Parker Jotter Ballpoint 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.)

The Parker Jotter is a tried and true classic that keeps upgrading, and this new two-tone, all-metal Victoria Violet body feels fresh while still nodding to vintage elegance. I was genuinely surprised by the price of these new editions, because they look and feel like a much more expensive pen. The writing experience was also a pleasant surprise.

The all-aluminum body is made in France. It's quite small and slim, so may not be comfortable for long writing sessions if you have large hands. The clip is stiff and in the classic Parker arrow shape. The edges of the arrow are sharp, so I'd caution against clipping this to light fabrics. The pen is small enough that the clip also ends up hitting my hand when the pen rotates, so I find I have to adjust it from time to time. The finish can be a bit slick to hold if your hands are at all sweaty, but the texture of the aluminum helps with grip under normal writing circumstances. The new line of colors are fun and gorgeous, ranging from whimsical to executive. And the premium styles of the Jotters are downright snazzy.

This pen has one of the most satisfying clicks I've ever experienced. It's loud, solid, and has a good amount of resistance. You could drive people crazy with this click and I love it.

The refill supplied is a blue Quinkflow cartridge, which is specially formatted for smooth, consistent writing. I think it achieves that. The ballpoint glides nicely on paper, and I never had any skips or hard starts. I did sometimes get that blob of ink at the start of a letter, and it will smear a little if you run your hand over the blob. But that seems like a universal ballpoint issue. The pen will take any parker style refill, though, so there are a ton of other options. I think a Fisher Space Pen refill in this would make it the perfect purse pen, or traveling journal pen.

For me, this pen is unseating the Karas Kustoms Retrakt in my I-need-a-pen-that-isn't-a-fountain-pen slot. Other pens that have occupied that seat are the Cross Click Classic and the Retro 51 Tornado. All of those are at least twice (if not three times) the cost of this Jotter, and so far it has performed better than all of them, for me. And if you're primarily a fountain pen user, but you acknowledge the occasional need for a ballpoint, this really is the perfect one. It looks and feels like you're spoiling yourself, but the price is low enough that you'll still have to add a fountain pen to your cart to get free shipping.

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

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Sailor 1911 Large Ballpoint Pen Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

Sailor are known for their high-quality, well-made fountain pens. There are several Sailors on my wishlist, but they can take some time to purchase given the high price tag. After all, well-made goods cost more than cheaper ones.

When I received the 1911 Large ballpoint to review, I was curious to see how it performed since I only associate Sailor with fountain pens and inks. The 1911 looks similar to the fountain pen version of the pen, except it uses a twist mechanism to extend and retract the refill tip.

At first glance, the top portion of the pen seems too large compared to the grip section. I've seen fountain pen versions of the 1911, and they don't have the same "out of balance" look since the body is longer and untapered at the end. That thought hasn't stopped popping up every time I look at the pen. And, it adds a bit of extra heft to the top of the pen while writing, too. This can cause some balance problems if you're not accustomed to writing with a top heavy pen.

Initial impressions weren't bad, and I was excited to see how it wrote. That's where my impressions took a big hit, and they're still struggling to recover. Yes, this is a ballpoint refill, and I was expecting something in that ballpark, but the writing experience with this refill was less than satisfactory. It's perfectly smooth (almost too smooth), but it skips and constantly looks like the refill is almost dried out due to the light black to medium gray tone it puts down. The lines are not sharp and tend to deposit artifacts outside of the main line as you write. When compared to my favorite ballpoint refill, the Schmidt EasyFlow 9000, it just doesn't compare.

Shortly after writing a few lines to try out the refill, I was optimistic that I could just swap in another refill that worked better. But, as I went through my stash of regular refills and eventually crossed them all off the "compatibility" list, I realized that this refill is proprietary to this pen and that I was just stuck with it. Bummer!

For that reason alone, I find it difficult to recommend this pen. The refill looks like a standard Parker refill that has been slightly modified to make it unique to Sailor. That doesn't feel right, and the fact that their stock refill is mediocre just hurts more.

Maybe I'm being harsh on this pen. After all, it's beautiful! This complaint is similar in nature to buying a $150 fountain pen that has significant nib issues that make the writing experience negative without some kind of nib tuning. It just shouldn't happen. With this pen, however, tuning isn't an option due to the proprietary refill.

