Review: PaperMate InkJoy 300RT 1.0mm Ballpoint Pen

This is a review of the PaperMate InkJoy 300 RT 1.0 mm ballpoint pens in black, orange, red, magenta, purple, blue, turquoise, and green. There are also two more colors available: mocha, and lime green.

This looks very Instagramish doesn't it? Well, it was just me and the regular camera. Messing up the lighting. 

Unlike the InkJoy 700RT which is very nice looking, the 300RT series come in a plethora of colors, which makes them pretty good contenders for the top InkJoy spot. The design of these barrels is quite fun - all a matching color to the ink, without any dips or curves to it. The grip is soft, textured, and dimpled, and goes almost all the way to the tip. The clip is just the metal and it is attached to a plastic ring around the top. It's kind of funny looking because it's very short but that does not compromise its snugness when attached to papers. It's actually a pretty good clip and I do prefer it to the 700RT (which are chrome colored. Bleh).

The clicker is quite tight, but in a good way. It's quite loud and I enjoy clicking it just for fun. The pen does unscrew at the middle very easily - like when they're all rattling around in my pencil case and I open it later, I find that almost half of them are coming apart and they need to be tightened. That's a bit annoying.

My theory on the blobbing of these pens is if you hold the pen almost straight up and down, it doesn't blob nearly as much (if at all) as if you are writing at an angle. This theory worked really well with the 700RT and most of the time, these pens confirmed this theory (although a few times, it didn't). Perhaps it varies by pen. So if you're having blobbing troubles, try writing with the pen straight up and down (or as close to as possible).

I don't care enough about the blobbing to not enjoy these. Ballpoints in great colors are often very cheap and crappy with sketchy ink - I prefer MORE ink flow than not enough, and since I'll be coloring and doodling/zentangling, ink blobs come in very handy. But given the blobs, you have to be careful to avoid smudging the ink all over your paper.

Complaints? The usual. No recycled plastic! And of course, the blobbing of the ink.

Some other 300RT bits
Daydreamers Welcome
From A to Zowie Blog
Stationery Review

Price
Amazon - $4.55 for this set
Office Max - $5.99 for a dozen (one color)

Overall
If you're not terribly concerned about the blobs these pens may produce (depending how you write with them or plan to use them), these pens may still be enjoyable. They are not too expensive, and they're very FUN - lots of colors, and very comfortable to write with or color with - although coloring is preferable because you'll get blobs when writing. Lefties: steer clear, or be careful. I do think PaperMate overhyped the InkJoy pens, but I'm a sucker for colors.