Pilot Long Murex

[amantadine]

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8400/8639985033_7c36f0e8c5_b.jpg

 

 

INITIAL IMPRESSION

 

I am a huge fan of the "myu/murex" series and am a(n) (exceptionally) proud owner of the m90 that I purchased brand new a few years ago. When this pen turned up on Ebay I was determined to get it and spent an agonising few days ( :bonk: ) awaiting its arrival. It came securely packaged - though unfortunately not in its original box. The hardest thing I had to do was give the pen a thorough cleaning before I could ink it!

 

APPEARANCE AND DESIGN (09/10)

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8531/8639984941_2dbb4756eb_b.jpg

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8260/8639984897_a14fd62e15_b.jpg

 

To me the design is the best aspect of this pen . It almost looks like it belongs in outer space! The ridges on the section are a welcome addition - although I wasn't expecting it the pen is easier to grip compared to pens with all-metal sections. This Long Murex attempts to strike that balance between appearance and practicality.

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8106/8641088144_44c58c6812_b.jpg

 

top: Pilot m90 / bottom: Pilot Long Murex

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8542/8641088140_7a99721fc5_b.jpg

 

top: Pilot m90 / bottom: Pilot Long Murex

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8249/8639984951_0cdae868c0_b.jpg

 

CONSTRUCTION AND QUALITY (08/10)

 

This pen has an outstanding finish and it simply exudes quality. I must dock a couple of points, however, for the cap. Being a slip cap I am worried about how long the clutch will hold up (the cap on my m90 being a little more loose now compared to when I first purchased it).

 

WEIGHT AND DIMENSIONS (10/10)

 

Despite being an all-metal pen it remains very light and as such the weight will not be an issue for longer writing sessions. This murex was designed to be a more full-size pen compared to the rest of the myu series. For me this is ideal as I can use this pen unposted (hurrah!). Here are a few numbers:

 

Capped: 13.2cm

Unposted: 11.7cm

Posted: 14.3cm

 

NIB AND PERFORMANCE (09/10)

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8402/8639984925_cbddb924f7_b.jpg

 

Being a Japanese (fine) nib this writes finer than a Western (fine) nib. Secondly this is a very stiff nib, so no line variation. This pen is definitely a dry writer - much more so than the fine nib on my Pilot VP (although my medium-nibbed m90 wrote with a dry line also). No skipping/hard starts so far. This nib is solid and reliable.

 

FILLING SYSTEM AND MAINTENANCE (08/10)

 

One can use either Pilot's own cartridges, or the push-button converter. An internal filling mechanism would be nice but I don't think it would work with this pen. As is the problem with this style of converter I cannot see how much ink is left.

 

COST AND VALUE (10/10)

 

This was an Ebay auction that I was overjoyed to have won. Not only because I now have a pen I had been after for a long time, but also because I got a decent price (I hope) - under £100. For me this represents fantastic value for money

 

CONCLUSION (Final Score = 54/60)

 

As a more practical member of the myu/murex family this pen performs very well indeed. It isn't as pretty as the m90/myu 701 but is much easier (for me) to write with unposted.

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8383/8639984977_78976a2470_b.jpg

 

And now for a writing sample:

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8109/8639984885_153bb8292c_b.jpg

[quinden]

Great photos and review - I love my Murex!

[pen2paper]

Very good review.

This pen has been on "my list" for a long while - specifically for the the ridges on the section.

Also glad to hear, while being a dry writer, it was free from skips,

Thank You.

[pelman]

great review. I have the red Murex and a MYU. They are both exquisite pens as you have described. Enjoy yours in good health.

 

Fantastic photographs.

[C40]

Great review and pictures. My pictures don't really add anything after yours, but just in case people would like some more:

 

 

 

 

 

Mine is a medium nib

 

Edited March 29, 2014 by C40

[alexander_k]

Great review. I'm also quite pleased with my Murex as well as my M90, both with medium nibs. Great design and good writers, even for longer sessions.

[rollerboy]

Curiosity finally drove me to buy one of these last year. I *want* to like it because it's so cool looking but I find it too thin for comfort and too dry for my preference. It's okay for jotting down an action item or two in a meeting but it wouldn't be my first choice for writing a full page of text.

[Ron_L]

Excellent review. A nice looking pen. For me it would be too thin. But I like the way it writes. Thx.

[beboy]

An old review thread bumped, but I am glad it was; I was fascinated by that pen but I was wondering if that cool design was functional.

[alexander_k]

Functional design? Well, I'm not one to use as typical user (I love my Omas 360 and the Pilot Capless fits perfectly in my hands) but in this case, although I have a strong preference for large pens, both the Murex and the M90 work quite well for me it terms of size and finish. I mostly use them for short note-taking but in the summer I used them for more extensive writing and it was fine. In any case, writing for four hours with the same pen is not something that I normally do. Changing pen after a couple of pages is always preferable.

[Namo]

Beautiful pen, too thin for long writings as far as I am concerned. Had the chance to buy a set (BP, pencil and FP), which allow me to use a murex version everyday! :-P

Thank you for the review!