Hi, I'm Connie!
Today, I'm going to walk you through the history of gel pens and how they became the ubiquitous pen we know today.
We’ll also highlight some iconic favorites!
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The Invention of Gel Pens
In the 1980s, ballpoints and rollerballs dominated the pen world.
Before gel pens were invented, colored pens were pretty much nonexistent.
Can you imagine taking notes or writing in a planner in only black or blue?
It was pretty bleak back then.
During this time, Sakura dreamed of creating a better ink–
one that was smoother than ballpoints but not as runny as rollerballs.
They suspected that some form of gel ink was the answer.
Why? Gels are solid at rest but become liquid when moved, a property called thixotropic action.
Essentially, gel ink could combine the best aspects of oil-based ink, found in ballpoints,
and water-based ink, found in rollerballs.
After testing all sorts of gels, Sakura finally struck gold with xanthan gum.
It had the perfect ratio of viscosity and flow.
To ensure the smoothest writing experience, the company also re-engineered the ball in the pen tip
so it would have a smoother surface to match the new ink.
They also leveraged their experience with pigments to make the ink vivid.
Finally in 1984, the first gel pen, the Sakura Ballsign, was born.
The name comes from a portmanteau of “ballpoint” and “sign pen”, a Japanese term for a felt-tip pen.
Now, we’ll be taking a look at gel pens through the decades, starting with the 80s!
1980s
Following the release of the Ballsign, Sakura hoped to bring it to North America.
In order to market it as a totally new pen to Western consumers, they had to come up with a new name.
They decided on Gelly Roll, and in 1989 these remodeled Ballsign Pens hit American shelves.
The original Ballsign lives on in the Gelly Roll, and the line has since expanded to include many varieties,
including Metallic, Aqualip, Stardust, and more.
1990s
After the success of Sakura’s gel pens, other Japanese companies were eager to hop on the bandwagon.
The 90s were dominated by colored gel pens, and several iconic ones came out in this decade,
like the Uni-ball Signo UM-100 and Pilot Hi-Tec-C!
Both pens were released in 1994.
Like the Gelly Roll, the Signo inspired a popular series of gel pens,
including the UM-151, Broad UM-153, Sparkling Glitter, and more.
The Hi-Tec-C, a precise needle-point gel pen, targeted businessmen who used small planner notebooks.
It was also popular with students since it let them take notes in small spaces.
In 1998, Pilot released the G-2 in America, and it's still one of the most popular pens on the market today.
In 1996, Pentel’s Hybrid Milky pastel gel pens took the world by storm.
Inspired by correction fluid, Pentel mixed white ink with primary colors, creating soft pastel colors.
Unlike previous gel pens, it could show up on black paper.
Soon after in 1999, Zebra came out with the Super Marble, which had a swirly marbled ink effect.
Today, these vintage classics can be found in the form of Sarasa Clip Marble Color Pens.
2000s
By the end of the 90s, gel pens were becoming fairly common.
However, people realized that although gel ink had its advantages, it took a while to dry and smeared easily.
In 2000, Pentel came out with a formula that was quick-drying yet didn’t sacrifice smooth ink flow.
Popular even today, the EnerGel features an advanced blend of rollerball and gel ink.
The 2000s saw the releases of more well-loved pens, like the Zebra Sarasa Clip in 2003.
Similar to the EnerGel, the Sarasa Clip boasted smooth ink flow, fast-drying qualities, and a retractable tip.
In 2007, after decades of research, Pilot released the first “erasable” gel pen in Japan.
The FriXion’s unique ink uses three special types of chemical compounds that rely on acid-base and temperature sensitivity.
When the ink is rubbed with the hard rubber eraser,
heat from the resulting friction causes this temperature-sensing compound to activate the acid compounds and neutralize the dye.
The result is ink that virtually disappears!
2010s
In the 2010s, Japanese companies focused on expanding color availability and improving ink drying times.
Released in 2012, the Pilot Juice was marketed as an affordable gel pen that offered a ton of colors–
over 35 colors are available!
A few years later in 2016, Zebra came out with the Sarasa Dry.
While the regular Sarasa Clip dried quickly, Zebra wanted an even faster drying pen.
The Dry uses Zebra’s DRYJELL ink technology, featuring dye-based ink that dries 85% faster than conventional inks.
It’s only one of many models in the Sarasa product line!
Two years later, the company added the Sarasa Mark On, a pen that’s built to stand up to highlighting.
We highly recommend using the Mark On with Zebra Mildliners.
2020s
And now we’ve caught up to the present!
In 2020, Uni created a gel pen aimed to help students perform better.
The Uni-ball One features ink formulated with large pigment particles that stay on the surface of paper instead of getting absorbed.
The result is darker, more vivid ink that stands out on the page,
and notes that are easier to recall.
Zebra followed up with a similar concept in the Sarasa R in 2021.
Its dye-based ink has 27% more color density than the standard Sarasa ink,
so all colors looks more saturated.
We hope you enjoyed learning about the history of gel pens.
Tell us if you want to know more about Japanese stationery history!
You can find all the featured pens in the description below. Thanks for watching and see you soon!