Converting a Sensa Rollerball to a Ballpoint---Urgent

Hello. I am the proud owner of a Sensa Rollerball, and I love it.
However, I will be taking an exam soon which will be using those
little blue exam booklets, which have very thin paper. I know that
the ink from the rollerball will bleed through, and I have been warned
about this. So, my question is, can I somehow convert my Sensa
Rollerball into a ballpoint using some sort of ballpoint
refill/adapter, etc.? I am crafty, too, so I could even modify
something that almost fits, if necessary.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

wrote:

Hello. I am the proud owner of a Sensa Rollerball, and I love it.
However, I will be taking an exam soon which will be using those
little blue exam booklets, which have very thin paper. I know that
the ink from the rollerball will bleed through, and I have been warned
about this.

When I wrote essays in those bluebooks, I always used a fountain pen
with a medium nib and had no problems. However, lately I have noticed
the new supplier at my university is using thinner paper and I'll bet
it's similar to the ones you have. I decided to write in one correcting
the mistakes with my fp using Platinum red ink and noticed that it was
clearly visible on the other side of the paper. So I can understand why
you want to avoid this.

So, my question is, can I somehow convert my Sensa
Rollerball into a ballpoint using some sort of ballpoint
refill/adapter, etc.? I am crafty, too, so I could even modify
something that almost fits, if necessary.

I am not familiar with the model that you have, so I really can't
elaborate on how you can modify the mechanism to achieve the results
that you desire. However, since most rollerball pens use a water based
ink which, usually comes in cartridges, or converters so you can use
bottled ink. Whereas, the ball-point pen uses a much more narrow
cartridge to hold it's supply of ink. Nonetheless, the size difference
would require that you find an insert of the same length because if you
try and force it into the pen, or you could end up damaging it.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,


Let is know how this endeavor goes?


--
Sincerely yours,

Ron Wilbanks

"Like a prized watch, a good fountain pen is a trusted companion for life."

Spam filter: -1 for the real thing!

In article ,
wrote:

So, my question is, can I somehow convert my Sensa
Rollerball into a ballpoint using some sort of ballpoint
refill/adapter, etc.?

Almost certainly as it looks like it's a standard size
(measure it and it's easier to say for certain, it's 6 mm
diameter, isn't it?).

Seems likely a Pilot G-2 gel refill will fit without any
modification.

Fisher has a large ballpoint refill they call Space Ball
which is supposed to fit lots of different rollerballs.
Sensa isn't mentioned on their web site, but to me it
looks like your refill is like Rotring's and then it
should fit.

If the above fit, then it's also not a major piece of work
to get a Parker ballpoint refill to fit, will just need
spacers at both ends.
If they don't I guess there are lots of long thin
refills which can be adapted.
--
Urban Fredriksson
Favourite pens and inks: http://www.canit.se/%7Egriffon/writing/

Hi.

A Pilot G-2 will fit, but only if you trim about 1/16" off the end so the
retract mechanism will work properly. Take the end cap out (it won't leak),
and use a sharp knife to trim off a bit at a time until the refill retracts
properly.

Good luck.

Bob
wrote in message
om...
Hello. I am the proud owner of a Sensa Rollerball, and I love it.
However, I will be taking an exam soon which will be using those
little blue exam booklets, which have very thin paper. I know that
the ink from the rollerball will bleed through, and I have been warned
about this. So, my question is, can I somehow convert my Sensa
Rollerball into a ballpoint using some sort of ballpoint
refill/adapter, etc.? I am crafty, too, so I could even modify
something that almost fits, if necessary.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Yes, the cartidge is 6mm wide, and a total of 109mm long. Thanks again!


) wrote in message . com...
Hello. I am the proud owner of a Sensa Rollerball, and I love it.
However, I will be taking an exam soon which will be using those
little blue exam booklets, which have very thin paper. I know that
the ink from the rollerball will bleed through, and I have been warned
about this. So, my question is, can I somehow convert my Sensa
Rollerball into a ballpoint using some sort of ballpoint
refill/adapter, etc.? I am crafty, too, so I could even modify
something that almost fits, if necessary.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

"Robert T. McCrory" wrote:

| Hi.
|
| A Pilot G-2 will fit, but only if you trim about 1/16" off the end so
the
| retract mechanism will work properly. Take the end cap out (it won't
leak),
| and use a sharp knife to trim off a bit at a time until the refill
retracts
| properly.

