Rollerball V Ballpoint pens

What makes the difference? Its’ the ink in the refill, it’s that simple really…

Think of OIL and think of WATER and how differently each would react when applied to paper? and that is the main difference between an oil based ink Ballpoint pen and a water based ink Rollerball pen.

Ballpoint pens with their OIL based ink applies a sticker ink to the paper, the ink sits on top of the paper but dries quicker than a Rollerball. You need to apply more pressure when writing as the ink is harder to lay down on the paper. As the ink is thicker it tends not to soak into your paper allowing you to use both sides of the pages in your note book.

If you press hard on the paper when writing or you fill in a lot of dockets that have multiple carbonised copies and want a pen with the longer lasting ink, then a Ballpoint could be the best for you.

The Rollerball pen offers a smoother writing experience, similar to the free-flowing motion of a fountain pen nib. This because the water based ink lays down easer onto the paper so less pressure required and if you do a lot of writing that will give a more pleasurable experience. The ink is drawn into the paper and dries more slowly than a ballpoint, however dependent on the quality of the paper you use bleeding of the ink may happen. The rollerball used about 3 times more ink than the ballpoint and that’s why the ink refill tends to be larger in size.

Rollerball Pens (Water-Based Ink):

Pros:

·         Writes extremely smoothly like a fountain pen

·         Easer on your hand due to less pressure required

·         Will not blob or skip allowing a constant writing line

Cons:

·         Slower to dry and so more prone to smudging

·         Shorter refill life span as ink flows faster

·         Ink bleeding through the paper can sometimes happen

Ballpoint Pens (Oil-Based Ink):

Pros:

·         Dries quickly avoiding smudging

·         Unlikely to run or bleed through the paper

·         As the ink is dispensed in small amounts, the ink lasts longer

·         Suitable for carbon copying

Cons:

·         Can leave blobs on paper

·         Scratchy feel when writing

·         Less comfortable to write with as more pressure is required

So now when you're asked Rollerball or Ballpoint you will know the difference!  

But remember ONLY use an Irish Pens pen :-)  available at www.irishpens.ie

Use Black or Blue ink?

Black Ink v Blue Ink?

Going back to the 23^rd Century BC the Chinese were making inks from plant dyes and using animal fats and other oils as mediums to apply the ink.

Today things are a little easier for us, all you have to do now is slip a new ink refill into your pen and away you go. But do you use a Black or Blue ink refill?

I suppose it was the introduction of technology into the office and its use by government to speed up the process of recording and processing documents that started pushing us to using Black ink over Blue, why?  because the black ink was easier for first generation copiers / scanners / FAX machines (Do you remember how big they were and basic the functionality was?) to copy. Have you tried to copy a document written in blue ink, the copy came out in those days blotchy with parts of the sentence or words missing. If you sent a blue ink FAX, the person the other end got normally a blank page!! Black ink was much easier for the machines to see and hence we all started the move to black ink.

Most all official forms required by government departments state you must fill them in in Black ink using a rollerball pen. The roller ball lays down more ink (than a ballpoint) when you use it and that again helps the electronic scanner pick up more clearly what you have written.

So always check what ink to use on the form you are filling in but if unsure use a rollerball pen with black ink and you should be OK

Irish, US, UK and Indian passport applications all state you must use Black ink to fill then out, the HSE in Ireland state that all official forms must be fill in using only Black Ink.

I still like taking my notes and write in general with blue ink, for modern copiers and scanners this does not provide any coping challenges. Legal documents are in the main signed in blue ink as it is harder to copy than black ink and the blue denotes the document as the original.

So, whether you use Black or blue just make sure it’s a high-quality refill in your handmade pen, no point in have a great car with a poor engine!