(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!)
These Zebra Clickart pens have all the joy of a felt-tip marker with the convenience of a clicky pen. The 6mm tip is fine enough to use for writing or sketching, while the side of the bullet-shaped tip also works for coloring and filling in. They're very versatile and perform better than I expected.
The pen body is in white plastic with a molded roll-stop, but no clip. I wish they had clips, but the lack of one does mean they fit more nicely into overstuffed pen pouches. Since this pen is available in 36 colors, your pen pouch is bound to need all the extra room possible. The tip of the pen is conical in plastic the color of the pen's ink, and the clicky knock is also in the ink color, so you can easily see what color you're selecting from either end. The clicky knock has a very satisfying click. An A+ on the fidget scale.
The felt tip is a fine bullet shape. The tip makes a nicely thin line, and holding it at an angle creates a bolder line. It has the feel of a marker, with that familiar feedback and scritchy sound.
I was skeptical about a click marker's ability to not dry out, and even more surprised to see these don't have any sort of trap door that closes off the tip when it is retracted. The tip just retracts, chilling there in the barrel, open to the air. The secret lies in the ink, according to the specs. It will apparently not dry out for a year, so long as it is kept retracted when not in use. This magical ink absorbs moisture from the air, so it may not work as well in arid climates.
The ink performs beautifully on paper, with rich colors and good coverage. It does feather and bleed a bit on cheap copy paper, though--like just about any marker will. I think these would be excellent for sketching and art, perfect for coloring books, and super fun for planner decorating. I have blue-green, peach-pink, and dark brown here. They cost $1.65 in open stock, or $41 for a set of all 36 colors. I think that's a very good value and I definitely want all the colors.
(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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