Over the summer break, I had some fun testing out my new Herbin transparent rollerball pen.
Figure 1: Herbin transparent rollerball pen (code C21500T)
This is what it looks like (right; Figure 1), and you can find the Herbin transparent pens on our website.
I already had a set of Herbin refill ink cartridges in a nice purple colour, so popped one of those in my new pen.
Figure 2: First try writing with my Herbin rollerball pen (with purple Poussiere de lune Herbin ink cartridge installed)
I haven’t used a refillable rollerball pen before – after trying it I was a bit disappointed as the ink didn’t seem to flow as well as I expected (Figure 2). Compared to my Pilot fountain pen, it seemed to be skipping a bit and didn’t feel as nice in the hand as it’s a bit shorter (Figure 3). Although, I have since realised it’s actually pretty nice if you pop the cap on the top….duh!
However…after a couple of weeks lying around in a pocket in my handbag, I discovered it worked really well (Figure 4)! Today, I prefer it to my Pilot fountain pen (which has Pilot fountain ink in it at the moment, by the way).
The Herbin transparent roller ball pen seems to have mixed reviews. As I haven’t actually tried another refillable rollerball, I don’t have much to compare it to. I quite like it. Being able to use it with any of the large range of ink colours provided by Herbin is really cool. It’s not every day you get to write with a purple roller ball pen AND one that you can refill.
Another nice thing is how it fits into a smallish pocket – not too heavy either. You also have the novelty value of being able to see the inner workings – good way to break the ice at a meeting or conference, perhaps?
These pens are available with converters so you can use bottles of fountain ink instead of cartridges, but I didn’t get one with my pen. They are compatible with short international standard converters, as far as I can tell, such as this: Monteverde mini fountain pen converter at JetPens. Herbin also provides one (although we cannot source it separately, so if you think you will want one, buy the pen + converter set).
Figure 3: Herbin transparent rollerball and Pilot MR fountain pen (retro pop range) shown side by side.
I haven’t found these pens to write better than a nice Pilot gel pen or Hi-Tecpoint rollerball pen (which are refillable too, by the way!) but I really enjoy being able to use colourful liquid fountain ink in them. I keep them in my bag as my go-to everyday writing pens and they make my day that little bit more fun and interesting!
That said, if you want to write on the shiny surface of a birthday card – you want a ballpoint, not a liquid ink pen – as I discovered last week 🙂
Note – Herbin transparent rollerball and fountain pens take the SHORT international standard cartridges and converters – they are NOT compatible with our Pilot ink cartridges and converters.
Figure 4: Smooth writing of the Herbin transparent rollerball pen after some time in a bag, compared to an equally neglected fountain pen from the same pocket.
