Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Uniball Jetstream Alpha Grip Review

So some of you know that I am a fan of the Jetstream series of pens.  I have several (ok maybe i have a LOT)..


Jetstream pens

but a while ago (i believe right when Jetpens first offered the jetstream alpha grip I decided that I should get the pen.  What is 1 more jetstream pen, especially since i LOVE the way it writes, correct?  I have several of the colors, somewhere I have a bunch of the click pens too.  I tend to go towards the finer tipped pens (and why I dont own any Hi-Tec-C's is beyond me), but I love how the original jetstream pens write so why wouldnt I like this one?  The grip is very squishy -- if you own another alpha gel grip pen its very similar to that.  The design of the grip section is similar to the uniball Signo 207 premier? I feel that its not as squishy but my Signo has been with me for years and is now showing signs of wear and potentially the its uber squishy due to the fact that it's so old.  The jetstream's grip is not as hard of a grip as say a Dr. Grip pen, but it is definitely harder than my signo's grip.  If you own a Sensa (ok I know papermate killed this company) it is similar of a grip to those grips in texture and feeling.  While the Sensa pen has a hourglass shaped grip section, potentially so it is contoured for your hand, the Jetstream is very rhomboidal in shape -- it tapers from the barrel to the tip.



How does it write?  It comes as a 0.7mm tip, and writes like any other jetstream pen would normally write.  I typically have skips on regular 20lb paper, but that is similar to any of the other jetstream 0.7mm tips I own.   Here below are some pictures of the text i wrote, and some of the skips that happened.  As you can see, there is some skipping, its not too annoying to me, but I suppose the skipping does annoy some people more than others.




jetstream alpha writing sample
skipping example


Overall, I still love the pen, and still reach for it time and time again.  But if slight skips while you write is not your thing, this pen may not be for you as it does skip occasionally.  I dont really get blotches of color -- though i believe the colored ones (red, pink, light blue, etc) does sometimes blotch the colors more.  The grip is very comfortable, and i find myself playing with the grip as i write.  Unlike the Dr. Grip pens the grip on the alpha gel is definitely squishy and I find that as i write, if I am trying to gather my thoughts I will knead the grip -- ok maybe I am weird but its definitely a grip that you can squish around while you are gathering up your thoughts.

oh as an add-on, while talking to Aziziah from Gourmet Pens about refills and she mentioned that she liked to refill with purple ink, and for some reason there is no other color than the normal (red, blue, black) refill inks being sold, I did a quick google and discovered that No Pen Intended had done a review that stated that the Sarasa inks would work in the alpha grip, so if you rather refill with a gel ink, you could go with the Sarsa inks (yes, I did check and yes they do fit) 


Below the left picture shows the alpha gel with the jetstream refill sitting out and the sarasa ink in the pen.  Yes the pen does retract fine with the sarasa ink in the barrel.  The picture on the right shows the alpha gel unscrewed and both the sarasa + jetstream inks just sitting out.

     

 

Where to Purchase?

Jetpens $16.50 (without shipping, free shipping if with purchases over $25)
Stationary Art  $13.65 (HK based store, so your shipping will vary)

Jetpens - Sarasa Refills

Other Reviews

Office Supply Geek
Inkthusiasm!
The Pen Addict

1 comment:

GourmetPens said...

Yaaaay thank you for reviewing it! I don't mind skipping like that. I have fountain pens that are a bigger pain in the butt hehehe. Ok. This is what I'll be getting next at JetPens!!

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