Posts filed under Fountain Pens

Pilot Kakuno Clear Fountain Pen Review

When I talk about the best fountain pens for beginners, the list goes something like this:

And every time I rattle off that list, I want to add the Pilot Kakuno to it. In all honesty, I think the three above are the best choices going into it blind. But if you want to add the caveat of “fun” into the mix, then the Kakuno may be the best choice.

Not only is this pen fun, it functions extremely well. I expect nothing less from Pilot in the fountain pen market, even in the entry level realm.

The Kakuno is designed purposefully for beginners. The grip section is triangular in shape to teach you the proper way to hold a fountain pen. The smiley face on the nib teaches you to always keep the nib facing up at the correct angle. Even the hex barrel and cap indention are designed to make the pen easy to handle.

From that description, the Kakuno sounds like a kid’s pen. It’s certainly designed with kids in mind, but in reality it is so much more. It’s a well designed, highly functional fountain pen that anyone can use and enjoy. I know I enjoy the heck out of it.

My first Kakuno was the grey barrel with lime green cap. I backed that up pretty quickly with the orange cap model, because orange. At the time, the Kakuno only came in fine or medium nib widths. In the second round of pens - white barrel with pastel caps - Pilot added extra fine into the mix. This is important because many first time fountain pen buyers that read this site what to know if there is an inexpensive fountain pen with a line to match their favorite micro gel ink pen. Pilot extra fine has always been the answer, but there was never an easy way to get the nib. There is now.

I’ve seen the clear barrel Kakuno making the rounds in Japan, and as a demonstrator pen fan, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it. The build is identical to all of the Kakuno’s before it, but now you can see the insides better. I’m a big fan of pen guts and ink blood. :D

It’s as great as expected, and the extra fine nib is an added bonus. On my Rhodia Ice Pad, the line width is comparable to the Pilot Hi-Tec-C 0.3 mm gel ink pen. That’s impressive for a fountain pen.

The only question remaining is if you can eyedropper the Kakuno. You will need to fill the two holes on the back end of the barrel with epoxy for starters, then add silicone grease to the barrel threads. My only concern is that the feed is friction fit and there is not an extra spot to silicone the nib unit threads, because there aren’t any. Cartridges and converters obviously work fine, but they seal off around the feed post. I’m not sure how ink would handle just floating around that area.

Speaking of converters, I used the Pilot Con-70 in mine. This is Pilot’s largest capacity converter, and most expensive as well. You don’t need this one for the Kakuno, but I have a couple not in use so I put it into action. All of Pilot’s other converters will work, as will all of their cartridges. For the clear barrel Kakuno I’d look at using more fun colors, like the Pilot Mixable cartridges.

The Pilot Kakuno is a great pen for any level of experience. The most beginning fountain pen user will enjoy its cool looks and ease of use, and the most experienced user will love the great nib and build quality. It’s an all-around great pen.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Posted on December 11, 2017 by Brad Dowdy and filed under Pilot, Kakuno, Fountain Pens.

Monteverde Giant Sequoia Fountain Pen: A Review

(Susan M. Pigott is a fountain pen collector, pen and paperholic, photographer, and professor. You can find more from Susan on her blog Scribalishess.)

The Monteverde Giant Sequoia fountain pen is a large resin pen with a stainless steel nib. It comes packaged in a substantial clamshell box with two cartridges as well as a converter.

The green Sequoia has sheeny turquoise, black, and silver stripes. It’s a really beautiful resin.

The pen itself is cylindrical in shape with a flat top and barrel bottom. The cap has an unadorned silver clip and a band engraved with “Monteverde USA Sequoia.” The cap screws on, and although it is postable, doing so throws the balance off considerably.

The Sequoia is a large pen both in length and girth. It is 5.7 inches (145mm) capped, 5 inches (127mm) uncapped, and 6.7 inches (170mm) posted. The grip is 10.8mm in diameter and the barrel is 15.4mm. In spite of its size, the pen itself is not heavy, weighing 33 grams capped and 19 grams uncapped.

