Pop quiz time: does the pen in the picture above cost $5, or $50?
Ok, the answer is probably obvious, or else I wouldn’t have been able to write this introduction. And while it isn’t exactly $50, at $48, the Sakura Craft Lab 005 Gel Ink Pen is close enough for arguments sake. And it’s an argument - with myself - that I’m about to have.
I love this pen. Let’s get that out of the way right up top. It’s everything I am looking for in a cool Japanese stationery product.
The design is beautiful. It features a long, torpedo-shape, plastic barrel, with a twist mechanism that engages near the middle of the pen. The long, vertical lines in the grip section morph into a Sakura blossom at the end of the barrel, giving this pen its signature look.
And it feels great too. This is a thick-wall plastic, giving the pen some density, along with the internal metal hardware for the twist mechanism. It’s not heavy, but it’s not light, either.
This pen ships with an 0.5 mm gel ink refill in Sepia Black. Now that’s a choice, isn’t it? I love the unique color, and even though I would like the brown to break through on the page a little more, it shows up well enough in comparison to a standard black ink.
Side by side with the Zebra Sarasa Clip refill.
When writing, I would compare it to the Zebra Sarasa Clip 0.5 mm gel ink pen. For those familiar with that pen you know it writes well, but with a slight scratch it the tip. That is something I enjoy, but a glassy 0.7 mm Pentel EnerGel this is not.
And here, the fawning ends, because there are two issues with this pen that make it difficult for me to recommend.
First up, the price. As mentioned up top, it’s $48. That’s admittedly outrageous for this pen. The funny thing is, I don’t think it is overpriced. This is a case where a high-design, low-volume, boutique-like pen has become more widely available. I get it. I don’t know that I can wholeheartedly recommend it, but I get it.
What I don’t get with this pen is the refill choice. It is proprietary in design, half the length of a standard gel ink refill, and replacements are costly at $4.15 each. This is where they lose me.
The mid-barrel twist forces this design decision. And if you are familiar with gel ink pens - in relation to rollerball and ballpoint pens - then you know that they are the fastest refills to write dry. If you think the pen is expensive, then you really don’t want to consider the ongoing costs of using it.
That’s too bad, because I genuinely love using the Sakura Craft Lab gel pen. It’s fun, it’s cool, it feels and works great, and it’s a money pit.
What a dilemma.
(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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