(This is a guest post by Brian Gushikawa)
Zebra is best known for their Steel series of pens and pencils, but they also make a full line of gel and ballpoint pens. This pen is an entry into their rollerball line and directly competes with offerings from Pilot and Mitsubishi/Uniball. The Regal Liquid Ink NR5 is a needle point rollerball with a large ink reservoir and a good feel to it. It's a disposable way to carry around a good daily writer that won't let down its user.
Smoothness: Wonderful! Feels like a fountain pen! This pen doesn't suffer from the scratchiness that most fine point pens do.
Grip and Balance: The front section is ridged plastic which offers tactile feedback, but isn't soft elastomer like some other grips. The balance when posted is average and adequate.
Ink Flow: A standard finned flow regulator with (most likely) a fiber core flow controller provides a consistent flow with no skips or blotches.
Build Quality: Very good! Surprising, considering the disposable nature of this pen. The heft is good and the pen feels a little bit better than a Pilot Precise V5.
Capacity: The entire back of the pen is an ink tank, so there's a LOT of ink there!!
Clip: Very strong metal clip attached to a plastic cap. It's not as durable as a fountain pen clip, but it's fine for everyday use.
Post: The friction-fitted cap posts well and doesn't rattle.
Overall: You'd be hard pressed to find a nicer rollerball at the price point than the NR5. The needle tip allows for precision writing and the ink is a nice, dark shade of black. I'd say that this pen is a definite recommend as a backup for a fountain pen.
