(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Bluesky. And her latest book, The Atropine Tree, is now available!)
The Opus 88 Mini Pocket Pen has been in my daily rotation for several months now, and it has really impressed me with how many of my favorite pen features it fits on its tiny lil body.
For one, it's pocket-sized. I love a pocket pen. Pocket pens are so practical for carrying around, and I'm constantly on the go. I also have small hands, so they tend to be comfortable for me, too, though that won't be the case for everyone. This one does post, though. I love the full-sized Opus 88 also, but I do feel like I'm wielding a baseball bat while I'm writing with it. The main downside to most pocket pens is their ink capacity. Tiny body means tiny ink reservoir. But not here! This thing is a mini ink tank. Nearly the whole body fills with ink, thanks to the handy included eyedropper. I've had a lot of eyedropper-filling pocket pens, and quite a few of them have leaked. Not this one! It has a plunger seal that blocks the ink from even reaching the feed unless the end-cap is unscrewed to release the vacuum. That makes it safe for pocket carry and travel.
Its other practical features include a sturdy clip and spare o-ring. It also writes very well, even after being neglected for a few days. It does take a while for the ink to saturate the feed when it is first filled. It's an eyedropper-fill pen, so the ink is deposited directly into the pen body with the included eyedropper. For this pen, the grip section unscrews to open the ink reservoir. Since the ink isn't drawn up through the nib, it needs to take the long route there. I let the pen sit nib-down for a while with the plunger open to let the ink flow to the nib.
Okay, that's enough practicality. The reason it first caught my eye is because it's cute! I particularly like this Baby Beluga design, but Opus are not stingy in creating an abundance of fun and interesting designs for this model. From florals to stripes to animal prints, you're bound to find one you like. On this model, the main body of the pen is an aqua-tinted semi-translucent acrylic, so you can see your ink sloshing around inside like the water it's meant to resemble. The ocean waves and whale illustrations, along with schools of wee fish, add to the oceanic effect.
The Opus 88 Mini Pocket Fountain Pen sells for $89 at Goldspot Pens, which is a very fair price for the quality of this pen. It's refreshing to see a pen this nice for under $100. I missed some special Halloween designs they did in this model a few years ago, and now that I know how nice the pen is, I doubly regret that. So if you see an edition of this one that speaks to you, I highly recommend grabbing it while you can. This one is coming with me on a trip to Lake Superior next week. There aren't any whales in Lake Superior as far as we know, but when it comes to that epic inland sea, we don't know very far at all. I'll settle for some whale-sized freshwater cryptids.
(Goldspot provided this product at a discount to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
Enjoy reading The Pen Addict? Then consider becoming a member to receive additional weekly content, giveaways, and discounts in The Pen Addict shop. Plus, you support me and the site directly, for which I am very grateful.
Membership starts at just $5/month, with a discounted annual option available. To find out more about membership click here and join us!
