Thursday Drops: Jetstream Prime, Kuru Toga Pencils, Zento Flow and More!

Four huge boxes arrived from Japan after making their way through customs, allowing us to finally restock on Kuru Toga and Tombow Mono “Shaker” mechanical pencils, Uni Zento Flow pens, new Jetstream Prime Pens, and, yes, more ink from Teranishi and Herbin! My favorite of these new arrivals are the all-matte-black Jetstream Prime (clip included) with a .7mm refill, and the Zento Flow “Birch”, which features a half-white, half etched aluminum barrel and a .38mm refill. Uni Jetstream ink is among the smoothest of the low-viscosity ballpoints, and the Zento gel ink has a matte texture that writes with little friction and dries extremely fast.

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The latest Uni Zento Flow arrival is this “Birch” version which features a combination white and etched aluminum barrel.

If you come visit us in store, we have testers of all these pens and more at the back of the shop to try out in person. We’re open this week Thursday and Friday from 1-6pm, and on Saturday from 10am-6pm. We hope to see you soon!

1. Kuru Toga Alpha Gel Switch Mechanical Pencil. Available in seven different colors and two tip sizes (.5mm and .3mm), the Switch features a comfortable gel grip and a switch that allows you to turn the Kuru Toga engine on and off, depending on whether you want the lead to rotate.

2. Tombow Mono Graph “Tune” Mechanical Pencil. The Tombow Mono “Shaker” style pencil now comes in four dark matte colors replete with matching matte trim.

3. Kuru Toga KS Mechanical Pencils. These entry-level Kuru Toga pencils are available again in muted pastel shades, as well as “Iron Blue” and Olive Green.

4. Uni Zento Flow Gel Pen. The Uni Zento Flow is the “mid-range” Zento, with a metal barrel that adds a touch of heft while maintaining a reasonable price point. As I mentioned above, we’ve recently added two new colors: Hematite (a dark grey) and “Birch” (a white barrel with etched aluminum finish).

5. Uni Jetstream Prime Ballpoints (including the new All Matte-Black). The Jetstream Prime is a go-to recommendation of mine for those looking for a standard “professional” ballpoint, and the new all matte-black finish with a .7mm refill might be my standard gift recommendation for graduation and holiday season.

6. Uni Jetstream Prime Lite Touch 3 Multi Pen. We have all four colors of the excellent Jetstream Prime Lite Touch 3, including the yellow and “Ivy Green” (which is definitely more like a blue). The Prime Lite Touch 3 is a three-slot multi pen that holds three Jetstream Lite Touch refills (black, blue and red). No mechanical pencil.

7. Uni Jetstream 4+1 Lite Touch Multi Pens. For those who want a mechanical pencil option, we stock the Jetstream 4+1 as well (black, blue, red, and green + .5mm mechanical pencil).

8. Uni Pure Malt “Oakwood” 4+1 Multi Pen. The “Oakwood” multi pen features a matte black barrel with a grip made from reclaimed whiskey barrels. We’re happy to have more of these unique pieces.

9. Herbin “Couleurs de Paris” Fountain Pen Inks. Colors inspired by scenes from Paris, France. Go figure that “Tour Eiffel” is the winner so far in terms of in-store popularity!

10. Teranishi Guitar Fountain Pen Inks. One of our top-selling ink line has been restocked, including favorite colors like Gentle Green, Lady Emerald, and Traveling Sepia.

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The latest addition to the Uni Jetstream Prime lineup - an all-matte-black version that includes a matte black clip similar to that found on the Prime Lite Touch 3 Multi Pen.

Comparing Two Popular Multi Pen Systems: Pilot Hi-Tec-C Coleto and Uni Style Fit

One frequent question I receive in-store (and certainly at the San Francisco Stationery Fest last month) concerns the similarities and differences between the two most popular multi pen “systems” on the market: Pilot’s Hi-Tec-C Coleto and Uni’s Style Fit. While both pens look very different, they tend to generally function in the same way and which system works best for you is largely a matter of personal preference as to tip style and ink. I'll thought it might be helpful to give a brief overview.

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The Coleto refill (left) and the Style Fit refill look very different.

