[Pen and Pencil Review] The Pilot Bottle to Pen Pens
Staples had a “Back to School” sale on the Pilot B2P (Bottle to Pen) pens a few weeks ago. I know I’m behind on my review of it – lots of other people have already talked about this pen, but I finally got to try it out. I’m a huge fan of Pilot products, and I like the idea of recycling plastic to make other stuff. So… I gave the multi-color package a shot.
According to the website, The B2P comes in both 0.5mm and 0.7mm point – I’ve only seen the 0.7, which is what I bought (or I would’ve TOTALLY gone for the 0.5mm. I went for the Blue/Black/Red package to try out the different inks.
At first glance, it’s kinda cool. The plastic barrel is blue tinted and has wavy ridges in it to mimic a water bottle. The barrel isn’t too thick or too thin to feel comfortable in the hand. The Ink cartridge runs the full length of the barrel, promising a long-lived writing instrument. And it’s 5.5 inches long, making it long enough to balance in a hand. Which is all good.
However, one thing lost it for me for being a Major Pen Player in my arsenal. As I was testing them out, I was working with the blue ink pen and something happened. I don’t know if there was a sound or the dog jostled me, but I was working on pretty common paper and my hand twitched. The ink smeared on the paper and on my hand. I had to stop what I was doing to make sure I didn’t transfer blue ink to something else. I found the blue to be more “gloppy” in places, as well as not drying quickly. I don’t recall having the issue with the black or the red… but the blue…yeah, we’re not friends anymore. 
Why does this matter? I don’t like having to pay that much attention to my gel ink. Fountain pen ink is different, it’s liquid. You expect some drying time. It’s been a while since I’ve had smudging and smearing issues with gel ink – especially from a PILOT product. I have to admit I was a little disappointed. I will continue to use the pens – I don’ t give up pens that easily, but I’m wary of them.
I give them a 3 of 5 bronze pencils.
