I need a suggestion for a rollerball.....

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Jerry944t

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Jan 23, 2014
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Newtown Square, PA
I prefer rollerball pens but they all seem huge or they have an end to post. I'd like to find a twist rollerball but they don't exist or I can't find them. Must be a reason.

A click will do in a pinch but I'd like it more "dainty' so I can give/sell to both men or women.

Decent quality and moderate price would be helpful. Not quite making heirlooms yet :)

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Jerry
 
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"Twist" and "click" are terms applied to ballpoints. But you say you want a rollerball.

IF you MEAN rollerball, the baron-sedona is about the smallest body you will find. Happy to give more info, if we are "on the same page"!!
 
Here's another thought. There are quite a few different types of refills available now, so I believe it would be possible to find a ballpoint style you prefer, then get a refill that more resembles a rollerball. I am not an expert on this, but Ed (who posted above me) would be able to give you the details on what's available.
 
Thanks Ed. Yes I mean Rollerball and not ballpoint. I can't seem to find any twist or clicks in rollerball. There must be a reason for this ??
 
Rollerballs get covered. People have made custom clicks but you won't find a kit for a rollerball that doesn't have a cap. It doesn't exist. That I've seen anyway.
 
Dan Masshardt said:
Rollerballs are pressure sensitive and have the possibility of drying out as well.

That's why they are capped.
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That about says it all. And as far as kits go, the Jr gent 1, or also called the Jr gent apprentice is the same size as a baron, sedona, orion, and I think the rhinehart. There might be a few others, but that's all I can think of. And they are all capped. As Dan said, a few people have made custom click pens using a rollerblading refill. And as long as they don't dry out, they could be a good option. And that should be an easy kit less pen, if you could call any of the easy.
 
All of the information you have received is Correct, but our industry is "dated".

You CAN now find rollerball refills that claim not to "dry out" even if left uncapped. So, in theory, you could create a rollerball that retracts!

But, so far as I know, there are no kits made yet.
 
One idea could be to use the Parker style EZflow 9000 refill which writes very close to most roller balls and better then some. It will fit all component sets that use a Parker style refill and there are a few vendors here that sell them, I know of a least one:rolleyes::biggrin:.
 
OKLAHOMAN said:
One idea could be to use the Parker style EZflow 9000 refill which writes very close to most roller balls and better then some. It will fit all component sets that use a Parker style refill and there are a few vendors here that sell them, I know of a least one:rolleyes::biggrin:.
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I've actually found you can do better than the ezflows, but you will be paying more.
 
What happened to the Super Bowl refills? I liked them a little better than the EZflow but had some that "ran out of ink" very quickly ... Was there a problem? I haven't seen them available for awhile.

On the topic of rollerballs, while not a thin pen by any means, the Zen has been a very popular pen for me.
 
If someone is not a pen enthusiast they probably wouldn't notice a big difference between the 9000 easy flow Parker style and a rollerball.

For somewhat smaller profiles I like the magnetic vertex which has a magnetic cap - very convenient.

Also underrated is the new series screw cap rollerball. Very thin - the thinnest rollerball I've seen probably. The only fiendish I've seen is the metal on metal threads unscrew easily.
 
Lenny said:
What happened to the Super Bowl refills? I liked them a little better than the EZflow but had some that "ran out of ink" very quickly ... Was there a problem? I haven't seen them available for awhile.

On the topic of rollerballs, while not a thin pen by any means, the Zen has been a very popular pen for me.
Click to expand...

Schmidt discontinued the SuperBowl 8900 about 2 years ago, that was a roller ball ink in a Parker style refill. The problem was that the ink was drying out prematurely; any SuperBowls out there now would be a hit or miss in working properly. With the success of the easyFLOW 9000, they decided to drop it entirely.

There are a few people out there that have made click/twist action roller balls, using the 888/5888 refill, the one main problem is that they are long, too long to fit in a pocket. I have received several emails about this, even a company that hired an engineer to design one. The P812X series would be more of a proper length for a mechanism actuated roller ball, but these are not a "capless" refill, the opening at the nose cone would have to be sealed similar to the Pilot Vanishing Point fountain pen.
 
SMJ1957 said:
Joe S. said:
I've actually found you can do better than the ezflows, but you will be paying more.
Click to expand...

Care to share what you feel is better? Might be worth the extra price for higher end pens.
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MonteVerde SoftRoll. It's $7 at staples and is made to fit montblanc ballpoints. They will fit in most (I'm not %100 sure if it fits all) parker style pens if you flip the spring around backwards.
 
Pilot G2 refills fit rollerball pens. Do rollerball refills fit G2 pens? If I weren't at work, I would try it out. I think someone was working on a click mechanism that uses G2 refills. I don't know how far that got, though. If rollerball/G2 refills are totally interchangeable, that might be an option.
 
ChrisN said:
Pilot G2 refills fit rollerball pens. Do rollerball refills fit G2 pens? If I weren't at work, I would try it out. I think someone was working on a click mechanism that uses G2 refills. I don't know how far that got, though. If rollerball/G2 refills are totally interchangeable, that might be an option.
Click to expand...

They are interchangeable.
 
I just happen to be sitting here at work with a Vertex click pen, a roller ball Jr and a Pilot G2 clicker..

The Pilot G2 refill will fit up into the click mechanism of the Vertex and function..
The Schmidt 5888 end is a tiny bit bigger and won't fit.

The G2 and 5888 nib fits the nib end of the vertex without issue. The spring is very close to binding when the nib is extended but it will extend the correct distance without binding.

All you should have to do is make a long barrel Vertex. Get some 3/8 brass tube from the hobby store.. cut it longer than the stock tube to compensate for the extra roller ball length.

I don't have any measuring tools here so I can't say exactly how long. You will need to check the difference for yourself.

Now then.. If you are not adingst modding the refill you can easily cut then end down on a Pilot G-2 . Its just a plastic tube with a removable end cap. It's easy to shorten it and stick in a standard twist or click pen as long as it'll fit in the transmission.. Even then though the spring is tight and it does not have a good feel when clicking.. kinda crunchy because the vertex spring is close to binding but swapping in the G-2 click pen spring gives it a nice feel.

I've cut down a Schmidt uni-gel refill for a twist pen before but I didn't like how the uni-gel writes so I went back to the normal refill.
I just tried it on the Vertex but the Schmidt is to fat to fit in the click transmission.
 
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Any style pen that will take a Parker style refill can mimic a rollerball with the right refill. Someone earlier mentioned Monteverde refills and I've used them. My preference is for the Visconti gel ballpoint refills. They come in various widths (my preference is for the 1.0 mm, which lays down a broad, wet line). You cannot tell the difference between the ink line laid down with a rollerball versus the Visconti. Colorado Pens carries the widest selection of Visconti refills that I've seen, the prices are fair and the service is great.
 
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