Pilot B2P Recycled Ballpoint Pen Review

Thanks again to Pilot Pen and Shoplet.com for sending some pens to review. Along with the other pens was this Pilot B2P Recylcled Ballpoint Pen, which I was really looking forward to trying out.

L-R: Ballpoint, Gel Ink

One of my favorite pens is the Pilot B2P Recycled Gel Ink pen, a sturdy roller ball that takes a G2 gel ink refill. I love the clear blue color, it does remind me of a water bottle and it's easy to spot on my desk or in my pen tray.

The B2P Ballpoint has a bright blue semi-soft grip, and a different style of clip that identifies the width, which is a nice feature if you're looking for a certain tip for writing. All in all, lots of points for styel and design.

Writing with the B2P ballpoint surprised me. It writes well, with very good ink flow and almost no ink blobbing on the paper. So little there's to no staining, which I really appreciate. The tip glides smoothly, didn't catch or skip on the paper, and this medium size is not too wide. Comparing the gel ink with the ballpoint above, the gel ink took a lot longer to dry and the 0.7mm tip seemed a bit too wide.

Definitely a good ballpoint, which I find I'm using more regularly now. If you're looking for a cute ballpoint that gets high marks on the Green scale (86% post consumer recycled material) then check out the Pilot B2P Ballpoint.

Pilot Timeline Gel Ink Pen

Got an email from Tokyo Pen Shop that mentioned a new pen they were carrying called the Pilot Timeline Gel. What a beautiful gel ink pen, the colors are amazing. So is the price, but looking is free. Check out TPS on Facebook too.

Pilot Knight Fountain Pen

The Pilot Knight, introduced around 2005, is a medium-priced fountain pen and rollerball collection with some very interesting styling details. The pen has a thinner section than most fountain pens, with a beautifully tapered body.

The matte finish is elegant, with silver accents on the ring and clip (which has a snap up mechanism similar to the Sarasa Clip). In fact, the clip isn't as heavy as it looks given that it's solid stainless steel, and the pen doesn't feel too weighted down when posted. The pen itself is 5 3/18th inches when posted, and 5 3/4 inches capped.


All of the Knight fountain pens are medium stainless steel nibs, stamped "Pilot Super Nib Japan." This is one of the nicest nibs I've ever used, it flows smoothly with no dry starts or skipping. It's also an aerometric filler, something you don't see very often outside Chinese Hero fountain pens or similar brands. The filler worked very well, better in fact than some of my other converters.


All told, this is a very nice fountain pen. As Pilot has discontinued the Knight, many pen stores have put it on sale for a lot less than the $45 to $48 suggested retail price. If you're looking to add to your collection, take a look at the Pilot Knight.

Pilot Prera Clear Body Fountain Pen

When JetPens introduced the Pilot Prera Clear Body I had already been looking at an orange-accented one on eBay and knew I was going to be making an order very soon. One of the first things you notice about the Prera is how small it is: 4.75 inches capped, 4.25 inches uncapped, and 5.25 inches posted. With small pens I sometimes look around for the rest of the barrel, and my hands look strange (like high heels with legs, long pens seem to make fingers look less stubby and more elegant).

Other things you notice: the colored accent caps, which give it just a bit more appeal and making it more than a clear demonstrator; the frosted shielding inside the clear cap, which makes a nice contrast but also keeps ink splatters from being noticeable; the white embossing on the cap with the Pilot Prera names clearly identified but not overwhelming; and finally, one of the nicest clip designs I've seen on a fountain pen--sturdy but flowing, with a lot of elegance in one small detail.

Clear demonstrator pens are among my favorites, I love to see the interior of the pen as well as checking out the ink availability. Unfortunately, that also means you can see any little thing that might be an annoyance, like the ink caught between the feed and section: when filling this pen, do not dip beyond the nib into the ink, as it will get into the section and you will have to take everything apart to clean it out. Lesson learned, hopefully.

This is a fine nib but if you were looking for a similar type in a non-Japanese pen I'd say Lamy's extra fine nibs for the Safari and Al-Star models is probably the closest. It writes very much like a needle-point tip so if you like a fine to extra fine line but still want to read your notes this is a good choice.

The Pilot Prera clear body fountain pen isn't as expensive as some, but to be honest there's not a lot of pen either. The accent caps come in lots of different colors if you are so inclined, which adds both choice and fun to the selection. If you're thinking of a new fountain pen, take a look at Pilot Prera.

