The origin of the ballpoint pen
To thoroughly understand the difference between ballpoint pens and gel pens, it is necessary to start with the origin and manufacture of ballpoint pens.
The world's first ballpoint pen came out in 1888 and was invented by American John Lauder. Like the current ballpoint pen, its pen tip is divided into a ball on the pen tip and a ball seat. When people are writing, the ball The amount of ink is controlled by scrolling, and the writing speed of different people is matched to make the text appear vividly on the paper. This experience of smooth strokes completely changed people's calligraphy at that time.
Although people have an excellent writing experience, the experience created by workers is completely different, and it can even be said to be a kind of torture. This is the core of the ballpoint pen-the pen is the fault, and the pen is undoubtedly the worst part of the whole pen. The most important part is that the ball must be very wear-resistant in order to withstand frequent usage, so workers need to carefully select tungsten carbide (or brass or steel) as the raw material, which is second only to diamond in hardness, and to Raw materials are ground into small particles little by little, and then they are spread on a board with grooves. There should be no error in the small particles, and there should be no error in the groove where the small particles lie flat, and it should not exceed 3 microns. Accurate access to circular grooves, and that's just the beginning.
Next, the workers have to soak the small particles in a slippery mixture, which contains powdered diamonds, and wait for the diamond powder to grind off the corners of the small particles. This process requires the workers to wait patiently until the small particles become smooth. round and light.
Finally, the ultimate test before the debut of the small ball is to be carried out. The test standard is whether the small ball is too smooth, because if it is too smooth, it will not stick to the ink, resulting in the ballpoint pen being empty but unable to write. Therefore, this ultimate The test is not a one-time test, but repeated torment for many times, until the smoothness of the small ball reaches a just standard, the workers can stop.
After completing the above-mentioned complicated steps, the time has been consumed intermittently for dozens of hours. Presumably, the workers have also put in a lot of effort. It is reported that there are more than 20 processes in the complete manufacturing process, which shows the accuracy of ballpoint pen manufacturing. extremely high.
Then everyone must be curious, which countries can undertake such an epic task for such an elaborate production project?
At present, there are only three countries in the world that have mastered the manufacturing technology of ballpoint pens, namely China, Switzerland and Japan. However, my country is ahead of the curve. It took only a few decades from research and development to independent production of ballpoint pens. At present, ballpoint pens account for 80% of the global market. You may think that as the "leader", we make a lot of profits in this process, but in fact the opposite is true, because the price of an ordinary ballpoint pen is not expensive, so the profit is very low, even though our country produces a large number of ballpoint pens every year There are tens of billions of pens, and the final profit may be only tens of millions. Therefore, it is a thankless job in a sense, and this is also destined to replace the ballpoint pen as a product of the past.
Gel pen identity analysis
Gel pens can be divided into bullet type, needle tube type, and semi-needle tube according to the tip of the pen; gel pens can be divided into basic color gel pens and special color gel pens according to the use of ink color. If the place is classified, it can be divided into gel pens for documents and ordinary writing gel pens; if the gel pens are classified according to the structure, they can be divided into plug-type gel pens and press-type gel pens.
A gel pen is a ballpoint pen between a water-based pen and an oil-based pen. This kind of pen is smoother to write than a ballpoint pen, has a better hand feel, and the relative viscosity of the ink is very low. For gel pens, its writing properties are defined as water-based, which is usually called a rollerball pen, but it is better to use than a fountain pen, and its application is relatively extensive.
Gel pen, the abbreviation of neutral ink ballpoint pen, originated in Japan and is a novel writing tool that is currently popular in the world. According to the type of nib, ink color, structure, etc., it can be divided into different types of gel pens, so you can generally choose according to your own needs.
With the development of the information age, people seldom write, but careful friends may have discovered that ballpoint pens have gradually been replaced by gel pens. The problem lies in the oily ink of ballpoint pens. If the ink is not stored properly, it is very likely In the process of writing, it suddenly gets stuck and the ink does not come out. Even if there is no such bug, the ink itself is not easy to dry, and it is not easy to clean if it gets on your hands or clothes accidentally.
The gel pen has no such defect. Its ink has a lower viscosity. It not only feels more comfortable to write, it is not easy to smudge when exposed to water, and it has a longer storage time. Therefore, it can gradually replace the position of the ballpoint pen and get more and more people. favorite.
Difference between ball pen and gel pen
There are many differences between gel pens and ballpoint pens. For example, their nibs are different. The nibs of gel pens are generally bullets, full needles or half needles, and the nibs of ballpoint pens are steel balls. The refills are also different. The refill of a gel pen is made of ink, so its shape looks thick. The refill of a ballpoint pen is made of ink, so its shape looks slender. The gel pen is also slowly upgraded from a ballpoint pen. Come, the purpose is to make our writing more comfortable, smooth, and labor-saving, and the fonts are more beautiful.
A ballpoint pen is a pen that uses a tiny rotating ball made of brass, steel, or tungsten carbide to release ink onto the paper as you write. The gel pen has the advantages of both the water pen and the oil-based ballpoint pen. The oily substance at the end of the gel pen core is called gel pen tail oil lithium ester, which can moisturize and seal well and prevent the ink from evaporating or overflowing. When writing, the lithium-based ester can follow up at any time like a piston, and use atmospheric pressure to press down the ink to keep the gel pen writing smoothly until the ink is finished. The gel pen feels comfortable to write, the viscosity of the ink is low, and an appropriate lubricant is added. The viscosity of the writing medium is between water and oil, and it is smoother than ordinary ballpoint pens. Compared with ballpoint pens, gel pens have more advantages in use. Now People are also using gel pens more and more. Each pen has its own advantages and disadvantages, and it is also important to choose the right pen according to personal preferences.
