My money’s on the Pilot G-2 Ultra Fine Point (http://www.amazon.com/Pilot-Retractable-Premium-Roller-Ultra/dp/B0017TMMLS)
What the heck? The Pilot Precise is a mass market pen that sells at a reasonable price and can be purchased by mere mortals in any store. Where are the artisanal $85 pens only available direct sale at the manufacturers home on a small island off of the coast of Nova Scotia? This isn’t the Boing Boing that I know.
My opinion, I like a nice stainless steal Parker Jotter or Parker Sonnet. I like the Parker cartridges. The ink is a little sticky and drys fast. I like a little resistance when writing.
Artisanal? Ffft. TACTICAL PENS.
I like Parker Jotters too. But replace the ink stylus with a gel one.
Tactical? Pfft. My strategic pen comes equipped with a dead man’s switch for a doomsday device.
I LOVE Pilot Precises. I started using them on my high school debate team because that’s what my partner liked, and I’ve used them ever since. I like having one black and one red around.
I have since upgraded to the Pilot Precise Retractable, which writes exactly the same, but has a retractable tip and a rubber grip where you hold it. The one thing I miss is popping off the top of the cap and pressing it back in.
Pilot Precise v5, for me. and has been, since the late 80s.
I have to agree with the survey. The Uniball Jetstream Signo 207, Micro, in blue (the black is fine, just not my thing) is probably the finest pen and ink I’ve ever owned. I’m addicted to these things and feel lost without one in a pocket, somewhere.
This is NONSENSE and I expect BETTER of this blog. The oversight in implying this choice of pens is among all pens is frankly egregious, given that it is clear they restricted themselves to widely available types and left out fountain pens entirely on spurious grounds. Anyone searching for a truly exceptional writing experience will find satisfaction in the realm of nibs and ink, and not in icky little disposable plastic jobs. Next we’ll be hearing about the superiority of Moleskine notebooks!
Also, the drug war is genocide and Python should be taught in preschools.
“Of course, there’s rarely any reason not to just use a pencil.”
I absolutely loathe writing with pencils. I haven’t been able to do it since high school. I use pencils today only for:
- Filling out exam answer sheets
- Updating an RPG character sheet
- Submitting my order at restaurants that use cards/sticks/sheets, and give you those little golf pencils
For everything else, it’s some type of pen with a Jetstream, Signo, G2, or Parker gel refill, or my Lamy Safari (if I’m feeling adventurous).
I LOVE using mechanical pencils. Best thing ever! All squeaky and smooth on the paper. Mmmmmm!
Also, Pentel RSVP fine point in purple or green is the best pen. 
What’s odd is, in reading this post, I realized that the amount of actual physical writing that I do on an average day is almost always zero. Aside from the occasional cheque, or writing a quick note for the babysitter, or signing something that needs signing, or filling out official forms of some sort, I never really write anything, anymore. That would probably explain why my handwriting has gone from “attrocious” to “barely legible” since my university days.
But yes, back in my university days, it was all mechanical pencils, all the time (despite the fact that I would often smudge the hell out of my notes with my hand), because I never found a pen that didn’t end up leaving big splotches of ink everywhere.
I’d say this “The best pen is…” discussion warrants a whole blog of its own. Too bad www.thebestpenis.com is already taken.
(Note: I can’t figure out how to remove the active link, but it probably goes without saying that you shouldn’t click on it at work.)
The jetstream is the ballpoint with their low viscosity ink and in the US you’ll have trouble finding anything other than fat writing ones. Jetpens has the goods. It’s just “Signo 207”
I think it should be noted that all these prominent pen review bloggers picked the Jetstream as the “best pen for the masses” and not Rob’s unqualified “the best pen.” Each one of these reviewers would likely have picked other pens as the best. I know the Pen Addict guy is more into micro point pens (which happens to be my thing as well). It’s tough to get stuff like that in an office supply store in the US though. Go to jetpens.com for the best selection that’s easy to get.
It’s like “the best smartphone”, well for the majority of users it’s probably the iPhone but you’d find tech bloggers picking others as their idea of “the best.”
There is no greater pen than the uni·ball Vision Elite. The fine points are great for everyday writing and the extra bold for signing things. The unique, unwashable blue/black color also catches attention and makes originals easy to identify…
The best pen is the kind I don’t have to use. Think of the childhood hours wasted on trying to improve your handwriting. They might as well have been teaching us how to churn butter.