Pilot Custom 74 Pencil

Wandering through one of the area flea markets, I finally came upon a seller with some pens wrapped up in plastic bags. I saw this Pilot and thought it looked familiar, so I bought it for a few dollars and went home to check it out.

The pen is actually a Pilot Custom 74 pencil, with a plunger system that pushes the lead out of the steel cartridge.

The rubber eraser was used a bit and the end was crumbling inside the steel cartridge, but other than that everything works perfectly. The pencil uses 0.5mm lead, which seemed small until I started writing with it. There are no nicks or scratches on the barrel or cap, no brassing or wear at all, just some minor micro-scratching on the section. It's a great find, and a nice addition to my collection as I already own a Custom 74 fountain pen.

Pilot LE Grance in Yamabouki Koi

One of the truly stunning pens made by Pilot is the Grance, a slender flat top pen with a graceful curve to barrel. It's a beautiful pen, as you can see here (scroll to the middle) but unfortunately it isn't sold in the United States.


This Limited Edition Grance is in a finish called Yamabouki Koi, for the golden orange koi fish. The pictures don't quite capture the color, which isn't as deep an orange as the above would have it. The pen takes a CON-50 converter or international cartridges, and the nib (which I can't quite read, 14K something) is my favorite fine point.

I was lucky, as I won the auction on eBay having lost twice before. This was the last time, and I was amazed when no one outbid me--the golden orange fish was mine! It makes an impression when showing off to pen people. One of my best moments was at Art Brown, when I showed it to the assistant. He mentioned that people show him their pens all day and he didn't think much about them, but this was definitely an impressive pen. He's right, it is.

The golden orange really picks up the black tip of the cap and barrel, and the silver accents don't class with the warm overall color scheme. After all this, I almost couldn't care if it skipped and scratched across the paper, but it doesn't: it's one of the best pens in my daily arsenal.

If you come across the Pilot Grance, whatever the color or nib size, try and get it. It's one of the best writing tools ever made.

Pilot Choose Gel Ink Pen 0.7mm

James Carville made the observation that if he could reincarnate he'd want to come back as the bond market, as its power scares everyone. But really, without pens there would be no bond market, or anything else for that matter. Look at the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court's recent Ibanez ruling on who owns the mortgage and note in order to foreclose--the houses go back to the foreclosed owners because, in part, some of the paperwork wasn't signed and stamped! Jeez, how much does a BIC cost? We're not talking a 1943 Parker Vacumatic 1st Quarter, you know, just a few ballpoints or gel inks from JetPens would do.

But then you have the robo-signers, who just doodle away on the pages even though the notarized forms state the signer has thoroughly reviewed everything and it's all proper and legal (I like the one firm that has tens of thousands of foreclosure papers all signed by a woman who died a decade ago. Guess the plants didn't nail that zombie, and she just went back to work like always.)

If you're signing several hundred forms a day, committing perjury for which the rest of us mere mortals would do some jail time with fines, then I'd recommend a good gel ink pen that's both functional and attractive. Something like the Pilot Choose Gel Ink Pen with a large 0.7mm tip, for a readable (if not entirely legal) signature.

The Pilot Choose, which resembles the Uniball UM-100, is 74% recycled plastic and comes in a variety of colors including Blue-Black and Violet (the two pictured above). The 0.7mm Choose line includes the colors silver, white, and gold. Between the two tip sizes and the colors, there are lots of choices for this $1.50 pen if you're looking to add to your collection or just have thousands of documents to sign.

Pros: it's a very good-looking pen, with a pleasingly-rounded clear barrel so you can see the ink reserve. Writes smoothly, has a great hand-feel to it, and it's an overall nice pen. No bleed through on the paper or heavy shadow, but I was using an Exaclair notebook with it's exceptionally good paper.

Cons: sometimes the ink doesn't flow evenly, and the middle of the line is thin while the outsides are thicker. This may be caused by an un-even tip, or the ink itself may not be correct. It's actually minor, but I did notice it on a few words.

Overall, a good pen to include in your rotation, although the cap is stocky and needs some extra space. If you're rounding out a JetPens order, definitely think of including this.

Pilot BP-S Medium Ballpen

A pen I haven't used in many yeas is this Pilot BP-S ballpen with a medium point. I'd forgotten how good a pen this is, very smooth writer with ink that flows well with no skipping. More importantly, the ink doesn't blob when you stop writing and start again, leaving ink stains on paper and hands.

