Inks are classified by color into premium blue-black, premium red, premium pure blue, and drafting black ink. Quality is evaluated in two aspects: intrinsic and appearance.
Intrinsic Quality Tests
1. Color. The color should be vibrant. After oxidation in air, blue-black ink should gradually turn from blue to black.
2. Fluidity. Writing should be smooth. After pausing, writing should resume without skipping.
3. Water Resistance. Written characters, after 24 hours of air oxidation followed by 24 hours of water immersion, should remain clearly legible.
4. Spread and Penetration. Ink should not spread on single-sided glossy office paper, and should not bleed through double-sided glossy paper (typing paper).
5. Sunlight Fastness. Characters exposed to direct sunlight should not fade.
6. Insoluble Content. Sediment in 10 ml of ink should not exceed 0.2 mm² to pass.
7. Stability. Within an 18-month shelf life, the same quality should be maintained without change.
Appearance quality requires firm, tidy packaging, attractive labeling, tightly sealed caps, and no leakage when inverted or shaken.
How to Identify Premium Ballpoint Pens (Refills)
According to China's Ballpoint Pen Industry Committee, high-grade ballpoint pens must use refills with metal ink tubes and archival-quality ink approved for document writing. Models like the Fenghua 92C, 110, and 441 series, and the Hero 400 series, all use refills certified for archival use.
Characteristics of Authentic Premium Ballpoint Pens
1. Must use metal-tube refills with tungsten-carbide ball tips for superior writing performance. The ink must be the officially designated 424 pure blue or 322 black archival ink, which is lightfast, waterproof, and non-bleeding. These have been approved by the National Archives Administration and the General Offices of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council for archival document writing.
2. The pen barrel bears a clear brand logo and model number. The refill tip is marked with the brand, production date, and the DA mark (DA is the pinyin abbreviation for dang'an, meaning archives).
3. The packaging shows the brand, model, manufacturer, place of origin, and quality inspection certificate.
How to Spot Counterfeits
Counterfeit products use ink not recognized by the National Archives, lack the DA mark on the refill, and have no brand, model, or manufacturer identification. Some use smuggled unbranded refills assembled to pass as imported premium ballpoints.
Inspection checklist:
1. Check the pen for brand and model markings — are they clear and complete?
2. Check the refill for brand, production date, and the visible DA mark.
3. Write a few characters or draw several lines. DA-marked blue refills produce pure blue, vibrant writing; DA-marked black refills produce black-gray writing. If the color does not match these descriptions, the ink is not genuine archival quality and the product is counterfeit — unfit for archival document writing.