The pen fills by cartridge or converter. Since it is made of resin and there are no metal parts on the barrel, you could probably eyedropper the pen if you wished.

The Sequoia comes with a #6 stainless steel nib. My review pen has a fine nib width. The nib is engraved with the Monteverde logo, and the Monteverde name appears twice, once near the base of the nib and once along the perimeter near the tip.

Unfortunately, this nib is scratchy, hard, and dry. Writing with it is not a pleasurable experience. It skips occasionally on downstrokes, and if you stop writing for any length of time, you have to re-wet the nib to continue.

*You can see where the nib skipped on the downstroke*

My macro photos of the nib don’t reveal any obvious problems, such as misaligned tines or tipping issues. I think the nib is just scratchy and ink-stingy. A nibmeister could probably get it writing better, but that’s an added expense.

The Sequoia is a beautiful pen, and I really like its size. My middle-aged hands prefer pens with a larger girth, especially for long writing sessions. But, the nib is a deal-breaker for me. If a pen doesn’t write well, no amount of beauty will make up for it.

You can purchase the Monteverde Giant Sequoia in green, blue, or brown from Vanness Pens. It costs $90.00 and comes in fine, medium, broad, and stub nib sizes.

Pros

The Monteverde Sequoia is a beautiful, large-sized pen that is light and comfortable in the hand.
The pen offers at least two filling methods (cartridge and converter), and it probably can be eyedroppered as well.
I really like the resin on this pen. It reminds me of the ao-tamenuri color Nakaya used to offer.

Cons

Unfortunately, the nib on this pen is scratchy and unyielding. It is also stingy with ink.

(Vanness Pens loaned this product to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

Posted on December 8, 2017 by Susan Pigott and filed under Monteverde, Fountain Pens, Pen Reviews.

Sheaffer Pop Star Wars Darth Vader Fountain Pen Review

Star Wars fans rejoice - there are now inexpensive fountain pens to add to your collection! The Sheaffer Pop Star Wars series features fountain and rollerball pens of three beloved characters: Darth Vader, R2-D2, and Yoda.

I picked the Darth Vader fountain pen for this review, although all three designs represent their characters very well. The Vader pen was just too slick to pass up with its black base and silver accents.

The barrel itself is made from plastic, and the cylindrical shape has a nice feel. The cap snaps on solidly, and posts on the back equally as well. The grip section is rubberized, which I’m fine with. It’s not slippery at all. The clip is a little thin, buts seems strong enough to last, and of course features Sheaffer’s famous white dot.

I’m in love with the look and feel of the pen, but as you know, that is only part of the story. The writing experience could be better, like the Phantom Menace if you erased all of the Jar-Jar Binks scenes.

The medium steel nib - the only size choice - is a smooth writer. Very smooth in fact. There is no scratchiness, and no skipping. But it is wet. Far too wet for my tastes. It writes like a 1.0 mm or wider rollerball pen.

I think it is the ink to be honest. The pen ships with a standard Sheaffer black ink cartridge, and it flows like a sieve from the nib. The way it spreads as soon as it hits the page - even on fountain pen friendly paper - makes me think the ink is the issue. You have to write fast to keep ahead of the ink pooling. It’s a proprietary fitting too, and I don’t have a Sheaffer converter to try other inks, and I wasn’t going to drain my only Sheaffer cartridge either.

So, what to do with this pen, and this series of fountain pens? If you want to buy this pen for someone who has never used a fountain pen I would choose one of the rollerball pens instead. Yes, it looks amazing, but the wetness of the ink could frustrate a beginner. If you want to buy this pen for someone who has experience with fountain pens then I say go for it. They can change things up as needed.

For me, I like this pen so much I’m going to buy a converter and see if I can get the performance more to my liking. The outside of the pen is cool enough to make me want to work on the inside. Plus, my son says it has have red ink, and I think he is right.

Lightsaber mode initiated.

(Goldspot provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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