Zebra V-301

[lovemy51]

What did the Zebra cost again--- three bucks? You can't get a genuine Hero 616 for less, only the fakes.

 

Both the Hero 616 and the Z-pen are decent cheap writers. The Z seems a little bit finer and dryer, and then there is the difference in look and finish. I guess that's where esthetics come in.

hello Sailor. i find my Z wetter and wider than the Hero 616 (the real jumbo one) :hmm1: .

 

edited to add: the Z cost me almost $5 american at Walgreens.

 

Interesting! Is this with the original ink? Do you have the black or the blue?

 

I have the blue, which really does write in a hairline, as opposed to my somewhat wetter 616s.

 

But how cool is it that you can buy a fountain pen, no matter how cheap, at WALGREEN'S?

i got the black one and it is inked with PR DCSSB!! i'll see if i can post some pix later... much later...

[lovemy51]

here it is (it didn't take me that long to take the pic, i guess):

 

http://i338.photobucket.com/albums/n419/peterpaul_rguez/PB150002.jpg

[OCDGuy]

I bought one a few months back at the Walgreens around the corner. I have actually had a pretty good experience with mine, other than the stock ink is terrible. I refilled the cartridge with Private Reserve Velvet Black, and have been fairly pleased. I use it as my pocket pen since it's cheap enough to not care if I lose it. The nib is actually surprisingly smooth, but it sounds like that's a little few and far between.

[Sailor Kenshin]

Nice pics, '51! Thanks.

 

I do that with my ink a lot too. Yesterday my Sailor 1911 ran dry of Everflo True Blue so I merely sucked up enough water to finish the letter I was writing.

 

The ink in my blue Z-pen's not so bad. Maybe the model has a lack of Q, who knows?

[funkypeanut]

I flushed it and cleaned it and replaced the ink with PR Tanzanite, and it still skips and stops working at all after a couple of sentences... with Tanzanite! If that can't get out of this pen, nothing can.

[Sailor Kenshin]

Sounds like you got a bad one, and therefore they have QC control problems with the Z-pen.

 

Mine's still happily motoring along on the original blue cart. I like it for when I need a blue needle-point (margin notes, etc.).

[LyraVega]

I'd like to add my bad to good experience with this pen. Like many others, I had problems getting it to write from the start. It was the first fountain pen I tried, because I couldn't wait for my Safari to arrive. At first I thought I must have been holding the pen wrong or something, so I held it every which way until it wrote. It still skipped a whole lot, but I wasn't writing anything particularly important, so it was better than nothing. When my Safari came, I threw my Zebra in a box and forgot about it until a week ago. I still liked the way it looked, so I decided to give it another try. It writes perfectly now. No skipping, I don't have to dig into the page to get the ink to come out...it's great. I'm not sure if I was just lucky, but at only 4 dollars, I'd suggest giving this pen a try.

[funkypeanut]

I'd like to add my bad to good experience with this pen. Like many others, I had problems getting it to write from the start. It was the first fountain pen I tried, because I couldn't wait for my Safari to arrive. At first I thought I must have been holding the pen wrong or something, so I held it every which way until it wrote. It still skipped a whole lot, but I wasn't writing anything particularly important, so it was better than nothing. When my Safari came, I threw my Zebra in a box and forgot about it until a week ago. I still liked the way it looked, so I decided to give it another try. It writes perfectly now. No skipping, I don't have to dig into the page to get the ink to come out...it's great. I'm not sure if I was just lucky, but at only 4 dollars, I'd suggest giving this pen a try.

 

So the way to get this "pen" to write is to ignore it completely? Apparently with all the flushing and new ink, I was just spoiling it rotten. :roflmho:

[KrazyIvan]

I'd like to add my bad to good experience with this pen. Like many others, I had problems getting it to write from the start. It was the first fountain pen I tried, because I couldn't wait for my Safari to arrive. At first I thought I must have been holding the pen wrong or something, so I held it every which way until it wrote. It still skipped a whole lot, but I wasn't writing anything particularly important, so it was better than nothing. When my Safari came, I threw my Zebra in a box and forgot about it until a week ago. I still liked the way it looked, so I decided to give it another try. It writes perfectly now. No skipping, I don't have to dig into the page to get the ink to come out...it's great. I'm not sure if I was just lucky, but at only 4 dollars, I'd suggest giving this pen a try.

