The Refill Compatibility Guide: Ballpoint Pen Edition

Have you noticed lately that your favourite ballpoint pen has been giving you a less than stellar writing experience? It may be time to give it a fresh refill and get it writing smoothly again. Not sure which refill is the correct one for your pen? Fret not! Below is an quick reference chart to finding the right refill for your pen.

Brand Pen Type Refill Type
Anterique BP1 / BP2 series Anterique R-BP1
Caran d'Ache 849 / Ecridor / Leman / Varius series Caran d'Ache Goliath series
Caran d'Ache 888 series Caran d'Ache SwissRide series
Cross Click series Cross 8783 Slim Ballpoint Refill
Cross Peerless 125 / Townsend series Cross Classic (81xx / 85xx) series**
Diplomat Aero / Excellence series Parker-type G2 Refill*
Faber Castell Ambition / e-Motion / Essentio / Grip Plus / Hexo / Neo-Slim / Poly Ball series Parker-type G2 Refill*
Ferris Wheel Press Scribe series Cross Classic (81xx / 85xx) series**
Fisher Space Pen Bullet / Clutch series Fisher Space Pen Pressurized Refill
Graf von Faber Castell Classic / Guilloche / Tamitio series Parker-type G2 Refill*
Kaweco Original / Special / Student series Parker-type G2 Refill*
Kaweco Liliput / Sport series D1-type Mini Refill***
Krama Twist Action series Parker-type G2 Refill*
Lamy 2000 / CP1 series Multi-Pens D1-type Mini Refill***
Lamy 2000 / Aion / AL-Star / CP1 / Ideos / Logo / Safari / Scala / Studio / Xevo series Lamy M16 series
Lamy Pico series Lamy M22 series
Legendär Twyst series Parker-type G2 Refill*
Mitsubishi Uni Jetstrem series Multi-Pens Mitsubishi SXR-80 series
Parker Duofold / Jotter / Sonnet series Parker-type G2 Refill*
Pelikan K20x / K40x / K60x / K80x series Parker-type G2 Refill*
Retro51 Tornado series Parker-type G2 Refill*
Visconti Impressionist series Parker-type G2 Refill*
Waterman Carène / Expert / Hémisphère series Waterman standard refill
ystudio Brassing / Classic series Parker-type G2 Refill*

Compatibility Across Brands

You may have noticed that some of the refills are repeated across brands, which we have marked with asterisks. This is because many pen makers have opted to use a “standard” refill for their pens so that it can be easier for their customers to find replacements. Do note, however, that “standard” is a term we use loosely when referring to refills, as there are still quite a few different ones. Nonetheless, by designing their pens to be fitted with one of these ballpoint pen refills, it allows users to try out a few different ones to find that one that has the optimal line width, quick-dry speed, or smoothness to suit their preferences.

*Parker-type G2 Refill

Popularized by Parker for their ballpoint pens, this type refill is amongst the easiest to find and is readily available from many brands. The Parker-type G2 ballpoint refill is distinguished by the the notched plastic cap at the top end. This notch is often used by many pen makers to work with a push-button or twist mechanism that allows the writing tip to extend or retract. Parker-type G2 ballpoint refills can be found from the following brands, and any pen that accepts a Parker-type G2 ballpoint refill can be fitted with a refill from any of the brands mentioned below:

  • DIPLOMAT: Easyflow 508 (in Black and Blue)

  • FABER CASTELL (in Black and Blue)

  • LEUCHTTURM1917: Drehgriffel Refill (in Black and Blue)

  • MONTEVERDE (in Black and Blue)

  • PARKER: Quinkflow (in Black and Blue)

  • PELIKAN (in Black and Blue)

  • RETRO51 (in Black and Blue)

  • SCHMIDT: Easyflow 9000 (in Black and Blue)

In addition, a few of these brands also make a Parker-type G2 gel ink refill, which is perfect for those who desire an ultra smooth ink refill for their ballpoint pens.

  • LEUCHTTURM1917: Drehgriffel Gel Refill (in Black)

  • MONTEVERDE: Capless Gel Ink Refill for Parker-type Pens (in Green)

  • PARKER: Quink Gel Ballpoint Refill (in Black and Blue)

**Cross-type Classic Refill

The Cross-type Classic ballpoint refill is most commonly found in slimmer ballpoint pens with a retractable mechanism, and are offered by the following brands:

  • CROSS: Classic 81xx & 85xx Series (in Black and Blue)

  • FERRIS WHEEL PRESS: Scribe (in Black, Blue, and Teal)

Confusingly, the refill called the Cross “Slim” ballpoint refill is actually wider than the more commonly found Cross Classic ballpoint refill. To avoid confusion, we recommend holding on to your old refill and bringing it along with you when you go shopping for a replacement. It makes it much easier to match and ascertain the correct refill this way.

The Cross Classic ballpoint pen refill (shown on the right) is the more commonly used pen refill across several pen manufacturers.

***D1-type Mini Refills

Most commonly used in multi-pens and pocket ballpoint pens, the D1-type mini ballpoint refill is a shorter, super slim refill made by the following brands:

  • LAMY: M21 (in Black, Blue, Green and Red)

  • MONTEVERDE (in Black, Blue, Brown, Green, and Purple)

If you still have trouble identifying the refill you need for your pen, shoot us an email! We’re happy to give you a hand and help to get your pen back in tip-top writing condition again.

Elsa Tang