Zebra Sarasa Clip 0.3 mm Blue Green Review

Current favorite pen model? Yes. Current favorite color? No chance.

One of the things that attracted me to the Sarasa Clip 0.3mm aside from the great performance was the wide range of ink colors that are available. I have tried many, and have several left to review, but this blue green color ranks up there with some of the worst. Admittedly, one of the issues is that such a light color does not work that well on my Doane Paper Writing Pad. A plain white background would have probably worked better in this case. Even so, the end result is a color that actually causes eye strain for me, and that's not a good thing. Time for this one to hit my kids pen box.

It has been a while since I jotted some lyrics down for review, but when I saw They Might Be the 50 Best They Might Be Giants Songs on UGO.com back in January, I knew I had to do my #1 TMBG song "We Want A Rock" (#13 on the list). I have other favorites like "I Palindrome I", "Ana Ng", and "Minimum Wage", but Rock always gets me going. Enjoy the song:

Review: Zebra Sarasa Clip 0.3mm Blue

I have long been a fan of the 0.4mm Zebra Sarasa Clip, so I was pretty excited to get the 0.3mm version in and test it out.  I used a black gel ink model for a week straight at work and really enjoyed it.  I have to say it even writes better than the Uni-Ball Signo DX 0.28mm, which can get a bit scratchy and dry.  That didn't happen at all with this pen.

When writing with a tip size as small as this 0.3mm model, you really just need one thing to work well for it to be a great pen - line consistency.  By that I mean sharp, clean, and skip free lines - things I have harped on for years.  Even though it is a micro tipped pen, you don't want to have to micro manage writing with it, such as having to scribble with it a bit to get it flowing.  From the time I took this pen out of the package, it has worked flawlessly, and I am completely happy with it.

I have never really cared for the blue Zebra gel ink though - I've always felt it is too dark, but not really a blue black shade either.  So, I will mostly use the black, and so far I have also ordered orange and the very cool viridian green.  I need to grab at least a red, and probably a purple too, so I'll surely write those up sometime in the future.

Click here for the XL review.

Products used:
Zebra Sarasa Push Clip Gel Ink Pen - 0.3 mm - Blue from JetPens
Large Writing Pad from Doane Paper

(Sorry about the photo quality on this one.  My wife got a new camera for Christmas and I apparently need to learn how to use it.)

Review: Zebra F-301 0.7mm Ballpoint

Raise your hand if this is your everyday, go to, get it done pen.  I expect more than a few hands will go up for the Zebra F-301 line of pens, and for good reason.  These are exceptionally well made and great looking pens.  For me, I have never quite gotten it with this pen, but it is not for lack of trying.

What I love about this pen is its design.  The sleek stainless steel barrel is great looking, and the barrel length and diameter both hit those just big enough sizes.  The blue plastic in the grip and around the plunger really pop as well.  But as great as it looks, it doesn't quite cut it in the performance department.  The ballpoint ink is standard, and my definition these days of a standard ballpoint is any ballpoint pen that you would pick up that is just laying around.  Something in the non-Jetstream category for sure.  I have a feeling that the look and feel of this pen make the people who use it think that the ink actually performs better than it does.  Does that make sense at all, or just in my head?

More than the ballpoint, I really dislike the hard plastic grip.  It is too firm and too slick for a pen that does require some pressure to write with.  They may not be able to go with a full on squishy gel grip with the barrel diameter limitations, but almost any change in that area would be good.

So, while I am at it, what else would I like to see?  Would it be too much to ask for a Surari branded F-301?  Make it happen Zebra!

Click here for the XL review.

Products used:

Zebra F-301 Stainless Steel Body Retractable Ballpoint Pen - 0.7 mm - Blue from JetPens

Writing Pad from Doane Paper