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Hi everyone. I searched here at the FPN and didn't come up with anything on the "Uni-Ball Air" rollerball. I just ran across this rollerball while at a book store here in Jakarta, Indonesia (Gunung Agung in Senayan City Mall). This roller is amazing! The flow is incredible while the ball writes like you're on wet ice. The experience is almost fountain-pen like. The black version is fairly saturated. The blue version on the other hand really pops, and even shades a bit. This thing lays down a lot of ink if you let it. So on certain papers expect some feathering and/or show-through. I suggest you take a look at this review to get a feel for this pen. http://clickypost.com/blog/2015/5/14/uni-ball-air-rollerball-pen-new See the Amazon Customer Reviews here: https://www.amazon.com/uni-ball-Rollerball-Point-Assorted-Colors/dp/B00UHJBUF8 In Jakarta, these pens go for 22,500 Rupiah ea. after 10% tax; today that equals $1.55 ea. before the 10% tax, a fair price IMO. But in the U.S., these seem to go up to around $2.50-$3.00 ea. and often come in packs of 3 assorted colors only. In a box of 12 they cost around $2.25 ea. in the U.S. (This high pricing sounds like the work of Sanford, the exclusive U.S./Canada Distributor for Mitsubishi Pencil Company, Japan.) Here's the problem, and my question... AFAIK, these pens are not refillable I want to put FP ink in these pens. And at around $2.50 a pen, these pens being single-use make them more than just ecologically insulting. However, where the barrel meets the section you can easily rotate the parts. Unfortunately, the barrel and section don't unscrew, and I have not been able to pull them apart yet. (Yup, that's one inky disaster just waiting to happen!) I'd like to know if anyone has any experience with this interesting pen, especially if you know some way to open or refill it. This pen is crying out for a modification of some sort.

Hello there, There are definitions and terms sometimes that I bump into and don't know meaning of. Would appreciate your help in clarifying. Let's start with definitions of words. Refillable and loose-leaf are basically synonyms of same thing i.e. in this case paper that is removable. Is that correct and which of these 2 words are more used today? Moving on to leather journal with binder rings, are these also "loose-leaf"? Can they be referred to as "loose-leaf construction" journals or something? I wouldn't think "refillable" makes sense for refillable journal whereas in paper context "refillable paper" sounds right. Now about paper. is there typical term for paper that is fountain pen, gel pen and rollerball pens "friendly"? Sometimes I want to know how to distinguish such paper from normal everyday paper. When I want to buy Leuchtturm 1917 paper or Clairefontaine, I always find by brand name but is there something general that would help me find paper by quality rather than by brand? Does "quality writing paper" make sense to anyone? Thanks!

If anyone else is interested, I'm trying to unlock the massdrop for Jherbin rollerball set. it includes some jherbin ink cartridges and three refillable rollerballs. Please, if at all interested, request the drop so we can have another chance at it. the set also has a option for more cartridges or a monteverde mini converter. https://www.massdrop.com/buy/j-herbin-refillable-rollerball-bundle

Does anyone know of any heavy fountain pens out there? I mean substantially heavy. Preferably refillable ones, like a piston fill one. I have developed "Essential Tremor." This is a condition that causes my hands, arms, and head to shake involuntarily, sort of like Parkinson's Disease, but different. I hate it, because hand writing, which I love to do so much, has become difficult and messy. Using heavy pens helps a lot, but the only heavy pens I've found are ball point pens. Does anyone have any suggestions? What is the heaviest fountain pen you have ever used?

Hello all, I picked up a Mead Flex notebook at a local office supply store. It's a very interesting binder-notebook cross, with the best characteristics of both. The Flex is what you would get if you had a typical plastic notebook and used 3 flexible plastic rings instead of wire. The ones I saw were in different solid colors (pink, blue, green, black) on the front with black plastic rings and a black back. It comes in 1-subject, 3-subject and 5-subject sizes, although you can comfortably fit quite a bit more paper in a Flex than Mead says. Any US 3-hole punched paper will work (not sure if 3-hole punches are the same size in other countries). I definitely recommend this if you like the paper-swapping abilities of binders but have trouble with the stiff sides breaking, the weight, the size, etc. It's the weight of a wirebound notebook, the size of a wirebound notebook except for right where the rings are, look and operates like a notebook (including folding the front cover around to touch the back to show only one sheet of paper), except that you can use any paper you want. The only thing that could be improved is the cover stiffness. Amazon reviews are generally very positive, so I feel good about its ability to stand up to lots of use. The only concern I can see at the moment is that the rings may eventually wear out, like binders will develop problems closing if used enough. The front and back covers are solid plastic, and feel sturdy. They are flexible, not stiff. The notebook can be completely opened and the front cover moved to the back (just like a regular wirebound notebook), but remains flexible when that is done. It's not stiff enough to write comfortably without bracing it on a surface. It's light enough that even with the thin Mead paper I'm not worried about a yank disordering my notes (my concern about disc-based systems). Here I'm holding the Flex by a couple sheets of paper. With heavier paper I feel comfortable yanking it around by whatever part's nearest. http://www.img.ie/images/et3vs_thumb.jpg Binding: The notebook uses a thin strip of cloth and 3 flexible plastic rings to keep itself together. The cloth is inside the plastic rings and is stitched to the front and back plastic covers. The rings keep the paper together with the cover. They're spaced like standard binder rings, but are plastic instead of metal. They are attached to a stiff strip of plastic which is bolted to the back cover of the Flex. Each ring has to be pulled apart individually, which isn't as noisy a process as most binders I've dealt with. More of a dull pop than a loud boing. One side of a ring is a hollow tube, which is contoured inside to be the mate of the plastic spear that is the other side. The rings are flexible, and not perfectly round, which makes them easier to write over compared to binder rings. Here's both sides of the notebook cover, showing the binding http://www.img.ie/images/1qr9o_thumb.jpg Closeup of a ring on the back cover showing how they're secured http://www.img.ie/images/6y8y3_thumb.jpg Paper: Mead Five Star paper. It's OK, but doesn't really matter, because you can use any paper you want. Durability: The Mead guarantees are only for a year, and looking at how the plastic rings hold together, I can see that something might become worn down if you swap pages around very frequently. This is a softer plastic. On the other hand, I haven't see any signs of wear yet, and not having to buy a $50 punch just to use a notebook makes this a much better investment for me. Pricewise it's cheaper than or comparable to the disc notebooks I've seen ($12 for the 3-subject).