Zebra R-301 Stainless Steel Refillable Roller Ball Review

I take reader requests from time to time, and the Zebra R-301 Stainless Steel Refillable Roller Ball was one such request. I first learned of this pen last year from Brian at Office Supply Geek and knowing the style of writing instrument I prefer I wasn’t too eager to give it a shot. Wide tipped liquid ink pens just aren’t my thing, but it obviously doesn’t take much to twist my arm.

The first thing I noticed about this pen is that the design is based directly off the Zebra H-301 Highlighter. That is a good thing because the barrel design is great. I love the look of the stainless steel contrasted against the black plastic. The only issue I find is that the cap does not post tightly. It is loose and spins a little but it won’t go as far as falling off.

From an ink perspective it is HEAVY. The tip size is 0.7 mm but it writes wider because of the flow. In fact, I had to write very fast to stay ahead of the bleed. It is dark and consistent though, so any of you who like to write with liquid ink pens may enjoy it. That it is refillable is an added bonus.

I picked up my R-301 at Staples so you should be able to find these pretty easily at your local office supply retailer. If you own one please let me know what you think in the comments section.

Zebra SL-F1 Mini Ballpoint Pen Review

Zebra makes the best mini pens. Anyone care to disagree?

I’m not trying to get anyone riled up or make some off the wall point. I’m being serious - who does it better? I think the Fisher Space Pen will get a lot of votes because of the pressurized ballpoint refill, but in the bang for the buck category I think Zebra gets it right.

The SL-F1 Mini Ballpoint Pen is Zebra’s latest addition to an ever growing line of portable pens. This telescoping model is a compact 3.3 inches when closed and expands to 4 inches when extended into the writing position. The metal barrel gives it a nice weight and feel. The 0.7 mm ballpoint ink is smooth and clean. Positive marks all around for the SL-F1 in my book.

At $5.00 it is an excellent value, but that isn’t the best part. The SL-F1 takes a standard D1 refill, which means gel ink refills are an option. 0.4 mm Mandarin Orange here I come!

For another look at the Zebra SL-F1 see the review at No Pen Intended.

Zebra Eco Sarasa Clip Retractable Gel Review

I think most Pen Addict readers are aware that I work for JetPens.com, but I am not sure that everyone knows I handle most of the JetPens Facebook and Twitter duties as well. One of the recent questions I received on Facebook is what pen is most comparable to the Zebra Jiminie? Luckily I have used the Jiminie, and one of Zebra’s very own products matches up well.

The Zebra Eco Sarasa Clip is part of the hugely popular Sarasa Clip line, with the obvious difference being the recycled aspect of the pen. Made from 81% post-consumer recycled materials, the Eco is a great option for the environmentally conscious among us, and is refillable with the Zebra JF cartridge. As a bonus, all of the color cartridges from the Sarasa Clip line fit this barrel perfectly, so there is no issue adding in a Viridian Green cartridge in your eco friendly barrel.

The 0.7mm tip that I reviewed writes almost exactly like the Jiminie. Smooth, pitch black gel ink, and a very crisp line. As luck would have it, JetPens is sold out of this exact barrel, but we should have them back in very soon! This is a pen very much worth waiting for.