Pens 101: The Rise of the Rollerball Pen
Intro
Before we start, be sure to catch up with Part I and Part II of this blog series!
The first time that I wrote with a rollerball pen, I instantly fell in love. This was back in the 90s when I was in middle school and I was looking for a pen for my homework when my brother handed me his Pilot Precise V5 and I marveled at how much smoother it wrote than my ballpoint pens. The feeling was magical, and I spent the next half hour just doodling and writing with it, enjoying the smoothness of it all. I asked my mom to buy me a pack of Pilot Precise V5s after that and they became my go-to pens for a long time after that.
They were my gateway pens to the fountain pen world, and with good reason. These pens were invented to address the scratchiness of ballpoint pens and to take the best parts of a fountain pen and put them in the same ball-and-socket mechanism that the ballpoint pen had pioneered. The result was a pen that wrote like a fountain pen in a cheaper and more accessible form.
Of course, there had to be tradeoffs to the smooth, bold lines and the low pressure writing: the water-based ink used by rollerball pens took longer to dry, the inks were easily washed out, the inks emptied out faster than in a ballpoint pen, and the ink could bleed through on certain papers.
But for some, including myself, the pros outweighed the cons, which helped rollerball pens become as popular as they are today. While the ballpoint pen is a great option for those that want a durable and dependable writing instrument that can do it all without having to worry about losing it, the rollerball is for people that enjoy a more high-quality writing experience.
A Brief History of the Rollerball
After ballpoint pens became mainstream across the world in the 1950s and 60s, Japanese company Ohto developed an alternative writing instrument in 1963, called the rollerball pen, that allowed for a smoother writing experience that had more vibrant ink than a ballpoint pen. The pen used the same ball-and-socket mechanism as a ballpoint pen, but advances in engineering allowed the mechanism to be built more precisely so that it could handle water-based inks. The lower viscosity of water-based inks compared to the viscous oil-based inks in ballpoint pens, allowed for smoother, and more vibrant writing.
Pilot and Mitsubishi came out with their own rollerball pens in the 70s with the Pilot Hi-Tecpoint (Precise V5) and the Uni-ball and continued to innovate in the rollerball pen space in the decades that followed.
Mass production and competition allowed for these rollerball pens to be affordable…though not as affordable as ballpoint pens. To this day, ballpoint pens are still cheaper than rollerball pens.
Defining the Rollerball Pen
As we discussed in our initial Pens 101 blog, technically, rollerball pens ARE ballpoint pens in that they use the same ball-and-socket mechanisms. However, the pen industry draws a line in the sand between these two based on the INK that they use. Pens that use oil-based inks are ballpoint pens, while pens that use water-based inks are rollerball pens. Simple enough right? Well it would be until the introduction of hybrid inks and gel inks, which we will talk about in future blogs. For now, just know that the term “rollerball pens” traditionally refers to pens that use water-based inks.
Some popular rollerball pens that you may be familiar with include: the Pilot Precise V5, the Ohto CR 02, the Ohto Fude Ball Rollerball Pen, the Lamy Safari Rollerball, and the Tombow Zoom 505.
Why Choose Rollerball Pens Over Other Pens?
To summarize, the advantages of rollerball pens are as follows:
- Smoother writing experience
- More vibrant ink
- Less pressure against paper when writing
- Greater range of ink colors compared to ballpoint pens
They make for excellent writing instruments for people that want an elevated writing experience, but it’s not all sunshine and rainbows!
Here are the disadvantages:
- Ink takes longer to dry (a nightmare for left-handed writers)
- Ink is not water-resistant
- More expensive than ballpoint pens
- Ink may bleed through certain papers
- Inks runs out more quickly than ballpoint pens
Ultimately, choosing the right pen depends on your personal preferences and needs weighed against the pros and cons for each type of pen.
Our Favorite Non-Hybrid Rollerball Pens
I love writing with rollerball pens, especially gel-based rollerball pens, but we’ll get to those in a future blog post. For traditional rollerball pens that use water-based inks, here are our favorites at the Outpost Stationery:
Joveth
- Pilot Precise V5 RT: This is the OG…well sort of. I do love the original Pilot Precise V5, but this updated RT model features a retractable tip (hence the RT) vs the original separate cap. I just like how crisp and bold it makes my writing look and how enjoyable it feels to write with. If you have never tried a rollerball pen in your life…start with this one.
- Lamy LX Rollerball: Lamy is usually known for their affordable fountain pens but they also offer rollerball options of most of their popular models, including the classy LX series (LX meaning “Luxe”). It’s just a fancier version of a Lamy AL-Star, BUT it writes really well and the grip on it feels nice.
- Ohto Fude Ball 1.5: Fude means “brush” in Japanese and this pen delivers on that with its massive 1.5mm rollerball tip that leaves an absurdly thick line that looks like a calligraphy brush. I love using this pen because I like to write big!
Santiago
I really enjoy thicker rollerball refills for my pens, they are so smooth. I try to keep Schmidt P180 refills at hand for any of my metal pens. I’ll go for 0.7 to 1mm points if I can!
Conclusion
And there you have it! Hopefully by now, you can tell the difference between ballpoint pens and rollerball pens. In future blogs, we will be deep diving into gel, hybrid, and fountain pens, so please be sure to follow us on Instagram and sign up for our newsletter to get notified about new blogs by heading to our home page, scrolling down, and signing up!
Thanks for reading!
