4 Sept 2012

review: pilot feed gp4

Today, I'm bringing you a review of the Pilot Feed GP4. I'm really eager to try the Pilot Coleto (because @icclewu and Mish Mash Muddle both have been singing its praises on Twitter and on their blogs) so I emailed Pilot Pens to ask if they were planning on stocking it in the UK. Unfortunately, the reply was that they weren't planning on releasing it to the UK market but they did send me this Feed GP4 instead.

Although similar in that it is also a multi-barrel pen, it differs in that it is a ballpoint pen as opposed to gel ink.


The design is nice and not too thick, but not thin either - as is the case with most other multi-barrel pens. I like the blue see-through design and the grip is a pleasure to hold. It is easy to click each colour into place for use too.

Here is how the pen writes (on Oxford notepaper):


Each of the colours write very smoothly and the colours are as expected. And this is how it looks overleaf (unfortunately, the picture is a little out of focus!):


No show-through and no bleeding - for obvious reasons; it's a ballpoint pen! 

One particularly thing I do like is that when you pop the nib into use, there is a stripe above the nib which confirms the colour in place. You'll see what I mean in the next picture:


I love this stripe because it's is an added design feature. Although the functionality of this stripe is debatable (as it's pretty clear to see at the top of the pen as to what colour is in place), I've not noticed this design feature on any other pen.

The barcode and sticker that was on the pen - for anyone interested :) 
And finally, a demonstration of how well it writes on Filofax cotton cream plain notepaper:


And overleaf:

Nothing! Looks as clean as a whistle!

Overall, the pen will appeal to both women and men. The colours aren't overly girly or masculine and nor is the design. It is particularly good for people who want to cut down the number of pens they carry round for the purpose of colour-coding. Another feature I like is that the barrels can be replaced when the ink has ran out - a pen being eco-friendly does win points in my book.

The ink flow is excellent - this is a pen that will start writing as soon as you pick it up. You don't need to do a few scribbles to get the flow started; so in that sense, it is ideal for every situation - work, lectures, school, etc.

Having done a quick Google for the price of this pen, I found them on Cult Pens for the monstrous price of £5.39 each. That's quite expensive for a ballpoint - even if there are four colours. For this price, I think I'd rather get the Coleto from abroad and risk customs duty and whatnot.

Although this pen is excellent in terms of its functionality and quality, the price will be a major hurdle for many people who are on the market for a multi-coloured barrel pen.

* even though I was sent this pen to review, this does not affect the neutrality of this post. 

2 comments

  1. I read Babs' review of the Coleto and was dying to get my hands on one too! I ordered it off StationeryArt.com, only to realize my local stores had it (and I have an automatic 15% off too! Argh!). Will review it when it gets here.. hope it lives up to the good reviews :)

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    1. Looking forward to seeing your review! I was hoping to get one later this year but that plan has appeared to have been scuppered due to something that's come up :( will have to wait til next year now! x

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