The design of the BP-S is impressive as well. It's a long-looking pen, which I think is partly due to the sculpted cap (for those who like to chew on the cap, the Pilot BP-S is dessert). The grip is ribbed plastic, and the barrel is a pale blue with an almost crystal sheen to it. The tip of the pen extends out a bit more from the end of the barrel, and the silver metal casing around the barrel makes a nice counterpoint to the plastic. Nicely designed and a good working ballpen if you need one for your every day work. At $1.25 it's less than many of the gel inks but more than your standard BIC pens.

Pilot Hi-Tec-C 05 in Elegance Pink

If you've ever seen Top Gear on BBC America you basically know the theme: 3 middle-aged men talking and test-driving cars. On the Top Gear special where the three lads drive the length of Vietnam in 8 days, their transportation was motorbikes which left one of them in a week-long foul mood. So he played a number of pranks on his two companions, one involving crushing a camo-colored bike helmet and then offering a replacement-in shiny, sparkly pink--all the while explaining that color was purely a cultural phenomenon and in Vietnam pink was the color of a warrior. Snicker, wink, snicker..

No matter how much we may object, pink is for girls and always will be whether it's lipstick or gel ink pens. But if you want a pink that isn't your usual pale, frail, pink then what to do? Well, check out Pilot Hi-Tec-C, where you'll find the 05 gel ink pen in Elegance Pink from the the Cosmetic Colors (!) line. It's a very dark pink, not necessarily hot pink but definitely a strong color that might have a touch of blue in it.

Like all the Hi-Tec gel ink pens, this one writes smoothly, while the 05mm is my favorite line width. Looking at the color next to the Hi-Tec Strawberry, the Elegance Pink definitely looks dark with a blue tinge to it. The Muji Plum in the accompanying pic looks pale and a tad washed out next to these two strong colors. So Elegance Pink is a perfect dark pink that doesn't yell out to the world "I still dot my i's with tiny hearts."

Pilot Hi-Tec-05 with Strawberry Ink

Pilot never ceases to amaze with their many Hi-Tec variations: Hi-Tec, Hi-Tec-C, Hi-Tec-C-Cavalier, and this one that I've been doodling with: the Hi-Tec-05. It's a .05mm tip, which I like a lot (nice wide line) but the Strawberry ink is what makes it fun. Not as red as a real strawberry, more like cherry pink, but the ink in the barrel and the colored plastic ends means this pen will never get lost on my desk. And now that I think about it, the pen is much less likely to be "borrowed" and casually left on the colleague's desk. A conspicuous pen is hard to walk away with, much less use in front of a grieving, de-penned co-worker.


There's one thing I did notice right away, large the needle point tip and ball are on this .05mm tip. The pic up top isn't very clear, but you can see the 05 compared to my Hi-Tec-C in Usuzumi (light grey ink), which is .04mm. The 05 is noticeably bigger, and there's a sturdiness to the point that I find lacking in the Usuzumi. But YMMV, and it's really the colors that make these fun.

Pilot Hi-Tec-C Cavalier Pen

I love Pilot's Hi-Tec-C gel ink pens, so when I saw this Cavalier at Kinokuniya I decided to add it to my collection. It's a very slim, elegant pen with a metal body, gold accents like the clip and ends, and this is an unusual teal lacquer that looks good.

I wasn't too happy with the 0.4mm needle tip, however. The ink didn't flow very well, the line was way to thin to be readable, and many times the pen just stopped writing. Kind of like the plastic Hi-Tec-C pens, but more expensive. So I went looking for a new refill, and found the Pilot G2 rollerball with a 0.7mm line that looks great. I love the G2 pens, so I've got plenty of refills available for a quick change. If you want something a little more professional-looking in a Hi-Tec-C, this is it.

Pilot Hi-Tec C Gel Ink Pen in Kurikawa

I've gotten to like these Pilot Hi-Tec C gel ink pens, even with the needle point (as long as it is a 0.5mm). I still hold the pen too lightly, as I'm afraid I'll bust the tip but eventually my hand signals my brain that I can grip more tightly and the muscles tighten up. Which makes the line darker and more noticeable.

This Hi-Tec-C is another one of the Yuwargi colors, Kurikawa or Chestnut Bark Brown. It's definitely not an ordinary brown, but softer and I'd say a touch lighter. A bit darker than milk chocolate, with perhaps a dash of red in it (but not too much to be seen clearly).

A great color, and if you're collecting gel ink pens in different colors try this one out. As ususal, Doane Paper is the test pulp.

