The Well-Appointed Desk

Previously, I purchased two colors of the Pilot Juice in 0.5 — originally the only tip size it was available in but now its possible to get the Juice pens in my preferred 0.38 size.

With the option of 24 gel colors in a retractable pen with a comfortable silicone grip and a spring-loaded clip to handle any notebook, I had to try more of these pens. I get practically giddy when I see colors like “dark red”, “coral red” and “coffee brown”.

In my writing samples, I was able to compare the feel of the 0.38 tip size to my previously acquired 0.5. The 0.5 is definitely silkier on the page than the pointier 0.38 and when used interchangeably, you might notice the difference. When just using the 0.38 though, its still an excellent fine line gel pen.

I purchased only ten colors, just to see how I liked them but I have a feeling I might have to acquire a complete set. Of the ten I purchased, I have a duplicate of the Leaf Green — one in the 0.38 and one in the wider 0.5 and the color is slightly different looking. The wider 0.5 width lays down more ink making the color appear a little darker and is much more usable than the 0.38. The Sky Blue was just about the same color as the lines on most lined paper making it a little too light for everyday use unless you use dot grid or blank paper. The Gray is also a bit lighter than I anticipated but I do like the cool grey color. The pen labelled “Green” is more of a blue-green which I quite like once I got past my expectation that it would be Kelly Green. The Grape was a bit pinkier purple than I had hoped. The Dark Red, Blue Black, Coffee Brown and Turquoise Green were all big winners with me. The colors were all rich and complex and pleasing to see on the page.

The Pilot Juice 0.38 is available in 24 colors and the 0.5 offer the same 24 colors plus 6 pastel colors that perform best on dark paper stocks. Each pen is $1.65.

There is a lot of similarity between the design of the Pilot Juice and the Zebra Sarasa Clip pens ($2.20 each). I even purchased them in essentially the same colors. They both have large, spring-loaded clips to attach easily to notebooks or binders and both have a silicone grip area. The grey colors are slightly different between the two models: the Sarasa is more of a warm grey and the Pilot is more of a cool grey. As for the two shades of lime green, the Pilot Juice Apple Green is so light its unusable whereas the Sarasa green is one of my go-to green gel pens. Luckily, the Leaf Green color is more useful — a true green with a little less saturation than most.

I don’t think I’ll abandon the Zebra Sarasa Clip pens for the Pilot Juice but I do like that the colors are a little different. I may pick and choose between the two lines for my favorite hues. The Pilot Juice are a little less expensive per pen so if you have not tried either brand, the Juice are definitely the better bargain.

(This pen was tested on the Miquelrius medium flexible 300 grid paper book purchased from B+N.)

You know you are a pen nerd when you hear that there’s a new design to a favorite pen and feel inclined to do a side-by-side comparison. If you’re still with me, shall I begin?

One of my favorite gel pen lines is the Uni-Ball Signo DX/RT line. When I first got into the Japanese gel pens, Uni-Ball was the first to include the silicone grip area on otherwise stripped-down and simple writing tools. Combine the soft grip with awesome fine-line gel performance and there wasn’t much I didn’t like about the Signo DX/RT line. So, I did get a little nervous when I heard they were updating the pen design. I didn’t really think there was anything that needed improving upon but I guess I didn’t give the matter as thorough a going-over as the folks at Uni-Ball. The new version is called the Signo RT1.

The previous design of the Signo RT featured a clear, plastic body with the retractable clicker, clip and silicone grip area all in a color to indicate the ink color. The new design features a transparent-colored plastic body to match the ink color. The clicker and clip are now one unit in opaque plastic to match the ink color. The silicone grip area has been lengthened all the way to the tip of the pen which hides the spring mechanism giving the pen a cleaner look.

The black versions of the RT1 are all opaque black — the grip, the body and the clip. There are black versions with a solid contrasting-colored plastic body as well.

When writing, the feel of the pen on paper was an identical experience. I did notice that, with the new RT1, the clicker and clip slide freely when the pen tip is in use. So whenever I set the pen down or twiddled it in my hands, the clip/clicker would slide out making noise and generally changing the weighting of the pen. That is really a bit bothersome.

The one distinctive difference I noticed was that the new RT1 inks seem a little bolder, a little broader. I tested both 0.38s, and the new RT1 seemed a little broader. I also tested the 0.28 RT1 and it seemed more comparable to the previous model 0.38 in terms of line width. Crazy. Has anyone else experienced this?

The bottom line? My opinion at this point is a bit of a draw. The new RT1 is less expensive and more visually unified in appearance. However, the line widths seem wider and the loose clip/clicker is a little annoying. The original RT has a finer point and more solid feel.

The Uni-Ball Signo RT UM-138 pens sell for $1.65 while the new Signo RT1 UM-155 sell for $2.50. If you love the original design, I recommend stocking up now as I suspect they will be discontinued.

I wanted to have a set of pens I could keep at work rather than to transport my pens back and forth so when I saw that there was a new series of the Pilot Hi-Tec C series called Maica, I decided I had my excuse so I bought all 12 colors.

Instead of the traditional clear plastic body with a hexagonal shape, the Maica series have a metallic-colored, round, plastic body. At the end of the cap is a blingy, plastic jewel. There is also a small loop on the cap which keeps the pen from rolling away though I suspect its purpose is to hold cell phone charms to really “jazz up” your pen. The caps can be posted onto the end of the pen but it does make them quite long for me. I tend to just lay the cap on the table.

The Maica colors are pretty similar to the Hi Tec C “basic colors” set. The colors available from the Maica line are: Black, Blue Black, Blue, Light Blue (more of a turquoise), Green, Apricot Orange (a yellow-orange), Orange, Brown, Baby Pink, Pink (more magenta), Red, and Violet. The standard Hi-Tec Cs do come in a lot of other colors and a wider range of tip sizes but if you haven’t tried any Hi-Tec Cs yet or are just wanting some good standards, the Maica line offers a good assortment.

The tip of the Maica pens and the metal cap around the tip are exactly the same as a standard Hi-Tec C pen. I disassembled both the Hi-Tec C and the Maica to discover that the ink cartridges were also identical.

What I’m finding surprising is that the price is different. A single Hi-Tec C in the standard plastic body sells for $3.30 while the same Maica is $2.50. Curious. At present, the only refills available for the Hi-Tec C line are black, blue or red but the refills will fit into the Maica body.

In writing, the performance was consistent with the standard Hi-Tec C line. Occasionally, if left sitting for awhile, all the Hi-Tec C pens so need a little “priming” to get going but once they do, they write smoothly and consistently. I tuck a 3×5 inside my notebooks for those occasions when I need to scribble a pen back to life. These are definitely going to make note-taking during meetings more colorful and blingy.

(available through JetPens in sets of 12, sets of 6 or individually in either 0.3 or 0.4 sizes)