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Average Customer Review
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1,900 of 1,917 people found the following review helpful:
Very good if you need to write on paper, 7 Mar 2007
Since taking delivery of my pen I have been very happy with the quality of ink deposition on the various types of paper that I have used. On the first day when I excitedly unwrapped my pen (thanks for the high quality packaging Amazon!) I just couldn't contain my excitement and went around finding things to write on, like the shopping list on the notice board in our kitchen, the Post-it notes next to the phone, and on my favourite lined A4 pad at the side of my desk.
My pen is the transparent type with a blue lid. I selected this one in preference to the orange type because I like to be able to see how much ink I have left so that I can put in another order before I finally run out.
When the initial excitement of taking delivery of my new pen started to wear off I realised that I shouldn't just write for the fun of it, this should be a serious enterprise, so by the second day of ownership I started to take a little more care of what I wrote. I used it to sign three letters, and in each case was perfectly happy with the neatness of handwriting that I was able to achieve.
I have a helpful tip for you that you might not know about - if you let the ink dry for a few seconds you can avoid the smudging that sometimes happens if you rub the ink immediately after writing. Fortunately the ink used in this particular Bic pen seems to dry very quickly.
On the third day of ownership I went on a trip to London and took my pen carefully packed away in my brief case, but I needn't have worried, this isn't some temperamental ink pen that leaks when you store it at the wrong angle. I sat at my meeting and confidently removed the cap from my pen and it wrote flawlessly, almost immediately.
I notice that the barrel of the pen has been crafted very carefully to fit in the pen holder down the edge of my Filofax. It's not so grippy so that it is hard to remove when I want to make a quick note, and yet not so loose that it falls out too easily when I open my Filofax in a hurry. Maybe the choice of surface texture on the pen has some part to play here, because it seems that the inside of the leather grip on the pen holder in my Filofax has just the right level of adhesion that I can be confident when I need to reach in and get my pen it's going to be just where I left it!
Today is the fourth day of ownership of my pen, and I have to say I'm starting to treat it like an old friend. I walk around the office with it clipped in to my shirt pocket and someone in the accounts department actually asked to borrow it while we were both standing at the photocopier. Would you believe it, they actually tried to walk away with my pen! They were very embarrassed when I called after them as they walked down the corridor and asked for it back. You will be happy to know that it is now back, safe and sound in my top pocket, ready and waiting to start writing again.
In summary, I would happily recommend this pen to anyone who is planning on writing on paper. If you are considering a writing implement for some other surface such as writing on a CD, or other non-porous substances then another pen might be better suited, but if it's just plain old paper then I think you will probably be well served by this particular model.
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46 of 46 people found the following review helpful:
Mountain Climbing Bics, 15 Dec 2007
I first began using the Bic Cristal ballpoint pen after seeing a televised demonstration showing that it would continue to write even after being fired from the muzzle of a shotgun into a wooden board. Although as a mountaineer and rock climber I had a soft spot for Mont Blanc fountain pens, I found that they did not fare well after significant falls. Also, I discovered that, unlike other pens - ballpoints or fountain pens - the Bic had another unique advantage for a person in my profession. Occasionally, in particularly cold conditions, when the ink failed to flow, the nib of the Bic Cristal could be placed directly in the flame of a Bic cigarette lighter, and at the flick of a Bic, I was able to continue writing my log.
Unfortunately, things have changed. Apparently, the survivability of the Bic Cristal ballpoint was ascribable to the fact that the tungsten carbide ball was held in a tip made entirely of brass. Nowadays, only the the lower end is brass, while the upper section of the tip housing is plastic. I have had poor results trying to heat the tip without melting it, and I have particularly poor results trying to write after shooting a Bic through a plank of wood. This has led me to saving old Bic nibs for reuse, but removing the new plastic nibs and replacing them with the old nibs tends to get very messy.
While, under extreme conditons, the nib of the new Bic Cristal in not as trusty a companion as its predecssor, nevertheless, I do acknowlege that that the barrel of the Bic Cristal remains as useful as ever in performing emergency tracheotomies.
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680 of 701 people found the following review helpful:
Excellent pen! Some issues..., 10 Dec 2007
Upon receiving my order, I carefully opened the box and dug through the packing peanuts in order to get to the pen contained therein. 'Beautiful!', I thought, and promptly opened up my moleskine notebook to jot down to myself some notes. My previous pen had ran out of ink four weeks prior and I didn't want to splurge on expensive shipping, which meant I had a lot of notes to catch up on writing.
But, when that quality carbide ball touched the surface of the paper, it was not ink that came out. From a distance I heard the screams of men and the cackling of innumerable ravens. I stopped, cold and sweating profusely. I looked down at the Bic Crystal black medium ballpoint pen which I held in my hand, only to see darkness. I dashed it against the wall, recoiling in horror. I saw in the corner of my eye my faithful notebook, which now lay on the ground. Once unmarred, I saw now the small mark which I had made with the devil's own pen. It spread across the page like a plague, and looking at it I gazed upon true horrors. For, what I thought had been ink was in fact a portal to a dark, unforgiving dimension. A portal whose maw was now widening to engulf all hope and joy in the world.
'God, what have I done?' I exclaimed as I weeped and fell to my knees, 'What have I done?'
From beyond the Dark Gate I heard these words, words which I can never forget. A terrible, booming voice said to me, 'Ia! Ia! Cthulhu Fthagn!'
I ran, blindly stumbling, away from that place and never looked back. My only hope is that none shall follow in the path I've walked down, too blinded by hubris to realize my follies.
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25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
Left handers beware..., 22 Jan 2008
Worked fine with my right hand, but when I came to use my left hand my writing came out looking like the work of a complete imbecile. I can only assume Bic have created a right-handed only pen, and would caution left-handers to "try before you buy".
