Posts filed under Pen Reviews

Pilot Acroball T 0.3 mm Ballpoint Pen Review

What the difference between the Pilot Acroball and the Uni-ball Jetstream?

Marketing.

I’m a Jetstream super fan. Always have been, and always will be as long as they keep executing each pen to perfection. That said, if I were to take a blind writing test with the Jetstream refill and the Acroball refill in neutral barrels I don’t think I would be able to tell the difference in pure writing performance.

The Pilot Acroball is every bit the Jetstream’s equal in performance. In popularity? The Acroball is Pilot’s forgotten pen.

From day one, it didn’t seem that Pilot believed in this pen. In Japan, it launched as the Acroball and featured bright colored barrels that stood out on the shelf. In the US, it launched as the Easy Touch Pro, which looked as boring as the name. It doesn’t get more generic than that.

Under the hood, both the pens used the same great Acroball ink, a hybrid ballpoint ink made specifically to compete with the Jetstream. And it did! The ink performance is outstanding, but if a tree fell in the woods and … well, you get the point.

The Pilot G2 is the best selling gel ink pen in the world, which Pilot will not hesitate to mention. The Pilot FriXion is the best erasable gel ink pen on the market by a wide margin, and has the product line to prove it. The Pilot V-Series rollerball pens have been around for decades, are loved, and are supported by Pilot in various marketing campaigns.

The Pilot Acroball? It exists.

That’s not to say Pilot has forgotten about this pen. It has the requisite barrel color variance, a few different ink colors and tip sizes, and even a premium barrel option. I admit that is a solid base lineup, but my contention is it warrants more. This ink was designed to compete with the Jetstream, and it does. But Pilot seems content to play second fiddle to the Uni-ball behemoth.

That’s their loss, because it deserves more.

I was happy for these 0.3 mm Acroball pens to become available in the Acroball T lineup so I could see how they stack up against some of the finer Jetstream pens. Performance-wise, they absolutely do. The lines are clean and sharp, and for an 0.3 mm ballpoint, it is as smooth of a writer as a tip size that small can be. They are great.

The only downside for the 0.3 mm option is that it only ships with black ink. You can order 0.3 mm blue refills separately, but it would have been nice to have one of the five new 0.3 mm barrels ship with a blue ink. The barrels are nice, with the “T” series offering a group of metallic/pearlescent plastic barrel colors. Nothing more than that, but thankfully the stock shape and feel of the Acroball is fantastic - especially the grip.

I love the Acroball, and I want more. Is that too much to ask?

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Posted on January 31, 2022 by Brad Dowdy and filed under Pilot, Acroball, Pen Reviews.

Kaweco Perkeo vs. Ferris Wheel Press Carousel - A Showdown

(Kimberly (she/her) took the express train down the fountain pen/stationery rabbit hole and doesn't want to be rescued. She can be found on Instagram @allthehobbies because there really are many, many hobbies!.)

As I’ve mentioned before, I am a big fan of the Kaweco Sport (and AL Sport) and have a possibly unhealthy number of them, but I don’t own any other Kawecos, so I was excited when the Bossman sent me the Jungle Green Kaweco Perkeo for review (Perky-oh? Or Per-KAY-oh? Tomato, tomahto? Someone please find out!). I had already started using it when I watched one of his Twitch streams where he was unboxing a Ferris Wheel Press (FWP) Carousel pen in Seaside Glass that looked very similar, so I called dibs so I could review that too. And here we are, staring down at 20 paces for a little head to head review (queue the western showdown music). Who will be left standing? Let’s find out!

Packaging/Presentation

Ok, I’m not really one that cares about packaging for most pens. In fact, I’d happily pay less to get a less ostentatious, normal-sized box than one that I can use to store treasured heirlooms or a Monopoly board (yes, that’s a thing!). So it doesn’t bother me in the least that the Perkeo is “packaged” in a Kaweco-branded plastic sleeve. But if you were going to give the pen as a present, I’d have to go with the Carousel as it looks nicer in the color-coordinated box.