Similarities Between the Hi-Tec-C Coleto and Style fit Systems

• Both use proprietary refills. The most common question I received is whether you can use a Hi-Tec-C refill in a Uni Style Fit multi pen and vice-versa. The answer is no (at least not without heavy modification that is beyond the scope of this article). Each refill uses a proprietary design that fits the pen bodies sold by Pilot and Uni, respectively. That said, oddly enough, Uni Style Fit refills will fit inside the excellent Pilot 4+1 wood multi pen.

• Both feature multiple tip sizes from .28mm to .5mm. The Hi-Tec-C Coleto and Style Fit feature a similar range of ultra-fine to fine tip sizes, which is what many people enjoy about these two systems. The Style Fit’s .28mm refill is roughly equivalent to the Hi-Tec-C Coleto’s .3mm, the .38mm to the .4mm, etc.

• Both feature a broad range of colored gel inks. Each brand offers well over a dozen colors from which you can choose (15 for the Hi-Tec-C and 16 for the Style Fit). The color ranges are similar, and most people will be able to find a rotation of colors that works for them. I personally go for a mix of blue-black, red, orange, and green.

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Conical Style Fit tip (left) and Needle-point Hi-Tec-C tip (right).

Differences Between the Hi-Tec-C Coleto and the Style Fit SYstems

• Conical vs. Needle Tip. The Hi-Tec-C’s signature feature is the needle tip, which can be hard to find in a multi pen and is therefore what makes the Coleto system unique. The Style Fit uses a standard conical tip (think Signo DX) and writes more like a traditional gel pen. While a matter of personal preference, I prefer the Hi-Tec-C for the type of writing I tend to do with multi pens.

• The refills load differently. The Hi-Tec-C refills load from the top of the pen body. You flip the cap up and insert the refills into spring-loaded slots, with the matching tabs denoting which colors you have in the pen. The Style Fit pen bodies unscrew from the middle of the barrel, and you insert the refills from the bottom. Most Style Fit bodies feature an ink window so you can see which colors you have loaded into the pen.

• Hi-Tec-C refills have a slightly greater tendency to clog. While gel refills in general are prone to evaporate over time, and it’s therefore best practice to use them regularly once you remove them from the sealed package, the Hi-Tec-C needle tip is more prone to clogging as the refill ages, particularly in the finer sizes. (.28mm, anyone?) Uni uses a slightly wetter ink formulation that tends to flow better but runs out quicker.

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Takeaways and Where to Buy

Both the Coleto and the Style Fit make excellent choices for a fine tip gel multi pen, and which specific pen will work for you ultimately depends on whether you prefer conical or needle-style tips and the feel of the respective Pilot or Uni inks. There’s not a significant cost difference, with both pens available in the $20-25 range even for the most expensive pen body with a set of refills.

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As I’ve mentioned before, the Pilot Hi-Tec-C Coleto is the multi pen that first hooked me on ultra-fine Japanese gel pens. I personally enjoy needle-tip pens like the Hi-Tec-C and the Pentel Energel, since I feel like these give me more control over my lines when I’m writing small (particularly for annotation). The .4mm refill is my personal sweet spot. That said, the Style Fit is also an excellent gel multi pen, and those who prefer a larger pen body may find the “Meister” more comfortable to hold. The navy blue pen pictured in this review is loaded with five colors in the .5mm tip size, which work well for everyday writing.

We currently carry both the Coleto and Style Fit multi pen bodies as well as refills for both systems, in our online and Nashville shops. Please stop by and see us during normal store hours for the opportunity to test these pens in person!

New Arrivals: Midori Spring Soft Colors and 1-Year Journals You Can Start Anytime!

Midori paper is among our favorite, and we’ve recently restocked on the Soft Color line just in time for Spring! We’ve previously carried the staplebound Soft Color notebooks, and have now added the wirebound spiral notebooks in five colors. Midori Soft Color paper is unique among colored paper in that it comes with a light dot grid ruling and works well with fountain pens. (Note that the notebook paper is comparable to MD Paper in thickness and is heavier stock than the Soft Color A5 notepads.) Check out these and other notebooks from the Midori and MD Product lineup, as new shipments have been arriving daily.

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We’ve also added new Midori One-Day, One-Page hardcover journals, in addition to restocking on the 5-Year Diaries. These books are all undated, meaning that you can start anytime. The 1-year journal even has an index function that lets you categorize your diary entries by subject.

