The new Pentel Vicuna was a pen I had on my radar since it came out, and as luck would have it, my good pen friend Carmen grabbed one of these for me to try out on a recent trip to New York. Thanks Carmen!
The Vicuna touts its new super smooth ink technology, and while sometimes claims don't always hold true, in this case Pentel delivers. The 0.7mm tip writes very smoothly, and the ink is about as dark as you can get from a ballpoint type ink. I'd love to tell you more about the ink, but the best I can do is the Japanese translation from Pentel Japan. Regardless, the ink does a very good job.
This is clearly an attempt by Pentel to tap into the Jetstream/Acroball market, and I see no reason why it will not be successful. Out of that style of pen it likely won't crack my personal top five -
1. Uni-Ball Jetstream 0.5mm blue
2. Pilot Acroball 0.7mm blue
3. Uni-Ball Jetstream 0.5mm black
4. Zebra Surari 0.5mm black
5. Uni-Ball Jetstream 0.7mm black
- but I think it is a pen worth checking out if you are looking for a ballpoint alternative. JetPens has them in stock in black, blue, and red ink and in several different barrel colors. At $2.25 each they are definitely worth a look.
Click here for the XL review.