Round 1: Carousel

Kaweco Perkeo vs. Ferris Wheel Press Carousel — *It’s a low bar to beat Kaweco’s cellophane (left), but FWP (right) really does a good job with their presentation.*

*The Carousel has an inner box/”tray” that slides out.*

What’s Included

Packaging aside, the Perkeo, like other Kawecos, includes a Kaweco blue standard international cartridge and an empty cartridge “spacer” (which can be used to refill with other bottled ink, or just kept inside the barrel with the other cartridge), but no converter. Contrast that with the Carousel which does include a standard international converter, but no cartridge. I don’t know who makes the converter but I don’t think it is one from Schmidt (who makes a lot of branded and unbranded standard international converters).

The Carousel has an inner box/”tray” that slides out.Ferris Wheel Press Carousel Converter — *Carousel’s standard international converter is included with the pen.*

If instant inking is a requirement (like if you’re gifting this to someone and not giving them a bottle of ink), then the Perkeo would be the better option, but I personally would rather have the converter any day over a cartridge.

Round 2: Carousel (cuz I like converters)

Feel

How does it feeeeeel? Like a rolling stone. Sorry, I just had an iMyke moment and couldn’t help myself, lol. This one is very subjective as it relates to how the pens feel when you are holding them. They are very similarly sized, though the Carousel is a bit smaller. Both are made from plastic/acrylic, so they are both lightweight. Both have faceted caps which snap on/off, which is great for quick writing.

The barrel on the Perkeo is also faceted (I LOVE facets) and has a triangular grip reminiscent of the Lamy Safari but not nearly as drastic, while the Carousel has a faceted grip. Neither bothered me in any way or were even something I noticed (and that’s a good thing) but I use a fairly standard tripod grip when holding pens so your mileage may vary depending on how you hold your pens or if you don’t like triangular grips. Those similarities aside, the Perkeo just felt a bit more substantial. Both are “plastic pens”, yes, but there’s something about how the acrylic feels in hand that differentiate the two. The Carousel is also a slimmer pen all around, from the barrel to the cap to the grip. Perhaps it’s the slightly matte texture of the Perkeo vs the very smooth feel of the Carousel combined with its slightly lighter weight, which makes the Carousel feel just a little “cheaper” than the Perkeo to me.

Round 3: Perkeo

Nib

The nib on the Perkeo is the same as the ones in the Kaweco Sport. I tried, unsuccessfully, to pull the nib/feed from the Perkeo. Maybe it’s possible but I couldn’t do it and I didn’t want to try too hard. Mine was great out of the box, though I know that some folks have had problems with their Sport nibs, especially the fine and extra fine.. The Carousel’s nib is a similarly sized nib, and has custom engraving. It does not appear to be a Jowo, Schmidt, nor Bock nib or feed. FWP says that the Carousel’s “custom-ground steel nib is…able to produce beautifully nuanced lines with its subtle flexibility”. This was NOT my experience as the nib is very stiff and I could not get any line variation unless I used significant pressure, which I don’t recommend. Regardless, despite not being a remotely a soft or flexible nib, the Carousel wrote well out of the box.

I inked up both pens with Diamine Inkvent 2019 Mistletoe. The Perkeo was inked up about 3 weeks longer than the Carousel, which I think contributes to the slightly darker line. Both are medium nibs but the Perkeo is also just a wee bit broader than the Carousel.

The Perkeo isn’t a “wet writer” per se, but it felt ever so slightly wetter than the Carousel, which didn’t feel like a dry writer either. Both have worked flawlessly even after 2 weeks of non-use.

Round 4: Tie

Nice Touches

Both caps are branded - “Kaweco” branding is subtly embossed on the cap while “Ferris Wheel Press” is debossed on one side of the cap, while the other side says “the CAROUSEL”. I like both the subtlety of the Kaweco branded cap as well as the silver debossing on the FWP.

Aside from what I’ve already mentioned in the first two rounds, the Perkeo has a groove on the grip section where the barrel screws onto it. You really only notice this during the last quarter turn, making it feel extra secure. Whether it’s really necessary or not, I’m not sure, as most pens don’t just unscrew themselves easily, but that gave it a nice feel. More of “luxury/quality” experience than I would’ve expected.

The Perkeo also has the metal Kaweco finial in the cap, which just looks nicer than the Carousel.

Kaweco Perkeo vs. Ferris Wheel Press Carousel - A Showdown — *End of the caps on the Carousel (left) and Perkeo (right).*

The Carousel’s little dimple looks unpolished and sadly, felt cheap in comparison. It was close but it was the finial that gave the win to the Perkeo on this round.

