Friday, December 9, 2011

Pilot Frixion Ball Knock Retractable Gel Ink Pen 0.5mm Black

At first glance, Pilot's Frixion Ball Knock Retractable Gel Ink Pen just appears to be a plastic bodied pen with a funny looking semi clear rubber cap at its top and a clear plastic pocketclip to round it off.  However, that would be totally misleading. 
This pen is one of Pilot's best designed, and technically constructed writing instruments to date.  A thoroughly thought-thru executed pen, Frixion makes for a versatile, go to writing implement. 

While examining this pen from head to toe, the first thing to note is the rubber tip at the pen's top.  Exposed, the hard rubber tip allows easy access when needing to do something not possible with an average pen.  Erase your hand written ink entry!  This is made possible by Pilot employing a thermo-sensitive ink that erases when rubbed out by the rubber tip.  Pilot says the ink will reappear when temperature reaches below 14 degrees fahrenheit.  I have not put this to the test, so I'll take Pilot's word for it on this claim. 

Moving down the pen body, a clear pocketclip doubles as the knock mechanism that allows the ink cartridge tip to retract.  The clip is not necessarily strurdy looking, but appears to do the job quite efficiently.  On the side of the clip is the stamp: "Frixion ball 0.5," indicating the size of the ink cartridge tip.  Cartridges are also available in the 0.7 mm variety.  Additionaly, pen bodies are available in ten different colors.  As well as a stainless steel model.   Continuing, below the clip is the Pilot Frixion logo.  Along the backside is a barcode and several lines of writing in Japanese.  Right below lies the grip section which works quite nicely and allows writing with this pen an effortless exercise.  Being a gel ink pen, it literally glides on paper, and the ink dries quite promptly, and a very dark black color. 

The barrel separates at the grip section and unscrews to reveal the ink cartridge which is of substantial size.  As a complete unit Frixion delivers, and in a very convincing way.  Available at Jetpens.com, for $3.80, it is more than worth the cost.  I highly recommend the Pilot Frixion Ball Knock Retractable Gel Ink Pen. 

4 comments:

  1. This is one of the pens in my every-day rotation. I have a red one in my planner, very useful for editing and proofreading. I don't think the ink flow is all that consisted, but it's not unbearable. Highly recommended!

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  2. I hope these will be sold in my country soon, until that I have to put up with the cap of FriXion Point 05. The metal model is quite pricey and also isn't retractable, but they may make one in the future.

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  3. Carmen - I don't know if the occasional skip has to do with the Thermo-sensitive nature of the ink, but just the pen's erasability is a deal maker for me. Thanks for your comment.

    T.K. - Yeah, I've got my eye on the stainless steel model too.

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