How to track down this particular highlighter?

July 31, 2011 8:47 PM

I got a brand-less highlighter some time ago at a trade show booth, and it's the perfect highlighter, but it's running out and I would like to replace it. However, I've only found it where it seems you have to order by the thousands.

http://www.oneinhundred.com/Wholesale-China/Wholesale-Highlighter/Liquid-highlighter--bubble-in-liquid-floats-as-you-write--quick-drying-and-odorless--62014.htm

http://www.ec-promos.com/pro/v2291b/v2305t1c/liquid-highlighter_360172.html

Is there a way to track this down at a retail store or get them to sell me only a box of it? Anyone know how buying promotional items works?

(Reasons it's perfect: Regular-sized barrel, doesn't bleed through the page, odorless, long-lasting, can see the cool liquid swishing around in the transparent barrel. If it seems obsessive... you're right.. but it just feels right and I get pretty picky about my writing utensils)

thanks!

posted by elif to Shopping (11 answers total)

I've had liquid-ink highlighters that looked pretty much exactly like those that I found in the office supply section of Wal-mart and the like. Have you tried any of those to see if they're similar?
posted by Captain Cardanthian! at 8:55 PM on July 31, 2011

Sharpie makes a pretty awesome liquid based highlighter. Can't recall if it smells or not, though.
posted by mollymayhem at 8:56 PM on July 31, 2011

I use the Sharpie ones too -- I love them. I don't think they smell.
posted by la petite marie at 8:58 PM on July 31, 2011

Response by poster: thanks mollymayhem, i'll try that-- the sharpie ones i've used before all bled through.
posted by elif at 9:54 PM on July 31, 2011

Best answer: I used to work for a promotional products retailer - call them up. We used to sell blanks to customers all the time. They only have such high minimums because 1- it costs them money to imprint them, 2- they're intended to be sold in bulk.
posted by pinksoftsoap at 11:19 PM on July 31, 2011

Here are approximately 100 reviews of the Sharpie liquid highlighters.

These Staples highlighters look almost identical to your example.

I also love Muji highlighters and the Pilot Spotliter 2 (each highlighter has two different nibs on each end - one with a chisel/broad style, and one with a narrow pen style). These Uniball Propus Window highlighters are really nice too.

Definitely send them an email; I loved a promo pen once, and the company sent me a bunch of misprints!
posted by barnone at 1:14 AM on August 1, 2011

I like the Brite Liner for similar reasons, and the Brite Liner Z4 might be even closer to your preferences.
posted by gjc at 5:35 AM on August 1, 2011

My favorite visible liquid ink highlighter used to be the Uni-Blazer View, but it's been discontinued. Some leftover stock is available on eBay.
posted by tommasz at 6:02 AM on August 1, 2011

I also use the Bic Briteliner Z4. Love it. The blue bled through, the rest of the colors were great.
posted by magnetsphere at 6:28 AM on August 1, 2011

I would advise against the Sharpie liquid highlighters. Speaking as a highlighter snob, they're a bit of a rip-off. There is almost no ink in the pens. If you look at mollymayhem's link, you see a little segment between the see-through part and the actual barrel of the highlighter, which is thicker. That little segment is literally all of the ink you get. I used them to highlight the history books I read, and it didn't even last a book.

I like the Zazzle highlighters much better. They're liquid, you can see the ink swish around, and the tip is a little smaller than the usual chunky highlighters. The barrel is pen-sized, not kindergarten-marker-sized. They don't bleed through paper (even cheap book paper), and they generally last me a book and a half... so maybe 450 pages. I used to buy them at any office supply store, but I've had a hard time finding them anywhere but amazon lately.
posted by lilac girl at 10:30 AM on August 1, 2011 [1 favorite]

Back when I used to buy promo stuff for companies I worked for, you could always get samples from the place that printed them. That might have changed - it's been a long time - but I don't see why it would. They might have some company's name on them (either extras or misprints), but they'll work fine.
posted by still_wears_a_hat at 2:14 PM on August 1, 2011