We have normal shop hours in our Nashville store this week, from 1-6pm Thursday and Friday, and from 10am-6pm Saturday. Come by and see these and more!

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The Midori One-Day, One-Page interior layout with index in the bottom right-hand corner.

Sunday Reading for April 5, 2026 (Pen and Stationery Show Haul Edition)

1. 2026 Arkansas Pen Show (via Olive Octopus). Many thanks to Lisa for all her help at the table this year in Arkansas! This was a great regional show and a model for how fun and well-run smaller pen shows can be.

2. I Got Out of Hand at the Atlanta Pen Show (via dwrdnet). Derek shows off his Atlanta Pen Show haul, heavy on the custom makers.

3. Atlanta Pen Show Report and Haul (via Inkdependence). Mike breaks down the Atlanta show and all he brought home, after an epic show livestream which you should watch if you get the chance.

4. Thank You Atlanta! (via Pen Addict). By all accounts, the Atlanta Pen Show recovered after an off year last year. I’m glad to see this because I’ve enjoyed attending in the past.

5. Crazy Baltimore Pen Show Haul (via Inky.Rocks). Some really unusual finds here! Always love to see the Schon Monoc EVOs.

6. Journaling Under Stress (via Writing at Large). When journaling isn’t easy is likely when we need it the most.

7. Mechanical Pencil Roundup: March 2026 (via Urban Adventure League). There are some unusual/less common pencils in here! A great collection.

We recorded our first live episode! Watch in YouTube or on your favorite podcast app! You can also catch up on all the past episodes at the current landing page.

In Case You Missed It….

The big news from this week was the release of Episode 6 of the On The Paper Trail Podcast, which we recorded live at the San Francisco Stationery Fest. I published a separate blog post with my own impressions of the show and what I was able to take home with me, as well as an announcement about a new event we will be holding for On The Paper Trail in October. Stay tuned for more specific details in the coming weeks!

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In addition to a restock of the Taccia Ukiyo-e Fountain Pen Inks, we have this four-bottle set containing some favorites!

This Week in the T.G.S. Curated Shop - A Restock of Favorites and Some New Arrivals!

We finally received the first of several shipments that have been en route from Japan, including a full restock of Kuru Toga Alpha Gel Switch Pencils (a personal favorite), more Tombow 2558 office pencils, and Uni Pure Malt multi pens in the large “Oakwood” 4+1 format. On the ink side, we have restocks of Taccia (including the new Ukiyo-e Kinoyoshi inks), Teranishi (including more Gentle Green and Lady Emerald, two favorites), and Herbin Couleurs de Paris! We’re excited to expand our ink offerings and many of you already took advantage in our Nashville shop this weekend!

Midori 5-Year Diaries

Herbin Inks

Taccia Inks

MD Paper

We will have normal hours this week in the Nashville Store, and will be open Thursday and Friday from 1-6pm and from 10am-6pm on Saturday. If you’d like to shop by appointment, that option is available Mondays and Tuesdays using our online appointment system.

How YOu Can Support us further: AND SAVE THE DATE FOR OCTOBER 16-18, 2026 for On The paper Trail Live in Nashville!

If you enjoy our content (whether here on the main website, Instagram, YouTube Channel or elsewhere), and would like early/extra access to shop releases and special promotions, consider supporting us via Patreon. In addition to exclusive content, Discord access, and online meetups, Patreon supporters have access to one or more initial “practice” episodes of “On the Paper Trail” which have not been publicly released. Also, as we noted in yesterday’s post, we are planning an On The Paper Trail Weekend Event in Nashville the weekend of October 16-18, 2026! Stay tuned as we plan to release additional details in the coming weeks.

Unpacking the Inaugural San Francisco Stationery Fest (Literally and Figuratively), Plus Save the Date for On The Paper Trail Live in Nashville!

To be honest, I didn’t get to shop much at the 2026 San Francisco Stationery Fest that we attended last week. The show was MUCH busier than I anticipated, with crowds that approached the San Francisco Pen Show. I did get to roam a bit on Sunday and managed to collect some stamps, and I had a steady stream of attendees bringing me stickers throughout the weekend once they realized we were unable to break away. (Thank you all!) In this week’s episode of On the Paper Trail, we had an in-depth discussion of our reactions to the show and how we felt that it differed from a traditional pen show. I won’t go into all those topics again here, but the two main takeaways that stuck with me were:

• Stationery and analog tools are growing in popularity and showing no sign of slowing down. Best of all, people aren’t just collecting - they are using their stationery to plan, journal, and simply to make everyday life more enjoyable.

