Alongside the Ohto Fude Ball 1.5, I really wanted to try out another rollerball style pen, as I usually don’t write with one as much as I used to. Ever since my Morning Glory Mach 3 ran out of ink, I’ve been hesitant to get another rollerball. While I can appreciate the feeling of the ball gliding across the page, it just didn’t give me a sense of feedback at all.
I have slowly noticed an actual change in my tastes for what I look for in a writing experience and it is something that struck me as surprising. For the longest time, I was all about the smoothness of the nib and as minimal feedback as possible, but now, I find myself desiring a little feedback and finding some sort of appreciation for what it brings to my writing experience. Maybe I can chalk this up to my character maturing and being able to appreciate different things instead of restricting myself. Only time will tel I guess. Anyway, back to the review
Needless to say when I first wrote with the Vision Elite, my conceptions on how a rollerball is “supposed” to feel were thrown out the window. Due to using the Uni-ball Signo for the longest time, I’ve gotten used to the slightly scratchy but pleasant sensation of writing with it. It gave me a perceived sense of precision and consistency that the Morning Glory simply couldn’t because of the way it would sometimes deposit extra ink onto the page causing variations in line width. The Vision Elite seems to be a strong middle ground in between the two. Smooth enough at varying angles due to the rollerball and having just the right amount of feedback that almost made me mistake it for a gel pen.
The grip section is very well designed and the diamond-shaped groove pattern provides a decent amount of purchase while not cutting into you fingers. Initially, I had problems adjusting to how thin the section was in relation to the rest of the pen and my extra string grip led me to feel uncomfortable and my hand started cramping. It took a couple of days to really find the right grip strength and placement that allowed me to comfortably use the Vision Elite. Once I found that specific combination, my writing experience improved by leaps and bounds.
While I haven’t been able to test it, the pen is supposed to be airplane safe with a “protective reservoir inside the barrel that prevents air from expanding in the ink tube” (excerpt from JetPens description). Since I’m taking a couple of summer courses, I won’t be able to test this out until late July, but when I do, I’ll definitely come back and update the review with my thoughts.
I’m very happy with my decision to get the Uni-ball Vision Elite as it is a pen that provides a great middle road to choosing between a gel pen and a rollerball. The consistency of the line as well as the ink make a great pairing and absolutely catapults this pen to the top of my Top 5 Rollerball Pens list. The Vision Elite has very quickly grown to be my most reached for pen when it comes to both note-taking and writing in general. I highly recommend this to everyone who likes using gel pens or rollerballs as the Vision Elite allows you to experience the best of both worlds.
P. S. I know I’ve been releasing a little slowly, schoolwork is ramping up and I’ve been inundated with numerous projects to keep track of and exams to study for. I’m in the final stretch, so I’m almost done. Expect maybe one more review tomorrow to cover for the first half of April, but after that, I won’t be able to post until the semester ends on May 4. I’ll take a week break to rest up and refocus for summer, then I’ll post 2 reviews for the second half of April and the first half of May. Thanks so much for your patience and support guys, it really means a lot to me. Wish me luck for finals! 🙂
The Passionate Penman 