When Zebra added 5 new “vintage” colors to their popular line of Sarasa Clip gel pens last month, I was most excited about the color Brown Gray and immediately bought it when Tokyo Pen Shop started carrying it. Of course, being a fan of brown inks, I had to compare this new color with my other gray-ish brown gel pens, and do a quick follow-up to the previous Kurikawa vs. Coffee Brown post. This will be another color comparison post (and not a thorough review of the Zebra Sarasa Clip pen as a whole), where I will compare these 3 gel pens:
- Zebra Sarasa Clip 0.5 mm in Brown Gray (currently only available in 0.5 mm)
- Pilot Juice 0.38 mm in Coffee Brown
- Pilot Hi-Tec-C 0.4 mm in Kurikawa (Chestnut brown)
What do you think? To my eyes, Sarasa Clip’s Brown Gray looks ever so slightly lighter and more muted than the other two. Less “red” undertone, if you will. I’d say Coffee Brown has the warmest undertone, and that Brown Gray is “grayer” than Kurikawa but with a hint of a little more yellow. Again, on a casual glance, you might not see the difference, but when you put larger shaded areas side by side, you will be able to see the nuances of each color.
From left: Coffee Brown, Kurikawa, and Brown Gray.
I don’t usually like the “standard” brown colors found in many gel pen lines, so a soft brown like this Brown Gray has been a welcome addition to my pen cup. I really love the color, and I hope they never discontinue it. Good thing it’s different enough from Kurikawa and Coffee Brown, too!
Related Links
In case you’re wondering, the Sarasa Clip in vintage colors is identical to the Sarasa Clip in “regular” colors, except that the barrel is opaque and the label on the clip has changed slightly and is printed in gold. It’s a solid, dependable writer that I’ve been using for years now, and this particular color “Brown Gray” seems no different in terms of ink flow and performance. For reviews of the pen itself, here are some links: