Review of the Pilot M90 F nib

INTRODUCTION: My first reaction when I saw the Pilot M90 in person was: “ This pen is tiny!” For those not in the known, they would have thought that I was an idiot for paying $180 for this pen. I was initially slightly disappointed as well but knowing that this pen was designed as a tribute to the famed Pilot Myu, I decided to reserve judgment till later and boy, was I proven wrong!

1.      Appearance & Design (8/10) – The pen has its design based on the Pilot Myu series and thus is a pocket pen, which will explain it's small size. It is simple and unassuming, a plain pocket pen with the pen body and cap made from stainless steel. There is also a small plastic sapphire crystal found on the pen cap tip, which I supposed did serve to break the monotonous design. However, the main attraction, is the integrated nib, which is actually part of the pen body. This will be elaborated on later. I give the appearance and design an 8 out of 10 because of the “cheap” impression that it gives to other people.

2.      Construction & Quality (10/10) – The surface metal isn't smooth but has a grainy feel, which I prefer. In addition, it provided more friction to grip the pen with as well. I've had the pen for half a year now and with a closer look, I can see many micro scratches on the pen body caused by the repeated removal and capping of the pen cap. This is unavoidable and not a design nor construction flaw so I'm not particularly concerned with it.

3.      Weight & Dimensions (9/10) – Japanese pocket pens are designed with a long pen barrel and pen cap, but with a short pen body. When in use, the pen cap should be posted so that the pen will resemble a regular size pen. This allow the user to enjoy the portability of a mini pen and the usability of a regular size pen. Ingenious, to say the least. I usually write with my pens unposted but in this case, the pen feels too imbalanced and light without posting. With posting, I enjoyed perfect balance and writing with the M90 becomes a pleasure. I will give it a 9/10 because I'll like the option of being able to write with a pen unposted.

4.      Nib & Performance (20/20) – This is by far my favorite part of the M90: The nib design, and it's performance. My nib size is a Japanese Fine, and it writes slightly smaller than a Western Fine. It's not dry, and not too wet as well, and I haven't experienced any skipping or smudging with this pen.  As mentioned earlier, the nib is made from stainless steel and is part of the pen body. This is a design that is seldom seen, and extremely attractive to my eyes. Lastly, the nib is stiff as a nail which is fine by me as I do not have to exert any pressure to get the ink to start flowing. As it is my favorite nib, it naturally deserved a perfect score.

5.      Filling System & Maintenance (5/10) – This area is the only part of the pen that I truly do not like: It can only accept a Con-20 converter, which is a pump filler. Due to the small size of the pen, the Con- 20 is the only one which can fit on it. The Con-20 works well, but the ink capacity is too small. Coupled with the fact that I cannot use any other converter with it, the M90 only deserved a 5/10 in this section.

6.      Cost & Value (7/10) – This pen is part of a limited production, and is limited to 9000 pieces worldwide. When I bought it, the pen has already been out of production for some time. Though it can still be purchased today, it is available at a premium ( relative to the MSRP). I bought it new for $180 but I have seen it selling for more than $200. Despite the higher-than-normal price that I paid for it, I still find it to be a pretty good deal. I gave it a 7/10 because I paid more than the MSRP (which usually doesn't indicate a good deal) and I didn't like the filling system.

7.      Conclusion (Final score, 59/70) – In conclusion, this pen has become one of my favorite pen, and I highly recommend it others. People who have tried my pen praised the exceptional nib performance as well. After tallying up the scores, the pen scores at only 59 but in reality, the pen feels like a perfect 70 to me. Since it has been out of production for a while now, it's best to strike fast and get one of these beauties before they completely sold out.