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23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
More painful than most pens., 24 Dec 2007
While trying to stick the pen behind my ear at work, I inadvertantly jammed it into my right eye.
It is definatly more painful than most pens, and the ink feels much more corosive.
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20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
What, no V chip?, 24 Dec 2007
You'd think, with all of the new anti-obscenity laws, that this pen would have a V-chip installed. It DOESN'T!!!!! You should see some of the filthy words and drawings that my children were able to write with this product. I am going to file a formal complaint with the FCC.
Buyer (with young children) Beware!!!!
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38 of 39 people found the following review helpful:
Make sure you check the correct region when ordering!, 13 Dec 2007
My wife thought that this pen would make a lovely Christmas gift for me and ordered it online. When the retailer emailed her asking which region type of pen she wanted, she was confused and neglected to reply to the message. About a week ago or so, the pen arrived via international courier and my wife presented it to me with a beatific smile and sparkles in her eyes.
Charmed by her thoughtful gift, I set down to jot some notes regarding a special remodeling project for the kitchen, but the pen refused to write. The crystalline barrel showed that the ink reservoir was topped off and there were no obstructions on the ball end, so I attempted to write once more. Alas, nothing appeared on my sheet of paper but scratches.
I frantically checked the package to see if there was some sort of activation process for the pen and stumbled across a warning note. Apparently the Writing Implement Association of America (WIAA) has established the UK as being part of distribution region 2, while North America is region 1. Because of the region differences, my imported pen will not work with region 1 8 1/2 x 11 inch letter-size paper - it only works on European (A4 and such) paper. Unfortunately the import duties on the pen itself cost quite a pretty penny, and I cannot afford to purchase appropriate-region paper to write on. I have looked up some so called "gray paper" import companies but I don't know if I altogether trust them.
If you're from the States like me, and you're interested in purchasing this fine writing implement, remember to specify the correct region!
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18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
I Look Like an Idiot, 4 Jan 2008
I thought I would add one of these to my order because it was so cheap. I received it and took it to work with me. Unfortunately, I was not prepared for the consequences of my actions. The pen itself is nice. It writes smoothly. It is also small enough to fit in the middle of my spiral notebook rings, while the useful little tab on the lid keeps it from sliding in where I cannot get it out (like those crummy pencils without caps). It made my life decidedly simpler. (It is as if I am only carrying one item, instead of two!) However, I was just getting comfortable with it when I was sharing my meeting notes with a coworker. Turns out that this pen writes in British English, not American English! He laughed, then took my notes and showed them to the person next to him. Pretty soon they were all laughing at how I had added an extra "l" to labeling and labeled. They mocked my use of an "s" instead of a "z" in realize. They couldn't understand why I had added a "u" after the "o" in words such as flavor, color and odor. And don't even get me started on the "e" I added at the end of gelatin and glycerin. Now all my coworkers think I am an imbecile. But it's because my Bic Crystal ballpoint pen has been set to English (U.K.) and I can't figure out how to get it to English (U.S.)!
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36 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
A keepsake and heirloom, 12 Dec 2007
I have had my Bic Crystal ballpoint pen since 1987.
Although in this time I have had to replace the ink refill 43 times, the body 5 times, and the cap 12 times, it is still very much the same treasured writing implement. Whether writing out something as mundane as a shopping list or undertaking the important duties of filling in a tax return it has never failed me.
The only time it did not perform as expected was in the most fortuitous circumstances.
"What on earth are you doing?" I enquired of the gentleman perched on the balustrade of the Blackfriars bridge in London. "Lend me your Bic!" was his response, as he simultaneously espied the black cap of my Bic Crystal cheekily peering out of my blazer's top pocket, and realised that he had not yet informed the world of the reasons for his forthcoming departure therefrom.
Without question, I lent it to him. He was obviously a gentleman of discernment, being able to recognise the distinctive profile of a Bic Crystal from afar, so I did not question him further. Had I realised at the time his motives, I might have had a different response, but now, I am so very glad that I did not.
But then, as he applied the high-tech tungsten carbide nib of my trusty Bic Crystal to the back of a cigarette packet hastily scrummaged from the side pocket of his blazer (which, much later, we realised was from the same tailor's as my own), the ink did not flow.
The ensuing conversation shall remain a private matter but suffice it to say that we are entering into a civil partnership on February the 14th of this coming year, and that our much-loved Bic Crystal will be both a key part of the ceremony and an heirloom for our (adopted) children.
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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
WARNING, 24 Dec 2007
This product has NO included manual and NO CUSTOMER SUPPORT! You are on your own. I have used these in the past, so I was able to figure it out, but it took a while. Another caveat: If you lose the cap, there is NO way to attach it to anything because the retainer clip is inexplicably attached to the cap. Also, the caps for the different colors of ink all fit each other, so it is far too easy to misplace a cap on the wrong pen. Very confusing. To compound this, the blue ink looks just like the black ink model until the ink reservoir has depleted significantly and there is only a thin translucent coating on the tubular ink container. Even the red ink looks black in dim light.
I went ahead and gave it 3 stars anyway because a friend related a story to me about how he used a similar device as a survival tool when he was stranded once. If you can remove the large cap with the clip, and pry off the tiny cap from the other end of the exterior transparent cylinder, then remove the ink reservoir and the attached ball/scribing device,you can use the stripped casing as a straw. IMPORTANT - remember to locate and cover the tiny hole in the casing side with your finger, or the partial vacuum will be lost and it's effectiveness will diminish.
Another knock on this product is that the ink has a horrible taste. You get what you pay for.
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