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How the BIC Cristal ballpoint pen became ubiquitous

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Re: How the BIC Cristal ballpoint pen became ubiquitous

#61

Post by toss1 »

thaumasiotes wrote: post #35
abtinf wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Try a Uni-Ball Jetsream, especially the capped version. It’s a ballpoint, with all of the advantages, that writes smoother than any gel. There is a bit of a learning curve as it glides so freely across paper.

> It’s a ballpoint, with all of the advantages, that writes smoother than any gel. Gel pens are ballpoints. What do you mean by "ballpoint" here? > Try a Uni-Ball Jetsream I would never choose to use one of those, since they aren't available in 0.5mm. 0.7mm is too thick.

Just checked, their website lists 0.28 mm, 0.38, 0.5, 0.7, and 1.0 mm, with examples of each. [0]

What pens do you find best and what is your use-case?

[0] https://www.jetpens.com/blog/Uni-Jetstream-A-Comprehensive-G...

Re: How the BIC Cristal ballpoint pen became ubiquitous

#62

Post by FridayoLeary »

codedokode wrote: post #18

I use gel pens, because they leave thinner and more black trace. I think ballpoint pen belongs to history.

I agree that gel writes better but you are wrong about ballpoints. It's like saying i don't write spanish so that means it's useless.

Thick gel pens soak through the paper so they're not great and the thinner nibs break easily or they pierce the paper.

Most times you pick up a pen it's to jot down a quick note or number, a ballpoint makes more sense for that.

Re: How the BIC Cristal ballpoint pen became ubiquitous

#63

Post by soupfordummies »

abtinf wrote: post #31
codedokode wrote: post #18

I use gel pens, because they leave thinner and more black trace. I think ballpoint pen belongs to history.

Try a Uni-Ball Jetsream, especially the capped version. It’s a ballpoint, with all of the advantages, that writes smoother than any gel. There is a bit of a learning curve as it glides so freely across paper.

They’re so good. I was always a pilot g2 guy but I picked up one of the jetstreams at a 7-11 in Japan for like a buck and it’s just the perfect pen.

Re: How the BIC Cristal ballpoint pen became ubiquitous

#64

Post by dcminter »

rsynnott wrote: post #60

My favourite thing about Bic's origins: > Marcel Bich bought the patent for the ballpoint pen from Hungarian – Argentine inventor László Bíró Presumably beating his rivals John Pencil and Wolfgang von Fountain-Pen to it...

I remember a skit in a (terrible) British sketch show a zillion years ago where Biro tells the details of his secret invention to someone with an aside that there was nobody else in the house except "the butler Bic, the housekeeper Pentel, and the chauffeur Platignum" :)

Re: How the BIC Cristal ballpoint pen became ubiquitous

#65

Post by shawabawa3 »

rsynnott wrote: post #60

My favourite thing about Bic's origins: > Marcel Bich bought the patent for the ballpoint pen from Hungarian – Argentine inventor László Bíró Presumably beating his rivals John Pencil and Wolfgang von Fountain-Pen to it...

the word "biro" didn't exist until Biro invented the ballpoint pen, which came to be known after its inventor

Re: How the BIC Cristal ballpoint pen became ubiquitous

#66

Post by thaumasiotes »

jackstraw14 wrote: post #40
thaumasiotes wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It’s a ballpoint, with all of the advantages, that writes smoother than any gel. Gel pens are ballpoints. What do you mean by "ballpoint" here? > Try a Uni-Ball Jetsream I would never choose to use one of those, since they aren't available in 0.5mm. 0.7mm is too thick.

Jetstreams come in a lot of forms, including 0.5mm and 0.38mm I believe.

Not according to Uniball's official website they don't.

https://www.unibrands.co/collections/jetstream?filter.v.opti...

Re: How the BIC Cristal ballpoint pen became ubiquitous

#67

Post by thaumasiotes »

toss1 wrote: post #61
thaumasiotes wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It’s a ballpoint, with all of the advantages, that writes smoother than any gel. Gel pens are ballpoints. What do you mean by "ballpoint" here? > Try a Uni-Ball Jetsream I would never choose to use one of those, since they aren't available in 0.5mm. 0.7mm is too thick.

Just checked, their website lists 0.28 mm, 0.38, 0.5, 0.7, and 1.0 mm, with examples of each. [0] What pens do you find best and what is your use-case? [0] https://www.jetpens.com/blog/Uni-Jetstream-A-Comprehensive-G...

> Just checked, their website lists 0.28 mm, 0.38, 0.5, 0.7, and 1.0 mm, with examples of each. [0]

Except that you forgot to check their website. Jetpens is a reseller.

Uniball only acknowledges 0.5mm for Jetstream pens that include multiple ink tubes in one cylinder.

My use case is that I carry a pen around in my pocket in case I need to write something down. More rarely, I might actually write something down. I don't like writing in thick lines.

The pen I'm currently carrying is one of these: https://img.alicdn.com/imgextra/i3/682114580/O1CN01nP4t8J1jh...

Re: How the BIC Cristal ballpoint pen became ubiquitous

#68

Post by Symbiote »

TeMPOraL wrote: post #46

What's the proper name for that other, arguably even more well-recognized, BIC pen, that looks like Cristal except its main body is opaque orange, and is generally cheap garbage that breaks in your hand if you squeeze it it too hard, and doesn't even write half the time? (And yeah, I remember the taste of it, too. I've "eaten" through my share of these pens as a kid. It's the one pen you can't bite on, unless you lik…

It's the fine (thin line) version of the normal one.

I've never noticed any difference other than the line width. Either barrel can shatter if you bite hard enough. They both seem to survive long periods of little or no use better than other brands.

Re: How the BIC Cristal ballpoint pen became ubiquitous

#69

Post by brunoarueira »

Anarch157a wrote: post #29

It's such a versatile product. I bet everyone here who's older than 45/50 have at least once used a Bic pen to rewind a cassete tape. I also used the plastic clip as a stapler remover. There were many other uses for it, for sure.

I'm not that older, but I had learned this trick, mainly when the device goes wrong and we need to fix the tape :)

Re: How the BIC Cristal ballpoint pen became ubiquitous

#70

Post by wiredfool »

pmg101 wrote: post #21

It's the perfect product. I pick it up, I use it, it functions perfectly without thought. It's a lifelong mission to find any such tech product.

I like them. Don't use pens much, used to be a bit picky, either fountain pens or roller balls or gel, but they'd always leak or be dry or not be ready to roll when I needed them.

I had one Cristal pen that I managed to hold on to and use through at least three moves and 8+ years, until I finally ran it out of ink. It didn't get lost, destroyed, eaten (by puppies or humans), or quit working -- until there was nothing left of it. It was a small accomplishment, but one that I'm absurdly proud of.

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