• The growing interest in stationery extends well beyond pens. While pens were certainly popular this weekend, the focus fell on things like washi tape, paper, rubber stamps (including free stamps that attendees could collect at tables), and stickers. It was refreshing to meet other customers and vendors who haven’t previously attended traditional pen shows.

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A couple shots of the T.G.S. and Vanness tables during setup on Friday

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We brought TGS, Vanness, and On The Paper Trail rubber stamps and well, people tested them.

While T.G.S. started as a website focused on pens and pen reviews, over the years the scope of the site (and later, the shop) expanded to cover both the traditional fountain pen community as well as other segments of the stationery world. Especially as we’ve built out core shop categories such as Roterfaden and other Notebook Systems, I’ve personally become more interested in the goings-on in the planner and general stationery community, so this particular show resonated with me in a way recent pen shows haven’t, especially the focus on using products over pure collecting and the large number of seminars, workshops, and meetups available to attendees. The organizers did a great job curating vendors and classes.

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Vendor Tokyo Seihan offered three different giant Godzilla stamps throughout the weekend, free to anyone who came by the table. Unfortunately I was only able to get one on Sunday!

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You could also buy a set of your own Godzilla stamps at their booth.

The Sleeper Hit of the Show: Multi Pens!

People always ask me: What sold well at the show? This time around, the answer was multi pens. The stationery crowd loves color, and multi pens offer the ability to quickly switch between inks and line size in a way that can be difficult with fountain pens. I brought several different multi pen “systems” with me, and based on the conversations I had with attendees and questions they asked, it might be helpful to offer a few points of clarification for those who bought a pen in San Francisco or who might otherwise be interested in further exploring this category of writing instruments:

1. Most multi pen systems use proprietary refills. The two most popular gel multi pens are the Pilot Hi-Tec-C Coleto system (famous for it’s needle-tip), and the Uni Style-Fit. While both offer a wide array of colors and tip sizes, you cannot use the refills interchangeably.

2. Ballpoint and hybrid ballpoints (i.e. Jetstream/Acroball) have limited color options. These are almost always black, blue, green, and red. The one exception is the Pilot 4+1 multi pen, which uses a Pilot multi pen refill that happens to be the same diameter as the Uni Style-Fit refill, so this excellent multi pen can use both ballpoint and gel ink! (Once I was able to demonstrate this we sold a lot of these Pilot 4+1 pens last weekend.)

3. D1 multi pens allow you to mix and match refills from different brands, though you will be limited in terms of color options. Some multi pens (namely the Lamy 2000, Pilot Legno, most Tombows, and Penco pens) use a universal D1 size, which will let you mix ballpoint and gel inks, as well as use refills from different brands. That said, D1 refills don’t usually come in the wide range of colors and tip sizes that the Uni and Pilot gel ranges offer.

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The two stars of my San Francisco Stationery Show Table, at least pen-wise.

Last But NOT LEAST: SAVE THE DATE For On The Paper Trail Live in Nashville October 16-18!

Today’s post seems as good a time as any for a fun announcement: Lisa Vanness and I will be hosting our own event in Nashville the weekend of October 16-18! While we are still finalizing details with the venue (including the final number of attendees we can accommodate and details on hotels, etc.), it’s time to go ahead and announce On the Paper Trail: Live in Nashville! We’re planning a smaller event that will focus on a select number of vendors - while still representing most major categories of stationery - along with a heavy focus on classes, seminars, and opportunities for attendees to socialize during the event and after-hours. We’ve spent a lot of time visualizing what we’d consider to be our “ideal” stationery event, and think that we’ve come up with something unique that will be enjoyable for all. We can’t wait to share the details with you - stay tuned for a follow-up announcement. In the meantime, get caught up on all SIX episodes of On the Paper Trail, our joint podcast, and we’ll probably have more to share next week when we record Episode 7!

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The Gentleman Stationer is supported by purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop and pledges via the T.G.S. Patreon Program. You can also come visit us at our physical stationery store in Nashville, Tennessee.