Pilot Hi-Tec-C Gel Ink Pen in Usuzumi

One of the Pilot Hi-Tec-C gel ink pens that just arrived at Kinokuniya is from the Yawaragi Colors collection, a light gray ink called Usuzumi. I saw this a few weeks ago and was really taken with it, so much that I kept trying to remember if I'd seen it before and passed it by or just never noticed (that's the problem with gray things, you never notice them). But this was in the pen section marked "new colors" so I decided to check it out along with a few more that I'll test drive in the next week or so.

I find this gray gel ink pen, with a 0.4mm tip, to be quite delightful. It meets a need I've had that's a bit absurd but there nonetheless: I want a pen that writes like a pencil, or vice versa. Something with ink the color and look of graphite, but won't smear like a pencil does. The Usuzumi really fits that criteria quite well. The line is just the width of a nicely-sharpened pencil, the gray ink doesn't get lost even when competing with Doane's grid+lines scheme, and I can read it from a foot or so away so the ink is not too pale. The only drawback is that to my eyes there seems to be a hint of green in the gray. Your mileage may vary.

If you're looking for a gray gel ink needle point pen to add to your collection definitely try this one. I love the double takes from my colleagues, who should be used to my penchant for crazy-colored inks by now.

Pilot FriXion Erasable Gel Ink Pen

I've looked at the Pilot FriXion erasable pens at JetPens for some time, but hadn't thought about buying any until I came across them at a fairly new book store in New York Ctiy, BOOK-OFF. A Japanese corporation that's been moving into the US market, BOOK-OFF opened in April on W. 45th Street near 6th Avenue, just a short walk from Art Brown International Pen Shop.

On my way home from Art Brown over the weekend I decided to see what BOOK-OFF was all about: $1, $2, and half-price books, DVDs, CDs and more. The "more" turned out to be Japanse pens, including the Pilot FriXion and Kokuyo Beetle Tip markers. (There was a Dr. Grip in pink, but I wasn't in a Sailor Moon mood and passed.) As everything was half-price although limited (blue pens and green and pink markers only), I stocked up on pens, along with Hans Holzer's Ghosts I"ve Met (wonderful just to take in the vastness of Holzer's ego, forget about the ghosts) and Jacob Burkhardt's The Civiliation of the Renaissance in Italy, and went on my way.

The Pilot Frixion uses friction to erase the gel ink, the eraser at the end of the pen being the secret to erasing the thermo ink. The bought a dark blue 0.7m and a light blue 0.5m to try out, and find I like the darker blue ink and wider line of the 0.7m. The pen doesn't write at first, but skips for a few words until the ink starts flowing smoothly. But it does definitely erase every bit of gel ink, although re-writing over the erased area is a tad difficutl. The ink doesn't seem to want to lay down over the erasure, but with the other choice being an ugly cross-out this is fine. I tried them out on my Rhodia No. 19 dotPad, and have to say the lighter blue really got lost on this paper.

If you happen to be in NYC and near W. 45th and 6th Avenue (or I should say Avenue of the Americas), check out BOOK-OFF for the books and the pens. The latter is easy to find, they're right at the check out counter, where you'll be in everyone's way as you sort through the cart. Pensters won't be deterred by that, and the counter staff are very friendly and understanding.

Pilot G-Knock Retractable Gel Ink Pen

The Pilot G-Knock retractable gel ink pen is among the new environmentally-friendly office products now on the market. This particular pen is 81% recycled, and is refillable with Pilot G-2 refills. I first got one of these a year or so ago at a vendor fair, and then ordered a box from our office supplier. It's a smooth glider, no problems with skipping at all. The 0.7mm tip is a good size for writing, but depending on the angle of the pen you can make the line thinner or thicker. I love the clear and black plastic barrel of the pen, as the black ink refill has orange shading to it that makes me think of Halloween, black cats, and pumpkins. This is another great Pilot gel ink to try out.

Pilot EasyTouch mini pen

Miniature pens can be a disappointment, as the smaller parts seem to be less durable or less well-designed than their larger cousins. But the Pilot EasyTouch mini pen is solid and reliable as any of it's regularly-sized mates. This ballpoint, with a medium point, does glide over the paper and doesn't leave ink smears and splotches. In the pic above the mini (4.5 inches) is compared to a Pilot G2. The mini's large rubber grip is almost as big as the clear barrel, and the clip is thick and substantial. A nice little pen for the purse or pocket.