 

So the way to get this "pen" to write is to ignore it completely? Apparently with all the flushing and new ink, I was just spoiling it rotten. :roflmho:

 

Actually I think you may be on to something. I let mine sit for a while (nib up even) and I just pulled it out and it is writing perfectly. I think you need to let it sit so the felt wick inside can really soak up some ink. Maybe? :ph34r:

[lovemy51]

I'd like to add my bad to good experience with this pen. Like many others, I had problems getting it to write from the start. It was the first fountain pen I tried, because I couldn't wait for my Safari to arrive. At first I thought I must have been holding the pen wrong or something, so I held it every which way until it wrote. It still skipped a whole lot, but I wasn't writing anything particularly important, so it was better than nothing. When my Safari came, I threw my Zebra in a box and forgot about it until a week ago. I still liked the way it looked, so I decided to give it another try. It writes perfectly now. No skipping, I don't have to dig into the page to get the ink to come out...it's great. I'm not sure if I was just lucky, but at only 4 dollars, I'd suggest giving this pen a try.

 

So the way to get this "pen" to write is to ignore it completely? Apparently with all the flushing and new ink, I was just spoiling it rotten. :roflmho:

 

Actually I think you may be on to something. I let mine sit for a while (nib up even) and I just pulled it out and it is writing perfectly. I think you need to let it sit so the felt wick inside can really soak up some ink. Maybe? :ph34r:

interesting theory :ph34r: :ph34r: :ph34r:

[amberleadavis]

The Lamy Fountain Pen cartridgeswork fine. The Lamy converter is too long, but the Platinum converter works great once you remove the gold ring.

[Kabe]

I still have no complaints about this little one. It sits next to my pc ready to jot down stuff

[amberleadavis]

Okay, here's the trick.

 

Throw away the ZEBRA ink. It is the biggest problem.

 

I'm not a fan of the FP, but it will work. Use a Platinum Fountain Pen Converter. Fill it with anything other than Zebra ink.

 

The highlighter and rollerball use the same parts - cap, cartridge (Platinum Converter), and body. So if you have the other pens, dump the FP nib and keep the parts because the stainless steel is nice. The highlighter is great! Fill the highlighter with Noodler's highlighter ink and you will be thrilled.

[lovemy51]

thx, amberleadavis for the info. i checked the lamy cart and it fits fine. i don't have a platinum converter, but the lamy cart will do nicely!

 

i do recommend this pen to anyone, even if it comes only half as good as mine. what a great, smooth nib!

Edited January 8, 2012 by lovemy51

[Sailor Kenshin]

I must have gotten the only working one on the planet. I'm still happily using it with the original cart. Nice, fine-line writer in a medium blue.

[KrazyIvan]

I got the highlighter as a gift from a coworker. I needed a new highlighter and I like this one.

[Bill32164]

I was not impressed with this pen. I am still not impressed, but I did find it stays writing ready after about 2 months just laying in my desk drawer.

My brief review: http://offountainpenstypewriters.blogspot.com/2012/01/zebra-v-301-fountain-pen-revisited.html

[zoniguana]

I just picked one up at Walgreen's here in New England. I've been working on improving my handwriting, spotted it and figured, for $3.99, why not... Got home, popped a black cartridge in, and started writing. The pen started right up; it's laying down a reasonably dark line, and writing relatively smoothly. Not spectacular, by any means; not skating across wet glass or anything, but not like running my finger across a grater, either... I don't regret getting it, at all. Will it be my go-to daily writer? No. Might it sit on the desk for occasional use? Sure. Might it live in my road bag for a semi-disposable pen (one that I will write with on the road, but won't much care if it "disappears")? Maybe...

[zoniguana]

I just picked one up at Walgreen's here in New England. I've been working on improving my handwriting, spotted it and figured, for $3.99, why not... Got home, popped a black cartridge in, and started writing. The pen started right up; it's laying down a reasonably dark line, and writing relatively smoothly. Not spectacular, by any means; not skating across wet glass or anything, but not like running my finger across a grater, either... I don't regret getting it, at all. Will it be my go-to daily writer? No. Might it sit on the desk for occasional use? Sure. Might it live in my road bag for a semi-disposable pen (one that I will write with on the road, but won't much care if it "disappears")? Maybe...

To append to this, this pen does seem rather sensitive to what angle you're holding the pen, both vertically, and rotationally. A few degrees in one direction or another, and it starts acting a little squirrelly...

[Lizardlips]

I purchased the Zebra V300 before reading all the reviews. Yes, at about $4 it seemed like it was worth it. I have many Zebra ball points and gels and they preform well. After trying everything to clean and prime this pen, it still would not write. I think someone here mentioned using a Platinum converter on the pen and it worked well. Of course, at $4 for the pen and $9 for the converter it doesn't seem to make sense. Well, for $13 I now have a very nice pen that WRITES! Thanks for all the info on this board. I am just beginning to collect and use fountain pens. I am inclined to purchase and restore Parker 51's. I have 2 now that need repair.