Parker Ballpoint Pen Refill, Fine, Black

Profoundly disappointed

I've been using Parker Ball Pens since they came out. As long as the refills were made in the USA they wrote smoothly and the ink didn't smudge until they were almost totally depleted of...Read complete review

I've been using Parker Ball Pens since they came out. As long as the refills were made in the USA they wrote smoothly and the ink didn't smudge until they were almost totally depleted of ink. Since then the opposite is true and I keep falling into the trap of buying them because of fond memories of the originals. The Chinese ones were very poor and the British and French are not much better. The one I just bought is French, it leaks, it writes in a scratchy way, and it is quite expensive. Last year I found two old USA refills in my cabinet, both still excellent, and when they emptied I finally bought the French model in the hope of improvement. I think the time has come to find a different manufacturer. (By the way, in frustration I tried the Gel, but they bleed when water hits the paper they had written on).