Pilot Decimo Capless Fountain Pen

Capless, or Vanishing Point, fountain pens are an interesting cross breeding of ball point and fountain pen. You have the feel of the ballpoint when you push the plunger down and start writing--with a fountain pen nib.

I was looking around for a vanishing point and came across a very good deal at the Fountain Pen Network, a pink fine point with an 18k rhodium coated nib, a Con-50 converter and a cartridge cap included. Loved the color, the fine point nib, and the whole idea of a retractable fountain pen, so very shortly the pink one arrived in the mail.

It's a lot of fun, pulling out this rose pink ballpoint (very muted color with a soft shine) and then pushing down a fountain pen point. I've gotten a few looks, mostly trying to figure out just what kind of pen I was using.

The Decimo is a lighter version of the Pilot Capless, and a very thorough review of the two can be found at at the Fountain Pen Network. For me, it's an interesting pen that combines a fountain pen point with a ballpoint body and system. It's also a very nice writing instrument and keeping to the Pilot standard I've really come to expect. Definitely a nice addition to my fountain pen collection.

Pilot Custom 74 Clear Demonstrator

Being a Pilot Namiki fan I thought I'd review The Pilot Custom 74 from my collection, an interesting fountain pen. The Custom 74 has a clear demonstrator barrel and the nib is solid 14K gold with rhodium plating. The tassie (the cup shaped bezel at the end of the barrel), grip and cap are in a contrasting smoke grey resin. The appointments--the clip and trim--are plated in rhodium. The pen can be filled using a converter or ink cartridges, in this case I'm using the onverter and have filled the pen, which has a fine nib, with Noodler's Old Dutch Colony Sepia exclusive to th4e Fountain Pen Hospital.

Here's why I find it interesting. Various write-ups mention it's flexible nib, which puts me in mind of the Falcon and Falcon II. But my Custom 74 doesn't flex, it's as hard as a nail. Not only that, it feels scratchy when I write, like a tooth diggining into the paper. I don't know if I've got the bummer of the batch or what, but I'm definitely going to have the nib tamed down. Perhaps into a fine cursive italic, as I've gotten to like my Rotring 900 CI quite alot.

Other things of note: it's a lightweight pen, medium-sized, and the smokey grey cap is still clear enough to see ink drops from the nib. I haven't noticed any ink creep on the nib, and other than the scratchiness the Custom 74 writes wonderfully well. The piston converter can be a royal pain but with time and practice you get used to it.

I'm not sure this is a great pen, but it's definitely a good one to add to your collection. Especially if you love clear demonstrators, as I do.

Pilot Hi-Tec 0.5m (not the Hi-Tec-C)

A few weeks ago I tried out some needle point Zebra Sarasa Stick Pens. While I liked the point, I didn't like the tiny 0.3m line. Looking through my pens the other day I found what I thought was a Pilot Hi-Tec-C 0.5m that I had bought but never taken out of the cellophane wrapper, a violet to go with the blue black one I really like. I unwrapped it and absently started to write a note, only to stop short and take a really good look at the pen. That's when I discovered it's a Pilot Hi-Tec, not a Hi-Tec-C; it has a needle point and a 0.5m tip and writes like a dream!

I bought the pen at Kinokuniya a few months back, but figured the violet was just like the blue black so I didn't use it right away. This is everything I wanted in the Zebra Sarasa 0.3m but didn't find--a wider line and smoother writing. I like the way the needle point looks when it's scrolling across the Doane Paper; the grip is comfortable but not padded in any way. I'm definitely going to purchase a few more of these in different colors, starting with my favorite blue black color.

Pilot Bravo Marker

I was sitting at a colleague's desk writing a note to her when I stopped to notice the pen I had chosen, a Pilot Bravo blue marker. This non-refillable pen reminds me of the Preppy Sign felt tip marker--it has the same type of barrel and wide tip marker that leaves a thick, wet line. The Bravo itself is nicely designed and has two clear panels on the barrel so the ink supply is visible. According to the company, the marker won't dry out if left uncapped, and the ink won't bleed through paper like other marker pens. Perhaps, although I found that it did leave a serious shadow on lesser quality paper, not that I'd use this for double sided writing. Not my first choice of a marker if a Sharpie is around, but a good pen all in all. The blue color itself is a deep, rich hue, not your standard blue but something with more shading to it to make it interesting. I'll probably give this a try on some Rhodia pads, although I'm hesitant to borrow the Bravo as it may never make it back to my co-worker's desk.