Caliber Premium Refillable Notebook From Cvs

[dkirchge]

I was in my local CVS pharmacy this weekend and I happened to notice that they have a introduced a new disc-bound 8.5" x 11" refillable notebook. I picked one up because it was so inexpensive (about $9.00, if memory serves) and because I've been curious about disc-bound systems in general.

 

I don't have pictures, but I wrote out a few pages with a couple of my favorite pens to see how the paper performs. I used a Pilot Petit 1 with black ink and a wet writing Acme rollerball with blue ink and found absolutely no show-through at all and very little if any bleeding or feathering. This is the first paper I've used where I could comfortabley write on both sides of the page and not feel like I was creating a hard-to-read mess on the page. The size of the punched holes appears to be the same as the Staples Arc, but I don't have an Arc to compare it to.

 

I think they only offer the one size of notebook, along with lined refills, which I believe is close to college rule, and a set of tabbed dividers. I didn't see the exact price of the refill paper, but I think it was about $3.00 for 60 pages; I'll double-check the next time I'm in the store.

 

This could be a great alternative to the Staples Arc or Levenger Cira systems for the budget-minded. I know I will be stocking up. If anyone else has experience with this notebook, I'd love to hear what your experiences have been.

[trent]

I was in my local CVS pharmacy this weekend and I happened to notice that they have a introduced a new disc-bound 8.5" x 11" refillable notebook. I picked one up because it was so inexpensive (about $9.00, if memory serves) and because I've been curious about disc-bound systems in general.

 

I don't have pictures, but I wrote out a few pages with a couple of my favorite pens to see how the paper performs. I used a Pilot Petit 1 with black ink and a wet writing Acme rollerball with blue ink and found absolutely no show-through at all and very little if any bleeding or feathering. This is the first paper I've used where I could comfortabley write on both sides of the page and not feel like I was creating a hard-to-read mess on the page. The size of the punched holes appears to be the same as the Staples Arc, but I don't have an Arc to compare it to.

 

I think they only offer the one size of notebook, along with lined refills, which I believe is close to college rule, and a set of tabbed dividers. I didn't see the exact price of the refill paper, but I think it was about $3.00 for 60 pages; I'll double-check the next time I'm in the store.

 

This could be a great alternative to the Staples Arc or Levenger Cira systems for the budget-minded. I know I will be stocking up. If anyone else has experience with this notebook, I'd love to hear what your experiences have been.

I haven't tried this particular Caliber item but love their marbled notebooks and steno pads.

[qwertzu]

Just picked some up. Paper had no show through and was a pleasure to write on. And here are CVS' everywhere.

 

Very nice to see disc binding mainstream.

[N2theBreach]

That's great. I'm hoping they bring out "accessories" that the other two don't have so we can mix 'n match.

Edited January 21, 2013 by N2theBreach

[qwertzu]

I'd be thrilled if they kept the basic refills around for a while, there is a CVS on every corner around here, open almost 24hrs a day. I would never run out of paper.

[wikeh2004]

I just found the Caliber disk bound refillable notebook at CVS. You have to forgive me because CVS is a new player in Hawaii, having bought out the Longs Drugs chain and bringing their products several years ago. I saw the paper refills at 50 sheets for $3.99, the refillable notebook at $7.99, and the tabbed dividers at $3.99. Probably more expensive than mainland prices, but still much less than Levenger Circa products. We don't have Staples here, so can't compare those.

 

I picked up a pad of paper and will try it out. I have Circas so I can check out the interchangeability. Hope the paper is as good as others have said.

[wikeh2004]

I just found the Caliber disk bound refillable notebook at CVS. You have to forgive me because CVS is a new player in Hawaii, having bought out the Longs Drugs chain and bringing their products several years ago. I saw the paper refills at 50 sheets for $3.99, the refillable notebook at $7.99, and the tabbed dividers at $3.99. Probably more expensive than mainland prices, but still much less than Levenger Circa products. We don't have Staples here, so can't compare those.

 

I picked up a pad of paper and will try it out. I have Circas so I can check out the interchangeability. Hope the paper is as good as others have said.

 

OK, I tried it out today. Basically, the paper felt fairly smooth and felt reasonably heavy, although the weight wasn't specified. The paper is made in Taiwan.

 

I tried several pens that I had inked, and depending on the ink, I got some some feathering and bleed through. Most of the Waterman ink worked reasonably well, but some PR American Blue in a Namiki Falcon feathered and showed through on the backside. An old Conklin Crescent Filler with a flex nib and Waterman Mysterious Blue feathered and bled through a bit also. In other words, the paper is not bad, but not great. It's not aimed at the fountain pen user. Considering its modest cost, it's reasonable for use with fairly dry nibs.

 

For disc-bound notebooks I made my own filler pages. I use high quality general purpose paper that I cut and punch myself. I use 5.5" x 8.5" paper and use the www.diyplanner.com templates to print my own dotted grid pages for my notebook. Then I cut them with a guillotine and punch them with a Circa desk punch. The punch is expensive, but there's nothing else that will work. Worth it to make your own customized notebooks.

 

I attached some low-res scans of the paper test.

 

Front

 

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