Posts filed under Pentel

Pentel Calme 2 Color 0.5 mm Multi Pen and Pencil Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

If the eight-year-old version of me knew how many different types of great multi-pens would exist in the near future, I'm not sure I would have believed you. At the time, the only multi-pen I was aware of was the standard Bic 4-Color. It was great when it was the only one in my realm of awareness, but today is a totally different story. There are almost too many multi-pens to choose from, and so many of them are really good. The latest multi-pen to find its way to my desk is the Pentel Calme.

The Calme comes in a few different versions and colors, but this one is a black body that includes a black and red 0.5mm ballpoint cartridge, as well as a 0.5mm mechanical pencil component. Until using this pen, I hadn't tried Pentel's hybrid ballpoint ink formula, which they call Vicuña. Similar to Jetstreams and Acroballs, the ink is smooth, consistent, and creates sharp lines when writing.

When it comes to multi-pens on the cheaper end of the spectrum, it's been my experience that they are typically a bit chunky and have a larger diameter barrel. With the Calme, it's actually a good deal smaller in diameter than its direct competitors, like the Jetstream or Acroball 3-component options in the same price range. I don't mind the larger diameter, but I'm sure this can be a downside for some people. The Calme's diameter is closer to a normal pen that you'll find on the office supply shelf. This smaller diameter gives the pen a familiar feel in the hand and makes it easier to handle.

Along with the smaller diameter, the long grip section is made of a soft, textured material that feels great. The texture is easy to feel and provides loads of grip, and the slightly cushioned feel is really comfortable. I doubt this material will stand up to a lot of abuse, but it should do fine for normal use and conditions.

Extending and retracting the refills uses the same mechanism as other multi-pens in this price range. There are a couple of color-coded tabs at the top of the barrel for extending the ballpoint refills, and the clip doubles as the mechanical pencil control. Simply depress one of the inactive tabs to retract the current refill into the pen. The extending/retracting feel on this pen is solid, and I haven't had any issues using it.

As an added bonus (or detriment), this pen does not include a tiny eraser, so you'll need to remember to pack a real eraser if that's something you might need. In my experience, the tiny erasers are pretty useless and only serve to frustrate me, so I won't miss it on this pen!

At $6.75, the Pentel Calme is a great deal and a worthy competitor to the Uni Jetstream, Pilot Acroball, and the like. You can get a 3-color ballpoint version for a little cheaper if you don't want or need the mechanical pencil component. Depending on the barrel color and component options, you can choose from 0.5mm or 0.7mm refills that are included with the pen. And of course, there are gobs of replacement refills that will fit this pen, so your choices are vast in terms of outfitting this pen with the perfect combo of inks.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Posted on April 24, 2024 by Jeff Abbott and filed under Pentel, Multi Pen, Pen Reviews.

Pentel Floatune Rollerball Pen Review

The Pentel Floatune is a recent pen release that has found its way on to big box retail store shelves. This category is always of great interest to me because one, they are widely available, and two, I want to know what is different about it. This is not an area where we see many new entrants - or at least new entrants that stick around for years at a time - so what is this pen all about?

For starters, the name. According to Pentel, the Floatune “enables your ideas to float down the stream of imagination.” This is due to the “synergy of a new water based ink infused with an oil-based lubricant and a finely tuned pen tip mechanism provides a smooth, floating-like writing experience.” Staying on theme, Pentel would like you to know that it also “floats across the page without skipping (unlike some pens,)” even on papers that matter most, such as “Greeting Cards, Receipts, Journals.”

Ok Pentel Marketing Department, you earned your keep this month!

Joking aside, this is information I want to see. Tell me what is different about your product, and why I should consider purchasing it. With the Floatune, the idea is that you will get smooth, wide, rich, skip-free lines on the page, and will look good doing it.

The key to Pentel’s marketing is the oil-infused water-based ink, and in my early testing, it is great. The best feature so far is the skip-free aspect of the line. It is solid, almost marker like, and yes, it floats - glides smoothly - across the page. The color is nice, and, oddly enough, feels like one of the most fountain pen adjacent standard inks I have used.

*Top to bottom: Pentel Floatune 0.8 mm, Ajoto Pen with Schmidt P8127 0.7 mm, Lamy Safari Extra Fine Nib, Pilot Precise V5 0.5 mm, Uni-ball Vision Ultra MIcro 0.38 mm.*

I did some comparisons with other water-based ink pens I use frequently, including my favorite Schmidt P8127 rollerball refill, and the Floatune held its own. By measurements, its 0.8 mm tip size is the widest I used, and I think even that sells it short. It is closer to a 1.0 mm line width on the page, or at least feels like that when writing. I would love to see the Floatune in 0.5 mm, similar to how Uni-ball brought their Vision rollerball all the way down to the Ultra Micro 0.38 mm size.

