Gel Ink

Colors Review: Pilot G-2 Mosaic Collection (blue, green, red, and purple)

by Andrew

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If nothing else, the Pilot G-2 Mosaic Collection improves upon the original G-2 design in at least one important way by hiding the ugly G-2 refill. The barrel is instead covered in a pattern of broken hexagons, mimicking mosaic artwork (hence the name), and each barrel matches the color of the ink inside.

In addition to black, there are four colors: blue, red, green, and purple – all of which are quite dark. The green, the lightest of the bunch, is something like a darker shade of aquamarine. The red is more of a “blood red,” and is actually a great color for standard writing.

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They write like typical Pilot G-2 pens, which is a mostly positive experience, and they come in a 0.7mm tip. There is some smearing, especially with the black ink, but I had no issues with the pens bleeding through the page. If you’re looking for darker colored gel ink pens, these are a pretty good choice – especially that beautiful dark red.

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Review: Pilot B2P, Gel Pen, 0.7mm

by Andrew

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Every time I see the Pilot B2P on the store shelves, I can’t help rolling my eyes at the terrible gimmick. 89% of the pen is made from recycled bottles, and to make sure you know it, Pilot designed it to resemble a plastic water bottle. It’s a  translucent blue, all-plastic pen with water-like ripples molded into the barrel and a plastic label wrapped around the middle. It’s such a silly concept that I’m almost ashamed to admit that I actually quite like the way this pen looks.

The inside of the pen is nothing particularly special. It’s a standard 0.7mm Pilot G-2 gel ink refill, which is relatively good despite the fact that it writes a bit unevenly – in my opinion, the 0.38mm G-2 refill works a lot better. It’s a bit slippery to hold because the B2P has no grip, though I definitely wouldn’t call it an uncomfortable writing experience.

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If you really want to do the environment a favor, you should probably just get a sturdy, stainless steel pen that will last the rest of your life. But if you want an off-the-shelf pen with a unique look, the Pilot B2P isn’t a bad choice.

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Review: BIC Velocity Gel, Gel Ink, 0.7mm

by Andrew

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The BIC Velocity Gel is a “premium plastic”-style retractable pen, very similar in design to the Pilot G-2. It has a transparent barrel, a rubber grip, and black trim. It’s an uninspired design, but it looks nice enough. The gel ink inside, however, could leave your writing a little uglier because it flows a bit unevenly and smears pretty heavily, even transferring to the opposite page in a notebook that is closed too fast.

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The Velocity Gel is comfortable enough to hold, although it’s worth noting that the grip flares out a bit at the tip-end of the pen. For someone like me who grips the pen close to the tip, it feels a tiny bit awkward. Anybody who grips a pen a bit higher on the barrel won’t have this issue and might actually like this feature, as it will prevent your fingers from slipping too far down.

It isn’t a bad pen, probably ranking somewhere on the lower end of mediocre. But with so many options, it’s just not a pen worth buying. On every store shelf with a BIC Velocity Gel, there is probably a better pen sitting right next to it.

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Review: uni-ball Signo RT1, Gel Pen, 0.28mm

by Andrew

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Not a lot of all-plastic pens look impressive, but the uni-ball Signo RT1 manages to pull it off with its all-black “stealth” style. It also has a rubber grip section that extends all the way to the tip of the pen, making it very comfortable to hold. And I love the design of its knock retracting mechanism – it has a good thickness, and it attaches to the clip in a unique-looking way, making it really fun to “click-click-click” all day long.

Although writing with ultra-fine pens can sometimes feel like you’re about to slice through your paper, this 0.28mm tip is surprisingly smooth, consistent, and it generally performs very well. Such a fine tip also means that you’re not putting a ton of ink on the page, so smearing is a non-issue, despite the fact that the Signo RT1 uses gel ink.

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While the pen could use a stronger clip and a bit of added weight – it’s a lot lighter than it looks – the barrel design of the pen and the writing experience are top notch. Such a fine tipped pen is not ideal in many situations, but I definitely plan on grabbing this Signo RT1 next time I have to fill out the tiny boxes on a warranty card.

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Review: Pilot G-2, Gel Pen, 0.38mm

by Andrew

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According to the advertising, the Pilot G-2 is “America’s #1 selling gel ink pen.” I can’t say I’m surprised by this. Walk into any convenience, grocery, or big-box store, and you’ll find more colors and varieties of the Pilot G-2 than are available for any other pen line. But is it just good marketing or do people buy G-2s because they are actually good pens? I think it’s a bit of both.

The aesthetic design of the pen is nothing to write home about. It’s mostly clear plastic with black trim, a rubber grip, and the G-2 branding printed on the clip in big, bold letters. I have to also point out the ugly, rust-colored blob of gunk at the top of the refill. This gunk – which I assume helps hold in the ink – is clear in a lot of similar pens, but Pilot has chosen to keep and prominently display this odd coloration in the G-2. Maybe it has something to do with branding.

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Beyond that, it’s a decent gel ink pen. It’s comfortable to hold, and this 0.38mm version writes steady lines with little smearing or skipping. While there might be better gel pens out there, I’d be happy to grab one of these off the shelf any day.

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