At nearly $100, that's just unacceptable. This pen oozes executive class on the outside, and it feels great when you pick it up and operate the twist mechanism. Once you start writing, however, the experience is similar to the dollar-a-dozen Bic stashed in the office supply closet. At this price, you're not far off from the fountain pen version. My recommendation is to spend a little extra money on the fountain pens that Sailor has figured out and perfected!

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

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Enjoy reading The Pen Addict? Then consider becoming a member to receive additional weekly content, giveaways, and discounts in The Pen Addict shop. Plus, you support me and the site directly, which I am very grateful for.

Membership starts at just $5/month, with a discounted annual option available. To find out more about membership click here and join us!

Cleo Skribent Copper Colour Ballpoint Pen Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

Cleo Skribent is a German pen manufacturer that has been in business since the World War II era. While this is my first experience with the company, they're more well known and recognized in other parts of the world. The company focuses on making fine writing instruments of high quality and craftsmanship. If this particular pen on my desk is any indication, the Cleo Skribent brand is well-made and fairly priced.

The Colour line of pens is available in mechanical pencil, ballpoint, and fountain pen versions, but I have a special edition made exclusively for Papier Plume of the ballpoint Colour. The all copper version is a beautiful pen that looks and feels like a well-tuned machine. This version is also billed as the exclusive "antimicrobial" ballpoint pen, which is something afforded by the copper materials. I didn't know this before, but copper (and its alloys) is a natural antimicrobial material. Neat!

If you've ever owned a copper or brass pen (or jewelry, for that matter), you probably know what happens pretty quickly after it comes in contact with your skin: oxidation. Yep, and this pen is no different. You can expect a patina to start developing after a few days of use, though it might take a couple or four weeks to see a drastic transformation. The pace of oxidation also depends on the humidity levels, how often you touch the pen, and the level of acidity in the oils on your fingers. I like the look of a nice patina, but I also love the look of freshly polished copper. It's so bright and golden, but it fades so quickly. Luckily, this pen ships with a small polishing rag for removing the patina. You'll only get a couple of uses out of the rag before needing to replace it, but it does provide an immediate solution for keeping your pen nice and bright.

Now, onto the non-copper aspects of this pen. The pen has a unique shape that provides a nice writing surface on the grip. The top portion of the pen that houses the nock is a bit subdued and reminds me of a Parker Jotter ballpoint pen. It's professional, and doesn't scream, "I'm a custom machined pen." Even though the tip and grip section of the pen do have more of that machined look, it's still a polished, professional look.

The nock is solid, but it's gotten stuck a couple of times while I've been using it. Nothing major, but worth noting. This clip is strong, but also has plenty of give to make it easy to use. Clipping this to your shirt or pants pocket is no problem.

The pen uses a Cleo-branded Schmidt 9000 EasyFlow refill, which is a great choice on their part. The EasyFlow has a dark, smooth ink that makes writing a pleasure.

Writing with this pen is great because of the machined grip area that provides a nice slope and ridge for your fingers to rest against while writing. Even though the body of the pen is completely smooth, I haven't had any issues with the pen slipping out of my grip. Keep in mind that as the patina develops, it will provide a grip surface that offers more texture and grip.

The pen has a small amount of weight, but not nearly as much as I would expect from a solid copper pen. To compare, the Colour weighs in at 31g, a standard Kaweco AL Sport weighs 20g (with short international cartridge, and a Lamy AL Star weighs 23g (with Lamy converter). It's not a heavy pen, but it's on the moderate side. You will notice the weight of this pen after a couple of pages of writing, but it's manageable.

One more thing that is worth mentioning for this pen (and any pen made from copper or brass) is the smell. Copper has a distinct smell that intensifies as it oxidizes, and it's not for everyone. For me, it depends on the task and my mood. Sometimes the smell is attractive, while other time it really puts me off. It's not a huge deal, but something to note for any pen made from these materials.

Overall, the Cleo Skribent Colour Copper edition is a sleek, well-made pen that is comfortable in the hand and smooth on the page. Given the Schmidt EasyFlow refill, you also have many options as far as replacement refills (any standard Parker refill will do) if you run out or decide you don't like it. The Copper edition runs about $90, which is really fair compared to other all-metal pens.

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

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Enjoy reading The Pen Addict? Then consider becoming a member to receive additional weekly content, giveaways, and discounts in The Pen Addict shop. Plus, you support me and the site directly, which I am very grateful for.

Membership starts at just $5/month, with a discounted annual option available. To find out more about membership click here and join us!