I do this, but trim just a tiny hair more and put the end cap back! I
figure if Pilot had it on there, there is a reason. In these cost
cutting days, they would not use an end cap if it wasn't needed. I
figure it gives the refill structural integrity while being retracted.

I wonder, though, if a G2 will bleed through that cheap blue book paper
any less than a Sensa rollerball. The 5 will do so less, but has more
drag than the 7.

Why not buy a Parker Jotter (perhaps you already have one?) or use any
pen that used the Jotter sized refill and use the Parker gel ballpoint
sized refills? Just be aware that about six to seven pages of intense
writing is enough to do some (but not all) of those babies in. Take
extras!

And out of curiosity, what colour of ink do students USE these days?
Is blue or black preferred still? And if so, is there a preference for
one or the other? Are other colours even allowed? Are laptops allowed
instead? If so, must you use one the school provides just for the
exam? What if laptops are encouraged, can you still write if you
prefer? If so, do you think this affects grades in the absence of
other differences in scholastic performance?

john cline ii, who both hopes this helps and wonders

Here's what I did. I went into my local Crane paper store, where they
sell Sensa pens. I confronted them with the issue, and a helpful
manager brought out a Montblanc ballpoint refill, which was just as
fat as the rollerball refill. It was, though, about 1/3 of an inch
too long. I bought it ($6), took it home, and proceeded to little by
little trim some of the back plastic end cap off. On the business end
of the cartridge, to keep the spring from sliding too far up the shaft
of the ink cartridge (and thus preventing it from doing its job), I
put some scotch tape around the cartridge so that the spring could not
slide up past a point. Once I got the front and the back of the
Montblanc cartridge in sync, it worked like a charm. It fit
perfectly! Advances and retracts as smoothly as if it came from the
Sensa factory.

Please let me know what you think of this.....

P.S. To the person who asked about what colors students use for
exams, I think people take black ink the most seriously. It is a law
exam, and we have a term: "the black-letter law", which means that it
is the bedrock indisputable standard. So why not make my work in
"black letters" as well?


) wrote in message . com...
Hello. I am the proud owner of a Sensa Rollerball, and I love it.
However, I will be taking an exam soon which will be using those
little blue exam booklets, which have very thin paper. I know that
the ink from the rollerball will bleed through, and I have been warned
about this. So, my question is, can I somehow convert my Sensa
Rollerball into a ballpoint using some sort of ballpoint
refill/adapter, etc.? I am crafty, too, so I could even modify
something that almost fits, if necessary.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

wrote;

| P.S. To the person who asked about what colors students use for
| exams, I think people take black ink the most seriously. It is a law
| exam, and we have a term: "the black-letter law", which means that it
| is the bedrock indisputable standard. So why not make my work in
| "black letters" as well?

Good for you! Smart judgment. If this is law school, perhaps after
you get out AND pass the bar, you can enrage, amuse, astound, stun and
confound your colleagues by writing with emerald green in addition to
Aurora Black and Blue and Mont Blanc Blue-Black. And astound, etc.,
your fountain pen friends by using Parker Jotters with green refills
and BIC pens, especially old black Clics, M10's given you by a fine
friend, and the ORANGE barrelled fine point stics, as well...

Congratulations on your adaption! Sounds neat, and since it works, it
passed the ultimate test!

john cline ii who knows this, uh.....cause he read it in a book?

I know it's too late to be any help now, but doesn't Cross make a
ballpoint refill to fit rollerball pen bodies?

David

"Dave" wrote:

| I know it's too late to be any help now, but doesn't Cross make a
| ballpoint refill to fit rollerball pen bodies?

Well, they sell one labelled Cross, made in Germany. Probably bought
from Pelikan. Called the JUMBO, it writes very well.

But our original poster wanted to transform his Sensa. Not
interchangeable. The Cross JUMBO is way larger than anything that
would fit inside the Sensa!

john cline ii, who hopes that helps