who have posted reviews on this board). I prefer them over the Pilot Varsity. The M nibs are smooth and give a finer line than the Varsity M, and they feel a little better in my hand. The only bad thing I can say is that their ink is inferior to the Pilot's (the red ink especially is pathetic, sort of an anemic pink).

 

Like the Varsity, these pens are refillable, even though they are marketed as disposable.

[Danni2989]

Bic also do other fountain pens. I have one with a twist up nib, there's the easy clic, and they also do something called the X pen? (I think it's just a fountain pen with a nice grip) - they're cheap and cheerful pens that write well with a fairly nice medium nib (although the easy clic seems a little finer than your basic medium.) Don't judge based on their disposables. I LOVE my two twist ups - they're a cheap version of a retractable fountain pen for a lot less. (My twist ups cost me £6 a piece. RT FPs are in the hundreds which I think its ridiculous. Stupid money to spend on a pen.)

 

The X pens/twist ups/easy clics are aimed at kids, but, they good enough. I like them.

 

~Danni

[Nonsensical]

I have a cheap, purple student pen made by Bic. It's actually pretty cool, and I've seen a review of that type of pen somewhere on the forums. I haven't really used it much, since I was given a Pelikano at the same time.

[leod]

Bic owns Sheaffer so yes they make good FPs

[Bullwinkle]

I picked up a pack when the last thread was active.. they are what they are, they write decent enough. if I leave one somewhere or someone wants to borrow a pen I don't have to be concerned.

[PenTieRun]

I'm not thrilled with the red color, but the blue and black are nice. Quality of the ink and writing experience overall is far superior to Pilot Varsities.

[jack25]

I've tried these pens, and I find them to be quite good writers (as have others who have posted reviews on this board). I prefer them over the Pilot Varsity. The M nibs are smooth and give a finer line than the Varsity M, and they feel a little better in my hand. The only bad thing I can say is that their ink is inferior to the Pilot's (the red ink especially is pathetic, sort of an anemic pink).

 

Like the Varsity, these pens are refillable, even though they are marketed as disposable.

 

I bought the 3 pack while I was waiting for my Lamy Al-Star to arrive. They were my intro to fountain pens if you will. I much prefer the Lamy and the subsequent Esterbrooks I picked up on ebay, obviously. How are the Bic pens refillable? I would love to use my Noodler's Lexington Gray ink in them when they run out.

[pokermind]

it refills similar to the Pilot Varsity. I followed this method with success, but there are some other ways mentioned in this thread. A search FPN for Varsity refill should come up with others.

Edited June 11, 2012 by pokermind

[Cerbeos]

Well, you KNOW nobody HERE would ever toss out a pen. (They'd just get a blow-torch and some duct-tape, and ... make it into an eyedropper or something.) (Probably with a replacement Pelikan nib, at that.)

 

LOL So true!!!

[alc3261]

I must try this re-filling business!!

[Vulcan1066]

I bought the three pack when I could at Staples. The blue and black were nice but the red was a rather weak pink in colour. I wrapped the nib in a scrap piece of rubber and using my trusty pliers pulled the nib out. Rinsed out the old pink ink and refilled it with Herbin 1670. Works great and I dont have to worry about loosing the pen or letting it get too hot in my car. This time of year us folks in the South have to worry about that kinda thing.

 

Just pure speculation on my part but I am guessing that you can refill and replace the nib 4 to 5 times before having to worry about leaks, however your mileage may vary.

[tonydent84]

Well, you KNOW nobody HERE would ever toss out a pen. (They'd just get a blow-torch and some duct-tape, and ... make it into an eyedropper or something.) (Probably with a replacement Pelikan nib, at that.)

 

(i wouldn't REALLY buy a Bic fountain pen, of course--i just "like" the irony.)

 

 

 

:roflmho: So funny and so true. I've seen hacks for common pens that blew my mind away. I have a bunch of Varsities I bought a few years back that I rarely use and I'm just waiting for them to dry up already so I can try some of these hacks lol. (Same for the Pilot Precise rollerballs.)

[DaleR]

My wife and I found ourselves driving I-64 last weekend, and as we passed through Mt. Vernon, Illinois, I remembered that our closest Staples store is located there. We decided to stop and see if they had the BIC pens...They did! They came in a two-pack (black), and a three-pack (red,blue, black). As previously mentioned, these are disposable pens, and I didn't expect much of them. I was pleasantly surprised, however. The nibs look exactly like the nibs on a Pilot Varsity, so the writing is essentially the same. However, the BIC medium nibs are surprisingly fine, finer than the Pilot medium nibs. The BIC barrels are larger in circumference than the Pilots, which I like. I find that I cannot write comfortably for very long with the Varsities due to their small size. One thought...The BIC caps are incredibly tight, and require a fair amount of effort to pop them off. I guess that means they won't leak out!

 

I agree about the red ink as well, it's a little to pink for my taste, but the blue and black are nice. Unfortunately, my wife immediately claimed the blue pen and I haven't seen it since! I believe the BICs will make excellent knock-around pens, either for keeping in the car, or for writing out shopping lists. I find them much preferable to roller ball pens.

 

Dale

[mhguda]

I found one of these here in a bookstore that also carries some fountain pens: http://www.bicworld.com/us/products/details/286/select-easy-clic-fountain-pen

Mine is clear with a green splash on the side. For a cheap fountain pen it was actually pretty expensive, the equivalent of $10, but it is not disposable - it takes small international standard cartridges. In fact, I bought two - the first one I lost at a lecture (must have dropped it and never found it) so I went back and got another. It's a very smooth writer, and even if it sits unused for weeks at a stretch, writes at the first stroke.

On the Bic website this pen is designated for the European market - but things are not always so straightforward, and we can get things here that are sold in the Netherlands, even though we are a long way away from Holland...