Bic Cristal Bold (1.6mm) - if ever a ballpoint were to tempt me away from my FPs. . .

[NumberSix]

Apparently, today is National Ballpoint Pen Day, so I thought I would do some of my writing with my ballpoints. I recently picked up a pack of the 1.6mm Bic Cristal. I have to say: If ever a ballpoint could call me back from my FPs and Gel/RBs, this is the pen!

 

This one writes silky smooth, with a nice strong line - both issues with the finer sized Cristals (and many BPs in general, to be honest). And it has that timeless design with which so many of us grew up - I admit that it makes me feel nostalgic to use it. 

 

 

[flatline]

We bought the assorted Bold pack a while back for school, but they all ended up coming home (or maybe they stayed home?). There's a puke green color that feels terrible to write with (requires pressure, doesn't feel smooth), but all the other colors are as you describe: smooth, almost no resistance. They are good to write with as long as you leave them in the plastic Bic body.

 

I  made the mistake of moving some of the bold refills into a Baux host that has a bit of heft, and the lack of resistance combined with the increased inertia of the metal body actually felt pretty bad to write with. The tiny little bit of resistance provided by the Medium point refills makes for a much more pleasant writing experience.

 

For a pen that comes in a pack of 10 for $1, Bic stick pens write very well. They are a great value...that I will probably never buy again, but will always have in the house anyways (where do they all come from? I find them everywhere!).

 

--flatline

[ENIAC]

I generally buy them in boxes of 24.  I get them in blue and black.  I have a love/hate relationship with them.

 

Good:

• They're the smoothest BPs I've ever written with.
• The blue color is a good, solid medium blue, not washed out like so many blue BPs.
• Line width is great for me, because as I age my longhand is slowly turning to merde, so I find myself printing more and more.
• If I lose one, or if someone asks to borrow one and turns out to be a thief just as I suspected, then so what.

Bad:

• They don't last that long, but that shouldn't be a surprise when you consider the sheer amount of ink laid down per unit distance.
• They get a bit wonky when they get down to about 75% used; the line they lay down turns inconsistent.
• They can tend to blot and smear, especially in warm weather.  I'm a lefty overwriter, so I really have to watch that.
• They don't start immediately, so I have to make a couple of small circles "somewhere else" before I start writing with them.  (I'm not talking about the little protective cap over the ball you have to peel off before you begin using a new one.  I'm talking about day-to-day use.)
• Don't ever carry or store the pen point-down, or there'll be a nice fat blob of ink at the point the following day.

It all nets out slightly positive for me.

[sgphototn]

1 hour ago, ENIAC said:

Bad:

• They don't last that long, but that shouldn't be a surprise when you consider the sheer amount of ink laid down per unit distance.
• They get a bit wonky when they get down to about 75% used; the line they lay down turns inconsistent.
• They can tend to blot and smear, especially in warm weather.  I'm a lefty overwriter, so I really have to watch that.
• They don't start immediately, so I have to make a couple of small circles "somewhere else" before I start writing with them.  (I'm not talking about the little protective cap over the ball you have to peel off before you begin using a new one.  I'm talking about day-to-day use.)
• Don't ever carry or store the pen point-down, or there'll be a nice fat blob of ink at the point the following day.

That's too many serious negatives for me to consider that ballpoint. I don't want a pen that requires me to adapt to its major shortcomings.

 

My ballpoint of choice is the Uni-ball Power Tank RT. Runs rings around any ballpoint I know of. About $1.50 - $2.00 each. 

Uni Power Tank on Amazon

[1nkulus]

I use the violet for doodles.

 

Primary use, doodling.

Secondary use, lending/giving to strangers but the violet doesn't seem to be appreciated.  😁

[Frank C]

Wow. That is a blast from the past. When I was in elementary school, in the 1960s, we were taught to write with pencils. In about fourth grade, we were allowed to use pens, which meant ballpoint pens. (My mother, who turned 99 two weeks ago,  always used a Parker 51 fountain pen with Sheaffer Peacock Blue ink, but that is another story—I have only recently been allowed to touch her prized possession.) At the local drugstore we could a very similar Bic pen for 19¢. They had a medium point and came with black, blue, red, and green ink and matching cap. Teachers tended to use the red ones to correct our assignments. For 25¢, I could buy a fine point with an opaque yellow body. Those were my daily pens until I went to university and bought a Cross ballpoint. 

 

At some point, they switched from having a brass holder for the ball to plastic. I saw no change in writing behavior, but I learned a lesson about manufacturing. 

 

I see that I can still purchase them for about 48¢ each in a pack of ten. They're are still made in France, too.

[sciumbasci]

Extraordinary pens. But smears are frequent and, sadly, they don't last long. 

 

I find the Papermate Flexgrip 1.4 a much better instrument: the ink is superb, does not smear, lasts a long time, smells like almonds for some reason and has a great body.

 

The downside is the premium price it carries around here.