Can I Get a Refill?

January 29, 2015 5:27 PM

I have a Cross Classic Century pen that came with a standard Cross ballpoint ink refill installed. I don't like the ballpoint refill. Do I have any options when it comes to other (read: better) refills that will work with this pen?

I don't like how imprecisely the included ballpoint refill writes. My go-to pens are usually Zebra Sarasa gel-tips, uniball Jetstreams, and uniball Signo 207s. I guess Cross offers some gel refills for the Classic Century; are those compatible? Are they any good? I'm open to ideas (and they don't all have to be gel-tip refills). Thanks!

posted by roomwithaview to Media & Arts (3 answers total)

You could get Fisher Space Pen refills (scroll down to C1 - C4F) that fit Cross pens.
posted by Rob Rockets at 5:50 PM on January 29, 2015

Try the fine point. That is probably my favourite pen in the world, and I have always thrown away the medium point it comes with -- terrible; I think you need an extremely heavy hand for it? -- and put in the (Cross branded) fine point. To me, the medium is something for the bin, but the fine point is 'best pen ever.' I don't know how well this would work for somebody who doesn't default to fine point? I am not much of a gel pen fancier. My second favourite pen is the Zebra mini T3, which has a not dissimilar finer point (and holds like a child's version of a Cross Classic Century).
posted by kmennie at 7:21 PM on January 29, 2015

There aren't a lot of options for Cross pen refills. The space pen refills are pretty good and Monteverde makes some in unusual colors, but I end up using the Cross brand ones most of the time. None can equal a Parker gel or anything from Japan...
posted by mmoncur at 2:53 AM on January 30, 2015