The Pen Addict

Muji Aluminum Pen Case and Needle Tip Gel Review

My pen friends are the best, and Carmen (@ccorrada) might be the leader of the pack. Her latest trip took her to New York City, and she stopped by the Muji store to pick me up one of the newish Refillable Aluminum Pen Cases for their super popular 0.38mm gel ink refills.

Muji prides itself on minimalism in its design, but even more impressive to me is the seamless functionality of the few parts involved. The barrel has three parts - the tip, the barrel, and the cap - and any other Muji gel retractable ink cartridge fits right in. The neatest part (which I managed not to take a picture of - and neither did Amy) is how there is a cutout on the top of the cap to allows you to see what color ink refill you have loaded. Muji applies Apple's "It just works" philosophy perfectly to minimalism, and this pen is no different.

I have raved about the performance of the ink cartridge time and time again, so no need to rehash that other than to say I have yet to have any performance problems to speak of. What made this one unique to me was the fact this was a needle tip refill, where I have only used the conical tip in the past. In fact, I don't even see the needle tip as an option on their web site, so I'm pretty happy to have been sent this one.

Since these aren't the easiest pens to come by, you should be sure and grab one or several if the opportunity ever arises.

Review: Muji Gel Standard Gel Ink Pen, plus a "Build Your Own"

This review is from UK reader Shabana, who also contributed the Nomadic Virgo-Attrezzo standing pen case review.

 

I will be reviewing the Muji "build you own" 0.5 retractable pen in purple, and the normal 0.38 stick gel pen in purple. In the pictures the blue is the same pen as the purple stick gel.

Starters: How big are the two pens in comparison to one another. They are roughly the same size when the stick is capped. However, the barrel of the RT is wider which is why I prefer the normal stick. When capped, the stick gel is longer by about 14mm. The stick looks better than the RT in my opinion especially the nib.

 Now, these two purples are different shades. I don't know why this is, and seeing as my local Muji only stocks the RTs in black and blue now I can't go back and check whether they did it in two shades. The stick gel definitely only comes in this shade of purple. From the top of the pens it can be seen that there is some difference.

Now for the writing. From the photo it can be seen that the stick gel is darker.

There is also a photo comparing the two shades of purple, and the darker purple with the blue.

The stick gel is a better writer and the 0.38 tip is sturdy. In fact, it can probably be used as a weapon should the need arise. I can't imagine writing with the RT in a 0.38 tip as even the 0.5 seems a little too fine for it. The barrel is also smoother where I would hold the pen. The stick is therefore better for precise writing/drawing whereas the RT is better for more 'loopy' larger handwriting. The good thing about the RT is that the entire cartridge comes out so you can use the empty barrel to try different colours. Both these write well in a Moleskine with absolutely no bleed-through. They are not so good on standard refill pads as the paper is too rough. They are excellent on smooth paper such as Black n' Red.

Over here the are around £1 each so definitely worth the price, although the 0.5 gel stick pens tend to run out pretty fast.

Review: Muji Aluminum Retractable Pen Case (with 0.38mm gel refill)

This review is done by Amy, a university student in Los Angeles, California.

Two Muji Aluminum Pen Cases with green-black and red refills.

Back in October, I went to New York City for a conference of an organization I am involved in. This meant a mandatory stop at Muji, a Japanese lifestyle brand, as they only have US stores in NYC. I really adore Muji because of their simple yet wonderful designs, in addition to the fact that they preach being a "no-brand" brand. While I stocked up on many of their stationery items at Muji SoHo, I was really there to buy the Aluminum pen case they have as a part of their "Make Your Own Pen" area of their store. One of my friends has this pen body and it just had a very solid feel and nice weight to it - I just wanted it. And then now I can submit to my wants.

The Muji Aluminum Pen Case with green-black refill dissected.

What is absolutely fantastic about any item that is a part of the "Make Your Own Pen" station in the store is that they really consider the fact that you're going to be removing and replacing pen refills every so often. This translates to the parts of the pen being very minimal and stable, and there are no unnecessary parts. For example, the pen refills for the gel pens all come with a cap at the end (which if you don't know, isn't normal for pen refills). However, as frivolous as it may initially seem to be, this cap has the purpose of securing the pen refill inside the pen case and is quite integral to the function of the pen.

