GPW #2: Pilot Coletos

Here's Gel Pen(s) of the Week (GPW) #2: Pilot Hi-Tec-C Coletos.

Alas, here's my foray into the world of multi-pens. :)

Long after its release, I've seen photos and read reviews of the Pilot Hi-Tec-C Coleto from many pen blogs and websites. During that time, I was seriously into populating my meager fountain pen collection, that I did not pay too much attention into this new multi-pen from Pilot. I wasn't (and still am) too fond of multi-pens, and this was another reason why the Coleto wasn't am instant hit with me.

Then the time came when there was a huge discussion about Pilot 78G pens at FPN-P. That discussion convinced me to get my first Pilot fountain pen, the 78G. Oh, wait, this is about the Coletos, right? But it was the 78G pens that brought me to the Coletos through Cosmos Bazaar in Binondo. The colorful packaging of Pilot Coleto refills caught my eye that time, but the 78Gs held my attention, and I bought three of them: teal, green, and black - all medium-nibbed. Perhaps it wasn't in the stars yet for Coletos to come home with me.

And then another trip to the city brought me near Binondo. I didn't let the chance pass by that time, and off I went to Cosmos Bazaar to get my Coletos.

At Cosmos Bazaar, the Coleto refills are available in the usual black, blue, and red in all tip sizes: 0.3, 0.4, and 0.5mm. The other refill colors, green, turquoise, purple, orange, and pink, and available only in 0.3 and 0.4mm tips. I bought black in 0.5 and 0.4, and blue and red in 0.5mm. Then I bought all remaining refill colors in 0.4mm tip sizes. I also got three of the three-color pens: clear, blue, and gray.

Coleto refills: 2 blacks, blue, turquoise, green, purple, orange, pink, and red. There are two colors missing in my collection: blue-black and brown. But I don't have them only because Cosmos doesn't have them.

Above is a simple writing sample of the Coletos on my Moleskine. These pens use gel ink, and they write very smoothly and does not skip. I do not worry about bleed and smudges on my notebook pages, because the ink dries fast. They are easy to hold, and my hand is not so tired after writing for some time.

It's also a joy that the Coleto comes in 2, 3, and 4 color sizes. This multi-pen is an excellent choice for people such as I am who loves writing in different colors. And it's also important that the pen barrels can be bought empty, because refilling them with my choice of color is very easy. I can mix different colors in one barrel, or have different tip sizes of a single color. Fun!

My Weekend Hoard of (Gel) Pens and A Pencil

I took a much needed respite from blogging recently as I focused on more pressing matters, such as work and health. As I finish those important tasks, I’m happy to be back. With pens.

This is my growing stash of gel pens. For a bigger photo, click here.

The three-day weekend last weekend has brought me to what else, NBS. I went there to get some (more) notebooks (again), but this time of the month is not a good time to visit NBS, or any bookstore/school supply store as people flock to these places to hoard school supplies and similar items. June is the month when classes start here in the Philippines.

I couldn’t get my way through the crowd near the notebooks, so I went to check their pens. Hm. I was instantly attracted to the Pilot Acroballs because they are available in non-black/blue/red colors such as green, pink, and turquoise. But my attraction turned to disappointment when I realized that Acroballs are ballpoints and not gel pens. Oh, well. Moving down the display, I finally gave in to the Coleto when I saw the three-color blue barreled multi-pen. I got the 0.5mm refills of black, blue, and red, the only refills available at NBS.

Since I was at the Pilot section of the pen displays, I saw the yummy H32 mechanical pencils and tried out the transparent red H325. The transparent H32 is available in different barrel colors: clear, red, blue, yellow, green, and gray/black. I got this pencil for its looks, but it proved to be an excellent writing tool. Mine has a 0.5mm tip, but I’d like to get the 0.3mm and the 0.9mm next time.

New pens: a transparent red Pilot H325 mechanical pencil, blue 3-ink refill Pilot Coleto, Zebra Jimnie Gel Rollerball, Foray, and two Uni-Ball Signo Gelsticks. For a bigger and clearer photo, click here.

Lingering on the pen section of NBS is very dangerous. LOL. Because not long after I decided to buy the Pilot H325, the Uni-Ball pens caught my attention. I got several Uni-Ball gel pens in my stash already, but I liked the way the 0.7mm Uni-Ball Signo Gelsticks wrote when I tried them so I got both black and blue, the only colors where the pens are available. They write smoothly and don’t skip, and I’ve used them on the postcards I’m sending out today. No smears, smudges, or skipping lines. Great pens, really.

The other two pens in the tray, a Zebra Jimnie Gel Rollberball in medium black and the blue 0.6mm Foray are gifts to me by my aunt because I kinda fixed her computers last Saturday. Great service fees. *Wink.*

Here's the writing samples of all the gel pens, sans the pencil. For a bigger and clearer photo, click here.

With the growing number of pens on my box, I'm thinking of using one or two pens a week, to rotate using them, together with my fountain pens. I may call it GPW Project, or gel pen(s) of the week project. Cool idea, eh?