*If the Pentel Sign Pen had a metal tip.*

*I used the Studio Neat Keepbook for testing because it is an absorbent page. Only the fountain pen ink bled through. The Floatune (top,) showed no feathering or bleeding.*

But that’s just me, a proponent of fine lines. The Floatune may not be made for me, but it is a great choice if this is a category of pen you like.

The one hangup I have with the Floatune ties directly back to my friends at the Pentel Marketing department. This pen is made with “62% post-consumer recycled material,” but guess what? It is not refillable. Do not tell me your environmental bonafides when I have to throw away a complete $3 pen once I run out of ink. And you will run out of ink quickly at this level of ink output on the page.

*Good stuff on the back of the page - no issues.*

I think the Pentel Floatune is a good pen as long as it fits your needs going into the purchase. Lots of large-sized writing and notes? Perfect. Fine details? Not so much. I bought mine at JetPens, where they are $3 per pen, of $5.75 for a two-pack, in Blue, Black, or Red ink, and in 0.8 mm or 1.0 mm tip sizes.

Time will tell if this will be a new flagship pen for Pentel. My gut says no, especially when they have the comparable - and comparably better - Pentel Energy in their own lineup, but let’s check back in a couple of years and see where the Floatune is.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Posted on March 4, 2024 by Brad Dowdy and filed under Pentel, Floatune, Rollerball, Pen Reviews.

Pentel Energel RTX 0.7 mm Lilac Gel Ink Pen Review

Lilac is my wife’s fourth favorite Pentel Energel RTX color.

How do I know this? She told me yesterday, when sharing that she was out of her favorites.

On Mother’s Day.

R.I.P., Mr. Pen Addict.

I should have been more prepared. But hey, if I was, I wouldn’t have this article to write, late on Sunday night.

We had a great weekend. We were at a Pickleball tournament all day Saturday (duh,) and Sunday, I spent all day with her, the kids, and our respective moms, both of whom live nearby. I usually sneak in a few hours of work during the weekend, finalizing whatever review post I’m planning on for Monday. But I was still running behind this weekend, with the Chicago Pen Show and Grand Jury Duty still in the rear-view mirror. And, I was having too much fun otherwise.

Around 7 p.m. Sunday night I told her I needed to work for a bit, at least settle on a topic for Monday - even if I finish in the morning. She said “Why don’t you write about my favorite pen?” Dang, she is a smart one.

I already knew what the pen was, the aforementioned Pentel Energel RTX. So I said, “Great idea! Grab me your favorite color and I’ll write it up.”

She couldn’t find Navy Blue.

She couldn’t find Turquoise.

She couldn’t find Violet.

With every miss, my guilt increased.

She finally settled on Lilac, which she told me was her second favorite purple, and still one she liked a lot. So, Lilac it is!

Any Pentel EnerGel is easy to review. I already love them, and they are my favorite gel ink pen to recommend for most users looking for a high-quality 0.7 mm gel ink line, and a wide variety of colors. Is this pen my favorite gel ink pen? No, that honor goes to the Uni-ball Signo UM-151, which I can get in my favorite 0.38 mm tip size, and the same variety of ink colors.

Most people aren’t me, “fortunately,” my wife would interject, and the Pentel EnerGel is the best of the rest for the wider audience.

She has used this pen for years, putting them through the wringer at her job on a daily basis. Not once has she had a bad word to say about it. The refill writes smoothly and consistently, the barrel is sturdy, the knock never fails, the clip always works, and so on. The only complaint is that she can’t keep people from stealing them.

Maybe that is the next frontier for pens - in-barrel tracking devices to reclaim your favorite from grabby hands. (Cross tried, but it didn’t stick.)

When I use one of her EnerGels around the house - mainly for grocery lists, or on sticky notes on her desk - I always enjoy them. They are a real treat to use, and the ink colors are fun. Pentel has made other options that are close to making my every day rotation, like the Euro or Clena, but never the perfect one to land in that rare S-tier air. They are A-tier all day long, which is a pretty great place to be.

Myself, I’m not in as good of a place. I’m in the doghouse until I get her pens ordered, and delivered. Time to make that happen!

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