I'm a big fan of Pilot G2 Pens. They don't seem to dry out as quick as other pens, they're refillable, and they're commonly available for $4-5 for a pack of 4 or 5 or 6 (depending on what their promotion is at the time). The G2 Pilot Pens are made of plastic, retractable, and includes a nice chunky rubber grip. The G2 Pros are little more professional looking, using a slightly heavier plastic, and chromed pieces to give it more of a upscale appearance.
Mont Blanc is one of the brands of very expensive pens that you always see located behind glass cases. There's some renown in them in having some of the finest writing instruments in the world,
Now instructables has put together a tutorial on how to transform a G2 Pilot Pen into a $200 Mont Blanc Pen (they claim $200, I've seen Mont Blancs be available for less than $90) by replacing the Pilot G2 Refill with a Mont Blanc refill ($10 for a package of 2) and snipping off the end of the plastic cap.
Since G2s are pretty much all I use, I've got plenty of empty shells of pens lying around waiting to be refilled, so I gave it a try. It works. You don't even need to cut the end of the tip off if you're happy with not retracting the tip back in. This also works with other Pilot pens that can use the G2 gel ink refill cartridge -- such as the G6.
The G2 and the Mont Blanc feel more smooth than a regular ballpoint pen.
The Pilot V's always felt a little too much like a marker than a pen for my taste.
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