Pilot MultiBall Liquid Ink Pen Review

(This is a guest post by Brian Draghi. You can follow Brian on Twitter @Sketchscape)

I was rather skeptical on whether the Pilot MultiBall would actually write on multiple surfaces as it claimed based on its description. I was quite shocked to find that it does indeed write on nearly every type of material and it is also one of my favorite writing pens now.

I was blown away by how dark, smooth and even the ink rolls off the onto the page that it doesn'€™t even require any effort to use. The overall line constancy is very dark black and writes the same way regardless of the surface type. It works on glass, plastic, mirrors, metal and cloth; materials that are usually only reserved for markers. One of the interesting things about this pen is the ability to wipe off any type of mark you make on any nonporous surface with a damp cloth. Once the ink has dried for a few hours, it becomes permanent like a Sharpie.

Taking off the cap, the rubber grip is rather comfortable. The grip is textured just enough to create an ideal balance between your thumb and index finger. It can definitely provide long endurance sessions of writing notes or sketching without any hand fatigue. Design wise, this pen has a bold striking shape that is lightweight and sleek to hold. It has a look similar to tactical pens that are available to its long and pointed body.

The MultiBall does have some issues adjusting to certain surfaces. Writing on a mirror, for instance, takes a few seconds of adjustment for the lines to start appearing. This is such a minor issue for an otherwise great pen.

Overall

The Pilot MultiBall is easily one of my top five pens due to it's surface versatility and smooth writing ability. The fine point works perfectly with my own writing style and I can always count on it to write the same way every time I use it. The Pilot Multiball is a such steal on JetPens.com for $1.65 that there should be no reason not to at least try this jack of all trades pen.

Rating 5 out of 5 pens

Pros

- Smooth and dark lines every time

- Writes on nearly every surface

- Very affordable pen

- Long writing period without fatigue

Cons

- Brief time to adjust between surfaces

Pilot FriXion Light Fluorescent Ink Erasable Highlighter Review

I get a ton of highlighter questions, but I haven’t provided many answers of late. Let’s knock one of them out today, shall we?

The Pilot FriXion Highlighter has been around for a while, but I only just recently got my hands on one to test out. Like all of the Pilot FriXion pens, this one sports a very well designed barrel. It is sharp looking and comfortable to hold. My initial reaction to the ink color is that it is darker than I like to use regularly in a highlighter, but in the photo it doesn’t look so bad.

Since the main feature of this pen is its erasability, I tested it out over a few different inks. The top line shows the Zebra Sarasa Clip 0.7mm gel ink pen, and you can tell pretty quickly it doesn’t play nice with gel inks. I tried to let the ink dry a bit, but still jumped the gun I think. The friction based eraser got into the ink too much and came out looking terrible.

The other two inks did much better. The pigment ink of the Uni Pin worked very well with this highlighter, as did the hybrid ballpoint ink of the Pilot Acroball. You can see a little bit of ink spread in those two samples, but they are more in line with my expectations.

What I didn’t test, and where I foresee no issues, is with textbooks. It doesn’t take much effort to erase the ink, so I don’t believe it will be a problem erasing over printed text.

The Kokuyo Beetle Tip remains my favorite highlighter, but the Pilot FriXion is a nice option if you are looking for erasable ink.

Pilot Cavalier Fountain Pen Review

(This is a guest post by Brian Gushikawa)

Disclosure: This is a review of a used pen that I repaired to working condition. Writing performance might not be fully reflected in this, but the rest of the review is solid for all Cavaliers. Note that manufacturing variance means that some nibs and feeds need adjusting and no mass produced pen is immune from needing adjustment sometimes.

The Pilot Cavalier Fountain Pen is a slender and very elegant pen, seemingly custom-tailored to fit into pen loops in journals and reminder calendars. The pen is light and styled for office and professional use. This pen seems ideal for women because it's a perfect fit for smaller hands and the pastel colors available can mesh quite well with professional attire.

Smoothness: The steel F nib makes about a 0.4 to 0.5mm line and is not as stiff as the wider Prera and Penmanship pens. The tines are longer and the overall width of the nib is about half as much as a standard Pilot wide nib. The unit I got was fairly smooth for such a thin line; thin nibs are scratchier because they have less of an ink cushion to glide on. This pen is good, though.

Grip and Balance: The grip is smooth and slender, meaning that folks with larger hands might find this uncomfortable to grasp for long periods of time. The cap is kind of heavy compared to the rest of the pen and the balance when its posted is helped greatly. It counterbalances the longer nib very well.

Ink Flow: My unit needed some work, so I cannot say how a standard production pen will be, but expect finer nibs to lay down less ink and seem a little scratchier.

Build Quality: This is where this pen really excels. The tight fit and finish is wonderful to behold and the lacquer job on the barrel is really thick and well done. Threads align 100% and the cap posts on the front with a very nice snap. The seal is tight enough to prevent nib dry out, too.

Capacity: You have options for Pilot Cartridges or a CON-20. I am not sure that the CON-50 or CON-70 would fit the slender barrel, but the choice of the CON-20 expands options on ink.

Clip: Strong, solid and metal. Affixed securely to the stoutly constructed cap.

Post: Affixes to the back with a satisfying click. Although the cap will spin, it won't come off while writing. Pilot really nailed it on this one.

Overall: Although this pen seems aimed at the female demographic, I'd say that a man with smaller hands would enjoy this pen quite a bit. The slender size is perfect for pen loops and the fine writing is great for college ruled notebooks. As long as the hand size is properly matched, I can recommend this pen without hesitation.