Review: Uni-Ball Signo Bit 0.28mm

This list of Uni-Ball pens that I dislike is a very very short one, and while I really want to like the Signo Bit, it just doesn't do it for me.  Fun Pen Addict fact:  the Signo Bit 0.38mm was the first pen I reviewed on this blog.  There will be a quiz later.

The main issue I have with the Bit is ink flow consistency.  The pen feels great in my hand, and the barrel is flat out awesome in my opinion, but the needle tip doesn't cut it in this case.  The line width is not very consistent, and it dries up from time to time while writing.  It is also one of the messier needle tips I have used.  It is too bad because this pen really appeals to me visually.

As I mentioned in the written review, I think with a few tweaks this pen could compete with the Pilot Hi-Tec-C, but since Uni-Ball stopped making many colors of this pen, I think it is headed in the opposite direction.

Click here for the XL review.

Giveaway: Two Zebra Pen Product Packs

I received and reviewed several new Zebra pens, pencils, and highlighters that will be released this spring - such as the M-701 Stainless Steel Mechanical Pencil and the H-301 Stainless Steel Highlighter - and it is time to spread the wealth around.  This giveaway will be for several of the new Zebra products that I have in my hands, headlined by the new M-701 and H-301.

There will be two winners of this giveaway.  One will receive the M-701 plus many other new Zebra pens like the Regal Roller and Z-Grip Max Bold, and the second will receive the H-301 plus many other new Zebra pens as well.  Both the M-701 and H-301 are my review samples, but they are barely used.  I figure it would be cool to get your hands on these early, so hopefully that is ok.  Once the winners have been selected, the first to respond in the comments selection can choose which package they would like.

Here are the rules:
1. Leave one comment on this post anytime between now, and Thursday night at 11:59 PM Eastern Time.  You are limited to one entry.  Feel free to link this giveaway on your blog, or share it with anyone you feel is a true pen addict.  If you have a blog, I would love a link back, but it is certainly not required for entry into the contest.

2. For this contest, I will pick two winners at random from the comments section of this post.  The comments will be numbered in the order they are received, i.e. the first comment is #1, the second #2, and so on.  The Random Integer Generator at random.org will be used to pick the number of the winner.

3. The contest winners will be posted on Friday, March 26th.  The winners will have one week to email me at the address posted in the right sidebar.

4. I will ship internationally.  I know there are many international readers and fans of The Pen Addict, and I will gladly ship to you at my expense.

Thanks and good luck!

Review: Zebra Sarasa Clip 0.4mm Tea Brown

Zebra introduced 11 or so new colors in their Zebra Sarasa Clip line last year, and this Tea Brown model definitely caught my eye.  Readers of The Pen Addict long ago introduced me to the brown black Signo DX, but it is safe to say that Tea Brown is my first purely brown gel ink pen.

I have yet to have any trouble with a single pen from the Sarasa Clip line.  They are some of the best performing gel ink pens around, and are also one of the best values.  I probably have a dozen or so in all different shades, and while blue black is my favorite, Tea Brown is making a charge to the top.  I guess it is because you don't see too many brown inks in everyday use, but I find this color to be very unique.  With an ink color like this that I am going to use for note taking, I worry about it being too light, but that is not the case at all with this pen.  It is a medium dark to dark shade that comes out great on the page.  I put this pen in the same class as the lavender black Uni-Ball Signo RT in the fact that it is different and cool, but could be used in any business setting due to how nice the ink looks.

There were several other colors of the Sarasa Clip released in 2009 - such as Cobalt Blue and Viridian Green - that I am looking forward to trying out as well.  Hopefully they will be as nice as Tea Brown.

Click here for the XL review.

Product Links:
Zebra Sarasa Push Clip Gel Ink Pen - 2009 New Color - 0.4 mm - Tea Brown from JetPens
Doane Paper Writing Pad from Doane Paper