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Galen Stack & Store pen trays: great if you come with the right expectations

When Galen Leather announced its Stack & Store system, my corner of the internet got very excited — the whole range sold out fast.

You can see why. A modular and expandable stacking storage system for pens from 11 to eleventybillion, plus inks if you want, with glass or solid lids, handmade from wood with Galen’s usual aesthetic? Sounds great.

When they came back into stock I ordered two trays, one open, one with solid lid, plus an extra liner insert. Total cost was $109 plus shipping. I paid for this myself, no freebies.

And here it is: lidded storage for 22 pens, retail price £61.

So, how is it?

Don’t expect perfect finishing. These are a huge step up from a cigar box case, but Galen’s trays have definite, and literal, rough edges. The laminated beech construction is heavily stained in dark brown, which covers many sins, but they still feel rustic even compared to other Galen products. Edges don’t line up, there are chips and surface scratches out of the box.

Don’t expect luxury features, either. There are no rubber feet, soft linings, engravings, trim or other decorative touches.

There’s no built in spot for a label on each tray to indicate the contents. No brass handles or protective corner covers to help with long-term durability. No mechanism for assisting in aligning and attaching the layers together and securing them, or cushioning to stop the knock of wood on wood when you put the lid on or stack layers.

The most luxurious thing is a little indent at the base on each side for your fingers to help you lift one layer off the next.

In other words: don’t expect anything but a box.

When you stack them, these boxes can look a little like products such as the £195 Pelikan Collector’s Chest. But unlike these other products, there’s no hinge or latch on the lids — they simply lift off. There are no drawers; to get to the lower levels you have to lift off the uppers.

Unless you limit yourself to just a couple of levels, and know exactly what you have in which level, it could be a chore to find what you’re looking for.

But go in with these expectations straight and you’ll find a product that is useful, fills a definite niche, is very customisable, and affordable.

In particular, the pen tray liners are a significant step up from the thin plastic trays I had been using.

The pen slots are large and well spaced. Even large pens like my Nakaya Dorsal 2 fit with room to spare. (And as far as I can tell, they don’t make contact with the inside of the lid, either).

The trays seem to have been milled from solid MDF, so they are rigid and weighty. And the flocking is a handsome mid grey that will resist stains and dirt.

The only functional downside to these tray inserts — and it is infuriating — is that the flocking sheds like mad. Galen’s marketing copy sometimes refers to the lining as suede; it’s not. It’s the usual fuzzy flock. And now some of it is clinging to my pens.

For the price, I’m happy with these boxes. They look good, and they don’t limit me if my collection grows or shrinks. The finishing isn’t perfect, and there’s no luxury here, but the solid construction and spacious trays make them just right for my needs right now.

You can check them out here.

8 Comments

  1. Ryan Bell

    Honestly, I feel like a cheap storage box from Ikea would be just as well (if not better) finished, and would cost a considerable amount less. There’s also a pretty gorgeous box for glasses, that could be easily modified for pens, in Zara Home at the moment (May 2021), that, if it’s like anything else in the range, will be beautifully finished and pretty luxurious.

    • Anthony

      It’s the ‘modifying’ that I was trying to avoid. I’ve made cigar pen boxes with glue, felt and skewers; I’ve cut pen-tray liner to fit a drawer. I just wanted something that was purpose-built for pens, with proper pen holders, that didn’t cost as much as Toyooka or even the Pelikan one. And I didn’t want to resort to the junk on Amazon made from pleather in some unknown sweatshop. But your mileage of course may vary! 😊

  2. slightlyunnerved

    Thanks for the review. I bought a couple of the trays, a solid lid and an ink box at the end of last year. I don’t know whether I got lucky or you were unlucky, but the finish on mine was pretty good across all the elements. There are no obvious defects that I can see on mine. These came at just the right time for me. I needed some solid pen storage, didn’t like the look of the cheap and cheerless Amazon offerings and couldn’t afford the seriously expensive stuff. The pen trays work well for me. As you say, they’ll take some fairly hefty pens. I’ve already filled what I have. My ‘Japanese’ tray is about to become my ‘Sailor’ tray, so I need a home for my Nakaya and a couple of Platinum 3776s. The ink box is a bit less useful. Fine as a general storage container, but not that big and not that well suited to the huge variation in size and shape that ink bottles come in. That was probably a battle that Galen were never going to win. 😁

  3. rupertarzeian

    Thanks for this. It looks like a “close, but no cigar” conclusion. But despite the limitations, it is a step up from a Ferrero Rocher tray or various cardboard chocolate boxes that I am using at the moment!

  4. Katherine Smith

    I ordered two boxes with the glass lid, and when the box with the wooden lid became available, I bought two more. I love that they can be separated, so I can scatter them around the house or keep them in one place. They have a wonderful simple aesthetic with no obnxious branding. The closest box, aesthetically, that I found are the Absolute Breton pen boxes which are gorgeous. Jut one problem: two gorgeous stackable trays from Absolute Breton are $542 vs $85 for 2 only slightly less gorgeous stackable trays from Galen with the wooden lid.

  5. jomatthews

    I like the look of them, simple, unfussy and does what it needs to. However, like you, I think flocking is not the way to go and would annoy the heck out of me too. Maybe they’ll re-think that.

  6. Nathan

    I almost bought some a week or so ago, stopped by the fact Galen doesn’t take MasterCard. For the price, I think the issues noted are understandable but I’d have felt let down by them. I’d rather it be more cleanly finished minus the stain and then I could do that part myself.

  7. stephensynergy

    Galen Leather is my favorite source for their responsiveness to my inquiries and providing excellent cases for a variety of pens.

    Their storage boxes (2x deep ones for ink and pen care accessories) and clear-covered pen trays (x3) could be offered in a variety of preferred finishes. However, I am happy with them and sit them beside my microscope and slide cases on a modern bookshelf as if they are already a family-member’s craftsmanship. I can carve glyphs into the wood or add ornamentation, yet am grateful to be a customer of Galen over some China work-farm.

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