The Zebra bLen has been a great addition to the stationery aisle over the last couple of years, and for good reason. The original ballpoint pen is a smooth writer, and the follow-up gel pen is an excellent competitor to the Pilot G2, Pentel EnerGel, and Sharpie S-Gel. On top of that, it brought updated barrel technology to the shelf with the introduction of a “vibration-free” writing experience.
As the product roadmap dictates, the next pen Zebra released as part of the bLen lineup should be a multi pen, and they did exactly that with the bLen 3C 3 Color Ballpoint Multi Pen.
I consider myself a big multi pen fan, and have used and reviewed dozens over the years. I’ll say right up front with the bLen 3C that I don’t like this pen.
Notice I didn’t say that this is a bad pen. I think it is good, not great, and maybe it will be a fit for your writing arsenal. But there are too many small things that add up in the cons column for me, and when you are going up against stiff competition in this category, that’s not going to be good enough.
Let’s look at some of the pros before I get into what makes the bLen 3C not for me.
For starters, the blue ink refill is excellent. I chose the 0.5 mm Grey barrel model, and while I do think that Uni-ball Jetstream ink is superior in every way, I like Zebra’s emulsion ink. In comparing those two inks directly, the bLen ink is a less clean writer, and has a bit of spidering between characters on occasion. Both of these things can be expected with fine ballpoint tips like this, but when you experience the clean lines of the Jetstream, even a little oddness is noticeable.
Secondly, I like the look of the pen. I mean, any pen that is inspired by the B1-series battle droid is a winner in my book. I could do without the plastic tip extension in front of the nose cone that gives it a sucker fish look (I’ll let you look that one up,) but overall its a good barrel, and has a great grip.
Thirdly, the price is fantastic. At $6 a pen, with 4 barrel color choices and two tip sizes (0.5 mm and 0.7 mm,) it is priced as good - or better - than any brand name entry level multi pen.
This sounds like a rave review - so what gives? The knock layout is a non-starter for me.
I didn’t notice the layout when I ordered the pen, but it was instantly noticeable when I began using it. Most 3 cartridge multi pens are designed with one of two layouts: The front click (often the using the clip itself,) is usually the Black ink cartridge in a 3 ink pen (or the pencil component in a 2+1,) or the clip is fixed and the Black cartridge is the first to the right of the clip when looking from the front of the pen.
In the case of the bLen 3C, not only is the Black refill in the center-back of the barrel, but its knock is a big, clunky, “what is this thing,” knock. Yes, they are attempting to visually match the bLen single cartridge design, but in doing so, made something odd and confusing looking. In addition to that, the Red ink is in what should be the primary slot for the pen (right-handed bias,) with the Blue ink around the other side. Could I swap the Red and Blue positions if so desired? On the inside, sure. The plungers? I’m not so sure without some surgery, which is not warranted even on a $6 pen I don’t believe. And none of that changes the weird knock in the back.
Why am I the way that I am, dear readers?
If the refills were brilliant (notice the Black and Red refills didn’t make the pros list above - they are much drier than the Blue,) I would get used to the weird knock style and layout. And the barrel is nice to hold and use. But I can’t get there when I have other great options available to me an arms reach away.
I love what Zebra has done with the bLen lineup since launch, and if you are a fan, and not as stuck as me on the knock design, I think you will like this pen. And again, for $6, it is a great deal. I’m going to stick with my single cartridge bLens for now, and see if they come up with something new to tempt me in the multi pen lineup in the near future.
(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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