Round 5: Perkeo

Variety

The Carousel, which was released in the fall of 2021, is available in 6 solid colors (the Tattler’s Teal and After Midnight are calling my name!). The Perkeo, which was launched in 2017, comes in 11 colors, not including the Blue Calligraphy set, and has some interesting color combos along with solid color options, too. I personally like more of the Carousel colors compared to the Perkeo’s, but since everyone’s tastes are different, having more color choices wins. But will the Carousel be released in more colors? Guess we’ll have to wait and see!

Round 6: Perkeo…for now

Price

The Kaweco Perkeo retails for $16 USD/15 EU with VAT/12.50 EU without VAT and the Ferris Wheel Press Carousel Pen retails for $28 USD/29 EU with VAT/24 EU without VAT. So both pens are budget-friendly. But the Carousel is nearly double the price, so if you’re on a really tight budget, the Perkeo’s got the upper hand.

Round 7: Perkeo

In summary, both the Kaweco Perkeo and the Ferris Wheel Press Carousel fountain pens are both solid, budget-friendly pens that come in fun color options. In the end, with a score of 5-2 and 1 tie (and yes, this western shootout appears to have turned into a boxing match), the Perkeo is the winner for me. It checks off more of what’s important to me and does so at a lower price point. There are other pens in the Carousel’s price range that I would pick instead, like any of the others in the comparison shot above, but you really can’t go wrong with either.

(Thank you to Vanness Pens and JetPens for sending the Ferris Wheel Press Carousel and Kaweco Perkeo, respectively, for review. The Diamine ink was from my own stash.)

Posted on January 28, 2022 by Kimberly Lau and filed under Kaweco, Ferris Wheel Press, Fountain Pens, Pen Reviews.

Pilot Kese Lamé Erasable Glitter Gel Pen Review

(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Twitter. And check out her latest book, Out of Water, now available where books are sold!)

This limited edition glitter fest from Pilot's FriXion line is sure to delight fans of the erasable gel ink. I have mentioned before that I am not one of those fans, but even I am taken in by the Pilot Kese Lamé Erasable Glitter Gel Pen.

It's not really a surprise that the FriXion ink makes me uncomfortable. I'm a librarian and an author--the idea of writing that disappears is literally the thing I have nightmares about. The fact that the ink's appearance is thermally controlled, and I live in a thermally brutal place, adds to that anxiety. As I write this, the outside temperature is -19 degrees. And that's not the coldest it's been today. Needless to say, whatever I erase is not going to stay erased, if I use these pens.

That being said, if you live in a moderate climate, or you are writing something that never needs to leave your home, but also doesn't need to be preserved or archival in any way--these are really fun pens.

Pilot Kese Lamé Erasable Glitter Gel Pen

They're also very well made. The bodies are sturdy plastic in a pearlescent white that gradients to a clear portion at the middle. There is a white rubber grip section and a frosted clear nose cone. The clip is clear plastic that is very subtly tinted the color of the pen's ink, which is very helpful while in keeping with the overall aesthetic. The gel eraser on top looks like a wee frosted bubble. There is quite a bit of branding on the pen, but it's tastefully done and not visible when you're holding the pen to write. They're cute and classy at the same time.

The clip is also the tip deployment mechanism. It slides down with an addictively satisfying click, and then depresses to retract. Because the clip does so much for this pen, it does rattle a bit, which can be heard and felt when writing. But these pens weren't made for extensive writing. They're very much accent pens.

The tint in these inks is very subtle, so the colors appear pastel, but with plenty of expressive glitter to make it pop. The 0.7mm tip and generously flowy ink also help make the paler colors readable (though notably difficult to photograph). It should be noted, however, that the glitter does not erase. Just the color. So any erased areas of your writing will still be disco-ready even after you've FriXion-ified the text.

I still struggle with the use case for these pens a little. I don't want to use them for anything I intend to keep, so they're good for lists, as long as those lists stay on my desk and aren't like grocery lists that need to be carried out of the house. They're great for chore lists, and add a bit of fun sparkle to an otherwise mundane task. And they're good for coloring or doodles, or general stress-relief. They're just fun, and who doesn't need more fun in their life?

They aren't inexpensive, though. Individual colors are available for $3.80 on JetPens, and this set of 6 costs $22.80. For me, that puts them a bit on the steep side, but in the "it's worth it if it's worth it to you" category. If you like FriXions and love glitter, you probably need these.