I personally use Uniball Vision fine pens when I can but its convenient to have a stash of cheap pens lying around that I can take anywhere and possibly dispose of while not worrying about losing a pen that cost several dollars. I say keep making the cheap pens, and keep making them better.
Why can't China make a good ballpoint pen?
21–30 of 62 posts
Re: Why can't China make a good ballpoint pen?
#22I buy my pens from Muji, they are made in China and Thailand, mainly, and they tend to be very good quality (Muji charges at least 8 kuai for a pen, often 20 or 30 kuai). It is simply a matter of you get what you pay for (i.e. 便宜没好货，好货不便宜).
Ha! In Japanese "Muji" ('no mark', literally 'no character') is short for "Mujirushi Ryohin" ('unbranded goods').
It's odd that someone would take this on as a brand name. And makes me have to ask: Are you sure that this is a brand name? (It may well be - I just don't know of it)
So, at the high-end, these are about the same price as a Uniball Vision Roller or the like (which are made by Mitsubishi Pencil, if I recall correctly. Who may, in turn, very well have outsourced the manufacture to China - I don't know).
Your point is that China can make a good pen if someone pays for it? According to the story, that appears to be the case - but the equipment to manufacture said pen core must be made by the Swiss which leaks the money/profits to yet more money-grubbing foreigners. It just takes time to assemble the complete set of high-end manufacturing tooling. By the time the Chinese have done so, I can hope that our labor prices will be more equalized, but I'm guessing that this will not be the case...
Re: Why can't China make a good ballpoint pen?
#23Earlier quoted context omitted.
As a lefty, cursive can stay dead.
Hello fellow lefty. What do you use to write on paper these days? I've got the last remaining good Bic Reactive pens stashed at work, but I don't think I can get any more.
I usually carry around a Pilot G-2 these days. I've been pretty happy with them and they're easy to find in stores when I need more. In general, I'll favor a gel pen with fast-drying ink.
Re: Why can't China make a good ballpoint pen?
#24Maybe it's just as well. Ballpoint pens are terrible. How The Ballpoint Pen Killed Cursive: http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2015/08/ballpo... Discussed earlier this year: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10141874
As a lefty, cursive can stay dead.
That's because you're writing incorrectly!
The sinistrous among us should be writing right-to-left. Yeah, OK, so most people may need a mirror to read it - but it's natural for you.
Aside: the world is terribly 'right biased'. With all the other individualist movements of our era, why not a 'Sinistra Liberation Front' or something similar...?
Re: Why can't China make a good ballpoint pen?
#25Maybe it's just as well. Ballpoint pens are terrible. How The Ballpoint Pen Killed Cursive: http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2015/08/ballpo... Discussed earlier this year: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10141874
As a lefty, cursive can stay dead.
I was brought up on italic handwriting like many in the UK, it works for me.
I personally can't write for a long time with a biro / ball point pen of any make or expense because of the tightness of the grip needed as mentioned in the article cited above (not the OA).
My test is simple, can the pen make a mark on the paper when I drag it down the page without any pressure other than the weight of the pen? If so, its fine, if not, I can use it for forms but not much else.
Re: Why can't China make a good ballpoint pen?
#26>> Next, it was the machine tool CEO’s turn. “There are two things that only Chinese people can make,” explained Guan Xiyou, CEO of Shenyang Machine Tool Group, “The first is fireworks. The second? Folding fans. Foreigners still can’t make a good folding fan."
I'd add the humble wooden handled iron/steel wok to the list. The local Chinese shops have them for about £6 to £7. Look after one (wash promptly, oil lightly when storing) and it lasts decades.
But I take the point about these being low cost items.
Re: Why can't China make a good ballpoint pen?
#27I buy my pens from Muji, they are made in China and Thailand, mainly, and they tend to be very good quality (Muji charges at least 8 kuai for a pen, often 20 or 30 kuai). It is simply a matter of you get what you pay for (i.e. 便宜没好货，好货不便宜).
Ha! In Japanese "Muji" ('no mark', literally 'no character') is short for "Mujirushi Ryohin" ('unbranded goods'). It's odd that someone would take this on as a brand name. And makes me have to ask: Are you sure that this is a brand name? (It may well be - I just don't know of it) So, at the high-end, these are about the same price as a Uniball Vision Roller or the like (which are made by Mitsubishi Pencil, if I recal…
ultimate irony is that Muji products end up being super recognisable (is this really irony? Well, kind of funny), because they use the same sort of material and design for everything.
Re: Why can't China make a good ballpoint pen?
#28Earlier quoted context omitted.
As a lefty, cursive can stay dead.
Hello fellow lefty. What do you use to write on paper these days? I've got the last remaining good Bic Reactive pens stashed at work, but I don't think I can get any more.
I buy boxes of Uni Jetstream 0.5mm (black) pens, they're really great (major problem being I put them in my pocket so they tend to travel between bags/desks). just the right feel for my left hand.
http://www.jetpens.com/Uni-Jetstream-Standard-Ballpoint-Pen-...
Re: Why can't China make a good ballpoint pen?
#29I think the key point that he's missing is that the chinese manufacturers are now manufacturing to the market's demand, and this is why China is growing rich. In the old system, the state may have ordered the (state owned) pen manufacturer to make a top-quality pen. The manufacturer would have done its best to comply, but ultimately, would have made a product that nobody wanted. In the new system, the administration…
It's hard to believe that in a market with a billion consumers there is not enough demand for slightly higher goods.
But product quality is not just about the ball of the pen. Product quality is about the whole product and its place in the environment: labor conditions, energy production/use, material use, waste treatment, usability, precision, etc.
Re: Why can't China make a good ballpoint pen?
#30I buy my pens from Muji, they are made in China and Thailand, mainly, and they tend to be very good quality (Muji charges at least 8 kuai for a pen, often 20 or 30 kuai). It is simply a matter of you get what you pay for (i.e. 便宜没好货，好货不便宜).
Ha! In Japanese "Muji" ('no mark', literally 'no character') is short for "Mujirushi Ryohin" ('unbranded goods'). It's odd that someone would take this on as a brand name. And makes me have to ask: Are you sure that this is a brand name? (It may well be - I just don't know of it) So, at the high-end, these are about the same price as a Uniball Vision Roller or the like (which are made by Mitsubishi Pencil, if I recal…
Muji is a well known department store in Japan. The etymology of their brand is as you say. It goes back to the end of the bubble and a sense that consumers are weary of excessive branding. The solution: another new brand called "no brand".