Gelly Roll by Sakura
The Original Gel Ink
Classic, Metallics, Moonlight, StardustINVENTION OF GEL INK
The history of the gel-based ink rollerball pen began over 30 years ago. In the late 1970’s most writing instrument companies started producing a new technology known as the rollerball pen. Rollerball pens used a water-based fluid ink in comparison to the then popular ballpoint pen which used a thick oil-based ink. In Japan, the local market already had several strong rollerball competitors, and there were numerous overseas brands from the U.S. and European markets. The Sakura Color Products Corporation, located in Osaka, Japan, also wanted to develop a rollerball pen, but wanted to advance the technology further. Sakura decided to go after what no other company had been successful in creating - a gel-based ink. Within the industry, gel inks were discussed as a possible revolutionary development, but no research and development (R&D) team had yet successfully achieved a working formulation.