The pen clip and the pen tip.

Back to the Aluminum pen case, the case really consists of three parts: the "cap," the body, and the tip area (with a spring). The spring frankly can't be removed, unless you want it to be removed, and is really stuck there. (I take a part retractable pens a lot when I'm bored, and subsequently have springs flying everywhere.) The pen case is solid and the clip that is a part of it is really stiff and can keep things clipped. The ONLY problem is the "cap". I didn't know this before, but the cap is not aluminum -- it's plastic. I found out about this after seeing a crack in it. I just hope it doesn't break on me and become useless. However, it figures that this cap actually doesn't contribute to the function of the pen, except for the aesthetic appeal to bring the metallic design of the pen to the tip. This "cap," as opposed to the cap of the pen refill, has no real function at all.

The cracked pen cap and the spring of the pen tip.

The writing experience of the pen is as wonderful as it is with any other Muji retractable gel pen (see writing sample on left). The aluminum pen case definitely adds a more substantial feel to the pen with it's smooth surface. The weight is light, but not as weightless as the plastic bodies. It's just quite different grabbing the pen that is cool to the touch. If you haven't tried a Muji retractable gel pen yet, you really have to get one - it writes quite smoothly and enough ink leaks out to make it quite satisfying. I think it really depends on the refill though -- some tend to be more inky than others. But really, you have to try it if you haven't. Whenever my friends look at my pens (or rather I force them to look at them), they always say that the Muji retractable gel pen is their most favorite out of all of them (and I have quite a variety). Of course, as with other gel pens, these pens do have the problem with the pin getting loose at the tip and ink going everywhere (or the pen becoming more inky) - I've had this problem with the black ink refill (on multiple occasions).

These Aluminum pen cases run for $5.75 and can be purchased from the US online Muji store here. The pen refills for the case are $0.99 each in a variety of colors, and can also be found at the online Muji store here. The regular Muji retractable gel pen with the plastic body is also available here for only $1.50! A great deal for a wonderful pen.

Review: Muji Gel Retractable 0.38mm Blue

Has anyone who was not a Muji owner prior to one of my several Muji reviews actually bought one of these pens?  That's kind of the issue, isn't it?  If you don't live near a Muji store, they are difficult to come by.  Either pay high shipping fees for very inexpensive pens, or go the ebay route and pay a bit of a premium to acquire them.  I almost hate to heap the praise on them because they are so hard to get a hold of.

But praise them I will, especially when readers keep sending them to me (thanks Carmen!).  My favorite thing about them is the sharpness of the line.  That does come at a price - they can get a little scratchy like most micro tips - but as I discussed in the All Questions Answered post, that is something I am willing to live with for otherwise exceptional performance.

The retractable model as shown in the picture is my favorite, preferably with the brushed plastic barrel (this one is smooth).  The blue ink is similar to Uni-Ball and Pilot inks despite the fact that the photo is a bit washed out.  Despite looking generic, they seem well made, and the ones I have had for a year or two are no worse for wear.  All in all, you can never have too much of a good thing, even if they are a challenge to acquire.

Click here for the XL review.

Review: Muji Gel Retractable 0.38mm Orange

My great pen friend Carmen hooked me up with a bunch of Muji Gel ink pens a few months ago, and I am just now getting the time to break them all down.  She was kind enough to send several different colors (plus extra refills) that I haven't used before, including this great looking orange.

One of the cool things about the Muji refills it that includes the entire ink cartridge, plus the plunger.  So what you see in orange in the picture to the left is the full refill.  The plunger cap serves as the tip cover until you are ready to pop it in the barrel, where you take it off and snap it into the other side of the cartridge.  This makes having several colors available for easy swapping a decent option.  The clear barrels are nice and sturdy, making them my preferred Muji option over the regular capped Muji Gel, which is a more lightweight option.

On the performance side of the ledger, it doesn't get much better.  If you read the written review, you will see that I compare this pen favorably to the Uni-Ball Signo RT 0.38mm gel ink pen.  I think the comparison is spot on.  If I closed my eyes I would have a tough time telling the difference I think.  The Muji may be a little more scratchy, but the trade off is fair in my book for such a sharp line.

I will work on getting samples up of the other Muji Gel colors that I have.  They are all as equally nice as this one.

Click here for the XL review.