PILOT Precise Grip Liquid Ink Rolling Ball Stick Pens

The Pilot Precise V5 pens are absolutely my favorite pens ever! I am a bit of a pen snob; I have to have the "right pen" and I bring my own pens to work. I hate writing with inferior ballpoint pens because I truly believe my handwriting is worse when I do. These pens are the best - they allow me to have my handwriting very neat and precise. I am left handed and do not have any issues with ink smear with these either. The only caveat is you need to be careful not to press too hard and bend the tip. Otherwise these are great. They travel well (no leaks when taking them on trips). If you prefer a retractable pen, check out the Pilot Precise V5 RT Retractable Rolling Ball Pens. The same pen and ink delivery system without the cap to use. If you prefer a slightly thicker pen, then get the Pilot Precise V7 instead of the V5. (This indicates the mm of thickness of the pen's writing line). I use both of these types of the Pilot Precise V5 pens all the time and they are the greatest!

Work well writing notes in a variety of conditions on the plant floor

Good pen

Great pens. I have always used them.

My favorite pen

Depending on the pen's intended purpose--writing general notes and memos, quick sketching, inking final art projects, addressing mail, or lettering invitations, etc.--satisfaction can vary widely. So, I'll look at this pen from various angles: comfort, ink quality, longevity, and nib sizing.COMFORT:The girth is similar to that of your standard BIC stick pen, but is smooth (i.e. no ridges, notches, latex, etc.) and there is a good distance from the grip to the nib. I personally didn't enjoy writing with this pen for extended periods because it was difficult to find a comfortable writing position, however, jotting quick notes and such was fine.INK QUALITY:This pen lays down a buttery smooth deep black line. That said, it's unforgiving on generic/cheap office or notebook paper, and won't hesitate to cop an attitude when it comes to finer writing papers (such as Rhodia vellum, which is designed for use with fountain pens). By that I mean this ink feathers and bleeds.On the cheap papers it bleeds like a hemophiliac, whereas on the premium papers it bleeds only as if it just scraped its knee (trickles and dots here and there). Plus, on the premium quality papers, it will require a few seconds to dry. That means lefties need to be careful.And finally, while I would use this to sign checks or important documents, I wouldn't do so with the utmost confidence considering that it feathers with both water and alcohol (see comment for link to a writing sample image).LONGEVITY:This is a checkmark in its favour because this pen will last a while. For a liquid ink pen, I assumed it would be dead in under 20 pages, but was pleasantly surprised you can get 30-40 pages from a single barrel. (Writing top to bottom on college ruled paper.)Also, I watched closely for any leaks, and was glad to note there were none.NIB SIZING:This pen, although it's a 0.5mm rolling ball, creates a huge line. In fact, the line it creates is larger than the 0.7mm Pilot B2P pen. Granted, I'm sure some of the added line width is due to its feathering on the paper, but I'd hardly label this pen "precise". For that, I'd award the honour to either the Hi-Tec-C line, Pentel Slicci, or the Uni-ball Signo lines of pens. (See comment for link to an image for line size comparison with various pens.)Finally, while this is a needle point nib, it's actually a strong one. Unless you're planning to drill this pen into the paper while writing, it can hold up to some heavy pressure without breaking or warping.Overall, this is a good pen. Not necessarily a *great* one in my book, but for creating memos, taking quick notes, and general purpose writing, this will most certainly do.

The Pilot Precise V5 is a great pen for people who write small and/or tend to write an illegible scrawl.The reason I say this is that my husband has a scrawl that with a normal pen, is difficult to read. This fine point tends to make each letter more distinct, so that I actually have no problem reading what he's written.Now, having used a fine point in the past, one of the problems I had is with the ink flow. Other pens 'stutter'. The Pilot V5 flows so smoothly. In fact, I've been using them to fill in appointments on my wall calendar -- the family hub and organizer-- and the ink has never stopped flowing. I love that. And I love that the extra fine point means I can legible put more details in the the calendar boxes.SUMMARYHere's were we get to the meat of the matter. This is an excellent writing tool. The ink flows smoothly even when writing on a wall calendar. The Precise V5, however, is uncomfortable in the hand. Neither my husband nor myself found it comfortable to hold. The barrel is thin and straight, and there is nothing that adapts to the finger. So that's why only 4 Stars. We're going to get those add on plush things for pencils and pens to counter this.

This is a nice pen. The ink rolls very smoothly; however, I would classify it more as “fine” than “extra fine” - as it puts out enough ink to soak into the paper and spread a bit. I like this pen, but it is not better than my all-time classic favorite, the uni-ball micro roller ball tip that has been around for years and years. Here is why this pen is second fiddle to the best: This pen has a stylized shiny black surface that is slick and draws attention. The uni-ball has a plain matte black finish without any graphics; not only does that pen look classy without drawing attention to itself, but the matte finish gives it a superior tactile feel in the grip, as it won’t slide around in your hand. This pen has a smooth roll with a steady flow of ink. Alternatively, the uni-ball micro tip is so sharp, it almost feels like it is etching the paper and there is no ink bleed or spread, further, it gives you a tactile response of scratching as you write (almost like using a pencil). So, if you like a very smooth zero resistance feel, you would prefer this pen. If you like tactile feedback when writing (like when using a pencil) you would prefer the Uni-ball micro roller ball pen.