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What is the best pen to write with in exams where you have to write essays?

Didnt really know where else to put this.

I havnt got the neatest of handwriting. When I sit exams where I have to write 2 or 3 short essays in the space of 2hours I often find I start to run out of time and rush.

Obviously this is partly down to myself writing far too much sometimes, but I was just wondering the best types of pens that let you write quickly over long periods that doesnt make your hand ache.

Fountain pens are out of the question because they are messey.

Can anyone recommend a good pen? Or is it just simple old fashiond blue/black bic.

I hate pens that soak through to the next page etc.

Its hard to find a good pen!!

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Reply 1
Gel pens are good
Reply 2
Svenssen
Didnt really know where else to put this.

I havnt got the neatest of handwriting. When I sit exams where I have to write 2 or 3 short essays in the space of 2hours I often find I start to run out of time and rush.

Obviously this is partly down to myself writing far too much sometimes, but I was just wondering the best types of pens that let you write quickly over long periods that doesnt make your hand ache.

Fountain pens are out of the question because they are messey.

Can anyone recommend a good pen? Or is it just simple old fashiond blue/black bic.

I hate pens that soak through to the next page etc.

Its hard to find a good pen!!


hi :smile:
i really like the whsmith blue ink biros they are their own brand and they cost about £1 something for 10 or 20. they are really good and lovely to write with, they are smoothe and nice :smile:

good luck with your exams

:smile:
Them black/blue and yellow striped pens from whsmith are good, bought some of them (25p each) and some bics (40p) and the whsmith ones are much more comfortable! Wrote about 8 essays on monday with them and did 5 and a half hours of test with them today, i normally get hand cramp with the bics but with them pens I didn't! i love them lol :biggrin:
Reply 4
I have the same dilemma but I'm going to use one I got from WHSmith called "Paper mate Flexgrip Ultra". Its good because I can write fast in it, its comfortable but also makes my handwriting neater (its still terrible though :tongue:)
It depends on the pressure you use when writing (Yep, I'm a pen connoisseur, I've had problems with my handwriting too.)

I tend to press down really hard, and as a result I get serious cramping in my hand! The best pens for me are ones that sort of slide over the page, rather than having to move it myself too much, do you see what I mean?

Anyway, the best pen I've found is the WHSmith cheapy pen, the one that you can get in packs of about 2 million, along with the red and blue pens. The shaft is easy to grip (;D) and the ink is really nice and slippy.

Cheap, too. :biggrin:

EDIT: Wow!! Everyone recommends these pens! :biggrin:
Reply 6
milly.
Gel pens are good


I would not recommend gel pens to someone with messy handwriting.

Thin nib ballpoint pens are the way to go imo.
Reply 7
A pen that is unlikely to run out or blotch is always good
Reply 8
Yay
Whsmith Ones Are Sooo Cool! Everyone Loves Them!! :smile:
Reply 9
Standard medium black bic FTW
uniball eye micro
Reply 11
I echo the WH Smith 15 for £1.99 (although there was 25% off them when I bought some a couple of weeks ago) pens. Used them since GCSE and I wouldn't use any others!
Reply 12
i always stick with the good old-fashioned biro. i don't understand how people can use fountain pens! :s-smilie:
Reply 13
superman!
hi :smile:
i really like the whsmith blue ink biros they are their own brand and they cost about £1 something for 10 or 20. they are really good and lovely to write with, they are smoothe and nice :smile:

good luck with your exams

:smile:


yeah those are really good but parker pens not the fountain ones the other ones are fantastic too gel pens smudge if you put your hand over it so don't do that
Reply 14
I use a cheap fountain pen, with a pocket full of spare ink cartridges, not that I ever use them being a science student. + a biro in case of emergencies.
Also a lover of W H Smith biros, been getting a massive pack of all different colour biros every term since forever and they are always brilliant for revision and actual exams :smile:
Reply 16
Not only is my handwriting messy but I also write quite strangely in that I sort of bend my hand to the right meaning that my hand moves over every line I write and if I don't use pens where the ink drys straight away then I get smudges everywhere. I can never use fountain pens or gel ink ones as a result even just normally as the ink will go everywhere.

I've found whsmiths pens are pretty good and just tend to buy cheapo biros from them, whsmith ftw :biggrin:
Reply 17
This thread has made me want to go buy some of those WHSmith ones. I too suffer from pen/hand problems.
milly.
Gel pens are good


You aren't allowed to use gel pens in exams, something to do with them not scanning properly.
Reply 19
plain old bic pens are the way to go, easy to write fast with, dont smudge and can write thinly