Pens that Absolutely Do NOT Leak?

S

Scott Free

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Sep 15, 1999
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I ruined a favorite shirt once with a leaking pen. On top of this, it was right before a public speaking engagement. Since then, the only pen I've carried is the Fisher bullet pen. Even if it leaks, the cap will catch it.

Admittedly, the incident mentioned above happened more than 15 years ago. I'm not sure if modern (cheap) pens leak or not. Anyone care to comment? The reason I'm looking for a cheap pen is that I've now lost two bullet pens. I'm not responsible enough to own a pen that costs more than $10. So--what cheap pens absolutely do NOT leak?

Scott
 
Depends on how exactly you define cheap. To be honest with you I can't remember when I have had a pen leak other than fountain pens. Most of the world uses ballpoints or rollerballs now, and even the cheap ones can be quite good.

Basically, any of the following are quite reliable in my experience:

Nicer stuff:
- Cross ballpoints in general. I am quite fond of the broads for those occasions when I must use a ballpoint. Twist action. Probably get you up closer to the $20-30 range.

- the NEW Parker gel ink ballpoint refills. Very smooth and bright colors. Click action. The refills will also fit into Rotrings and a many other brands. Should be able to find a couple of different models of Parkers at Walmart/Target for under $10

Cheaper stuff:

- Pilot G2/Dr Grip - gell ink, but fairly dry comparied to some. Good colors and very close to permanent, so good for check and such. If you leave the tip out they will wet your shirt, but I have never had one leak on its own. Click action.

- Sanford Gel Impacts are the favorites of all the powers-that-be here for signing checks, documents, contracts, etc. They are very wet writers; more like a fountain pen than a normal rollerball. The retractable models have a safety clip that retracts the point when you clip the pen into your pocket. They do not stand heat well though, and can dry up if left unused for a while. Capped or click action.


Cheaper still:
- Zebra tapli - again very broad point, smooth writing, a little gooey sometimes at the start of a line but never had one actually leak. Click action.

- Sanford/Papermate Liquid Expresso pens- huge tanks of liquid ink (visible so you can see how much ink you have left), 'felt' tips available in either a very fine or a rather broad point, nice writing pens with good colors of ink. Capped.

- Pilot Precise Deluxe - liquid ink, not as much capacity of the Expressos, but a little cheaper and smaller. The broad points are super slick writer. Decent range of colors. Capped.
 
Pens that Absolutely Do NOT Leak? That would be the empty pen. :D


Seriously, one of the many reasons I like the Sanford Uniball is that I've sent many of them through complete wash cycles (machine wash and tumble dry) and never had a problem. In fact, they work just fine afterwords. Just the other day I sent another one through and it was fine. I try to catch them, but I miss every now and then.
 
I often have three fountain pens in my shirt pocket and don't have problems with them, of course when in the pocket they point upward.

I recently ruined a good shirt from a cheap pen that leaked, it doesn't happen often really, it was one of those freebies from a hotel.

I have not seen Fisher pens for sale in Mexico for years, but I have seen (and bought) a pretty good clone of a Bullet that takes Parker type refills (and Fisher refills with Parker adapter of course), about $5 US.

Luis
 
You could always buy a Fisher pressurized refill and put it into a cheaper refillable pen.
 
Don Luis said:
I often have three fountain pens in my shirt pocket and don't have problems with them, of course when in the pocket they point upward.
Click to expand...
Look at the Namiki Retractable. They clip into the pocket tip up.

Most capped rollerballs will contain any leaks in the cap. The screw on ones are better at it than the snap on ones.
 
As CMD said, you can use Fisher Space Pen refils in Parker style pens. In fact, I only jsut found that out last night, after picking up some fine point refills and seeing that they come with a Parker adapter. You can get the full stainless one for like $7, space pen refills are about $5.

I cannot reccomend Foray gel ink pens. I picked up a box at Office Depot since they were cheap (12 for $10, rather than $16 for G2s) on Monday, and Wednesday night, it exploded and leaked in my pocket (the ball fell out).

BTW, please don't take that last sentence out of context.
 
Scott,

Do you fly? High altitudes make pens and their refills fail more often.

A capped pen is a step in the write (right :p ) direction. However, you have to be alert enough to catch the ink spill on your fingers before you get it on everything else. When I fly, which thankfully isn't much these days, a good zip lock bag is a requirement. Wrap the pen in a paper towel or two, encase it in the zip lock bag, and look it over good once you get to your destination.

As mentioned above, a Fisher Space Pen refill in a Parker pen or clone are probably the only combination cheap enough to fit your budget and provide a tangible increase in leak protection.
 
Hi All-

The old story goes that the Americans spent millions of dollars and countless hours developing a reliable pen that would write while being held in any direction, at varying temperatures, and in weightless conditions. It satisfied all government requirements with flying colors.

They rushed off to show scientists of the former Soviet Union their great invention. They were very proud of the technology behind this writing instrument that would allow astronauts to record important data while in space.

The Soviets snickered and simply produced a common pencil...

~ Blue Jays ~
 
The old story...

As far as I know that is an old urban legend and truth is that both Americans and Soviets were using pencils. Until Fisher spent all the money from his own pocket in the research and came up with his now famous pressurized refill.

Luis
 
How about something that is made of plastic and costs $1.25 each.....but isn't sexy?

Like what Chuck said. The Uniballs are tops!!!

The .5mm micros are the best overall pens out there, IMO.
 
I use a click type Parker pen (about $5) from Office max. I've used them for years and never had one leak. Its cheap enough to lose, writes very smoothly (I HATE writing with crappy pens), and over the years they've worked well for me.
 
komondor said:
How about something that is made of plastic and costs $1.25 each
Click to expand...

Uniballs $1.25 each? You're paying to much. I got a dozen at Staples just the other day for $5. They were on special price because the cardboard box was mangled, but the normal price for a dozen at Staples is like $7.95.


.....but isn't sexy?
Click to expand...


I like the look of my Uniballs. They're not flashy, but they don't look cheap and tacky. They look good.

The biggest problem I have with 'em is people stealing them. I'll hand someone a paper and a pen and say, "I need you to sign this..." They sign and return the paper to me... and pocket my pen! Can you believe it?
 
It also depends on what you will be writing on. If you sign a lot of carbon forms or really thin paper the space pen or parker would be the way to go. If it's mostly writing on nicer papers then any of them would be fine.
Liquid based pens with narrow points tend to cut carbonless forms when used with enough pressure to duplicate all the way through. They can also spread along the fibers in cheaper papers.

N2
 
Chuck,

Are we talking about the same pen? I get a package of 4 for $4.99 at Staples. Maybe they are cheaper when you buy more, but I can't imagine that much cheaper.

I need to buy the 12 packs. Thanks.

They are great pens.
 
Uniball Micros

149765_sk_md.jpg


$7.79 per dozen at Office Depot.. I guess I should shop at Office Depot instead. Curiously, Office Depot doesn't list blue ones on their site. I've gotta have blue.
 
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