(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Twitter.)
I love wee pens, and of my wee pens, my Kaweco Liliput is one of my favorites. So it's probably weird that I've never tried a Kaweco Sport until now. This delightful little thing is like pen candy. And while it's not for eating, I'd argue that it's perfect for filling a bowl on your coffee table with every color of the rainbow. There may or may not be a few in my JetPens cart right now.
The first thing I said to this pen was, "I'm probably going to break you". The plastic looks fairly meek, and I found myself in awe of all those who have said they eyedropper these pens. But I resolved to not go easy on the little thing. It's been tossed around in my purse, lost in my purse, stuck in folio pockets, and used (often) as a bookmark in my traveler's notebook while that notebook has (often) been stuffed into a bag that already contained too many notebooks. And it's just fine. It's not even scratched. Clearly this wee pen is made of stronger stuff than it looks, but I still won't eyedropper it.
As a pocket pen, it's tiny all over. It is a comfortable length when posted, but the diameter of the section is a bit narrow. It's nice for me, but I can imagine it might be a bit tricky for larger hands. I found it perfectly comfortable for long writing sessions and very handy for making quick notes. The cap screws on, but it only takes a single rotation to unscrew it. One downside is the fact that it's clipless. That's great for a pen that really does just live in a pocket, but less ideal for other uses. A separate clip is available, but it's friction-fit and has a tendency to slip.
It only takes a standard international short cartridge, so there are limited ink colors available unless you refill your cartridge with a syringe. Technically there are some tiny converters made for these pens, but they aren't great. I've been using the blue cartridge that came with it, and it's a pleasant performer, if a little boring.
The nib is lovely. Smooth, but with just the right touch of feedback. It's not super wet, but enough that it doesn't feel dry, either. The German EF nib writes similarly to a Japanese F, which is about what I'd expect. It's fine enough that I've had luck writing on cheaper paper without too much bleed-through. Kaweco nibs aren't always gems out of the box, according to reputation, but I've had good luck with all of mine. And the nibs are easily swapped out, so your favorite nib can travel between pens.
This pen is a tiny workhorse that can take a decent amount of abuse and it's at a price point where I'm not too afraid to take it out into the world with me. It's the perfect grocery-list-crossing, please-fill-out-this-form, jot-down-a-note pen for when you have too much to do and just need a pleasant writing experience to re-center yourself mid-errand. After playing with this pen for a few weeks, the aluminum model rocketed to the top of my "next pen" list. And maybe a few of the Skyline Sports, too.
It's definitely worth checking out if you're looking for a solid little travel buddy. There are tons of beautiful colors and finishes available. You're bound to love one or five of them.
(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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