porous tip

Review: Pilot V Razor Point, Porous Point, Extra Fine

by Andrew

Pilot V Razor Point Extra Fine

The Pilot V Razor Point, if nothing else, solidifies my fondness for porous point pens. It has a rich, dark ink, it’s smooth, and it’s comfortable to write with, despite having no real grip section to speak of. It does smear and bleed a little on standard papers, but not enough to cause problems when writing – though it might not be ideal for doodling.

The design of the V Razor Point is fairly basic. It has a silvery-blue color, black trim, and very straight-forward branding on the barrel, along with the letters “EF” (to indicate “extra fine”) on the end of the cap. For a fully disposable pen, it does a decent job of looking professional.

Pilot V Razor Point EF tip

While I really do like the Pilot V Razor Point, it doesn’t quite deliver the same sharp lines as the Sharpie Pen, another porous point pen. But if it comes down to which is cheaper or more easily available, the V Razor Point is a good contender. It provides a good writing experience, and you’re unlikely to be disappointed.

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Colors Review: Sharpie Pen, Basic Six Color Set

by Andrew

Sharpie Pen Colors

Lately I’ve been a big fan of the Sharpie Pen – they draw such clean lines, it feels like my handwriting always looks better when I use one. So I was excited to play around with this set of six basic colors: black, blue, red, orange, green, and purple.

The blue and green look fairly standard to my eye, but the orange and red are quite bright. On the other side of the scale, the purple is fairly dark. In fact, I would actually consider using the purple in place of a black pen for writing.

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These pens aren’t the greatest at filling an area with color. However, this might be a good addition for anyone using Sharpie permanent markers in their artwork, as it could allow for adding more details. And luckily, I didn’t have any bleeding issues with these colors like I did with the standard black Sharpie Pen.

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Review: Sharpie Pen Retractable, Porous Point, Fine

by Andrew

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Having passed by the Sharpie Pen on the store shelves for years, it was a revelation to me when I finally used one for the first time. Its clean, consistent lines seem to improve the way handwriting looks, it barely smears, and Sharpie even managed to make the pen look nice. Because I have a predilection for retractables, I was eager to grab the Sharpie Pen Retractable, and though this version improves upon the original, I’m sorry to say that it didn’t quite meet my high expectations.

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Let’s start with the good: The Sharpie Pen Retractable has the same great writing performance as the original, adding a couple great features. The grip was a good idea – though I never had too much issue handling the original, a grip makes it much easier to write with for longer periods. The thicker design helps too, making the whole pen feel a bit more durable, and the flimsy clip of the original has been replaced with metal.

On the other hand, the clicker/knock mechanism is annoyingly long, there’s some slight rattling in the barrel while writing, and, although it’s slightly heavier than the original Sharpie Pen, it still could use a bit of added weight for a good balance. These are all very minor complaints, but at more than twice the cost of the original Sharpie Pen (at all the places I looked), I can’t say that the Retractable is a particularly good value for a non-refillable pen. It might be better to just stick with the original Sharpie Pen.

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Review: Paper Mate Liquid Flair, XFine, Stick Pen

by Andrew

Papermate_Liquid_FlairXFine-1I’ve been using the XFine Paper Mate Liquid Flair needle-point pen with my journal for about a week, and it’s probably a bad sign that I’m so excited to finally move on to something else.

That’s not to say the Xfine Liquid Flair is an all around bad pen. It’s comfortable enough to hold, and though it doesn’t look particularly fancy, it has a fun design. I especially like the spring-loaded cap, which presses firmly against the tip of the pen to keep it from drying out. It also has a deep black ink, which would probably be great for artists who are looking for a cheap, disposable pen for basic ink work.

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My problem with the XFine Liquid Flair is that it is a terrible writing pen. It smudges so much that if I close my journal too fast, little splotches of ink get smeared onto the opposite page. The ink even bleeds through standard notepads, making it useless for most note-takers. But worst of all, it makes my writing feel messy – it’s already bad enough, it doesn’t need anything making it worse.

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