Pilot Kakuno Fountain Pen Grey (M) Medium

This pen is SO lovely! I have a few different fountain pens at this time, and the Kakuno is one of my favorites. The extra-fine nib is *extra* thin. Japanese nibs can be thinner than American nibs with the same name [e.g., Japanese extra-fine is often finer tip than an American extra-fine], as a side note.The extra-fine nib IS 'scratchier' than larger nibs. I do not personally mind this, and expected it to be this way. This nib will collect fibers on lower quality paper if you do not use a very light hand. It behaves perfectly with paper intended for fountain pens. The nib does not have a heavy flow of ink, though it will blotch if you catch it on the paper/rulers/etc, but that's rather normal for pens I think.The pen itself is light weight and nicely shaped. I ... MoreThis pen is SO lovely! I have a few different fountain pens at this time, and the Kakuno is one of my favorites. The extra-fine nib is *extra* thin. Japanese nibs can be thinner than American nibs with the same name [e.g., Japanese extra-fine is often finer tip than an American extra-fine], as a side note.The extra-fine nib IS 'scratchier' than larger nibs. I do not personally mind this, and expected it to be this way. This nib will collect fibers on lower quality paper if you do not use a very light hand. It behaves perfectly with paper intended for fountain pens. The nib does not have a heavy flow of ink, though it will blotch if you catch it on the paper/rulers/etc, but that's rather normal for pens I think.The pen itself is light weight and nicely shaped. I have larger palms with short fingers and find it fits my hand nicely. The plastic feels sturdy [but it's still plastic]. The cap can be posted [put on the end of the barrel while you write] and fits snugly, so I'm not worried about it falling off/wiggling around while writing. The barrel is shaped to help with holding the pen in the correct position. I will say the barrel is thicker than other fountain pens I have, so it would fit a child's hand well but perhaps feel clunky at first for some adults.I highly suggest this pen, especially if you are new to fountain pens.

I love this pen. I don't know if I'm even interested in more expensive fountain pens, or if I just want dozens of EF Kakünos filled with different inks. If you're new to fountain pens and love extra-fine lines on other writing implements (like 0.38mm gel pens), don't hesitate to buy the EF Kaküno! I, too, am a beginner to fountain pens, but I have no trouble with the EF nib. I am autistic and don't have the best motor skills, so it's not like it takes some kind of graceful steady hand to use, either.My autism also makes me very sensitive to scratchiness in writing implements. Those 0.38mm gel pens did bother me unless the ink was flowing perfectly, and I found 0.28mm gel pens too scratchy. The EF nib is not like that for me, ever. I can usually feel "feedback," ... MoreI love this pen. I don't know if I'm even interested in more expensive fountain pens, or if I just want dozens of EF Kakünos filled with different inks. If you're new to fountain pens and love extra-fine lines on other writing implements (like 0.38mm gel pens), don't hesitate to buy the EF Kaküno! I, too, am a beginner to fountain pens, but I have no trouble with the EF nib. I am autistic and don't have the best motor skills, so it's not like it takes some kind of graceful steady hand to use, either.My autism also makes me very sensitive to scratchiness in writing implements. Those 0.38mm gel pens did bother me unless the ink was flowing perfectly, and I found 0.28mm gel pens too scratchy. The EF nib is not like that for me, ever. I can usually feel "feedback," but it's not unpleasant. It's more like the feeling of a smooth, high-quality pencil on the paper. (Also, I'm pretty sure the feedback will lessen as I learn how to put even less pressure on the nib.)If your EF Kaküno feels unpleasantly scratchy, my guess is that something is wrong with it. It's not meant to be that way. My second EF Kaküno (not from JetPens, incidentally) did feel like "nails on a chalkboard," with an extremely dry ink flow. It turned out the tines were too close together, and not letting enough ink out. There are guides and videos online to show you how to fix this. Even a clumsy noob like me managed it.From what I read, it is not uncommon for Japanese EF nibs to require this adjustment. I came across one person who estimated that about 30% of their EF or finer Japanese nibs were initially too dry and needed the tines spread. That included pens much more expensive than the Kaküno, from several different manufacturers. It seems like these fine nibs have a very small tolerance for error, and it's inherently difficult to get them right straight out of the factory. So I do wonder how many of the people who find the EF Kaküno scratchy or finicky have nibs that are not tuned quite right.

This ended up being my first fountain pen, and I am impressed with how well it works. Ink feeds consistently, so you can expect to be able to write and/or draw long lines at a reasonable speed without worrying about running dry. I was surprised at how incredibly light the pen is, which ended up being a plus for me. Normally I do not post heavy pens, as the weight of the cap feels awkward as I jot quick notes. I am able to post this pen without feeling the offset of the weight of the cap. However, the cap ended up being the one drawback for me. As an everyday use pen, I use this a lot in my personal planner. Not having a clip on the cap to attach it securely to my planner meant I had to find an alternative solution, which ended up being a quick 10-minute 3D print ... MoreThis ended up being my first fountain pen, and I am impressed with how well it works. Ink feeds consistently, so you can expect to be able to write and/or draw long lines at a reasonable speed without worrying about running dry. I was surprised at how incredibly light the pen is, which ended up being a plus for me. Normally I do not post heavy pens, as the weight of the cap feels awkward as I jot quick notes. I am able to post this pen without feeling the offset of the weight of the cap. However, the cap ended up being the one drawback for me. As an everyday use pen, I use this a lot in my personal planner. Not having a clip on the cap to attach it securely to my planner meant I had to find an alternative solution, which ended up being a quick 10-minute 3D print (Found on Thingiverse, thing ID 5555059). If not for the lack of a clip on the cap, I would rate this 5 stars.

I have used fountain pens (Kaweco Sports and TWSBI Ecos) for over a year so I am not a beginner. From what I understand Kaweco Sport and TWSBI Eco have a European nib which have thicker nibs than the Japanese nibs like the one on this fountain pen. I normally used Fine and Medium on my Kaweco Sports and Fine for TWSBI Ecos. Kakuno's fine is soooo fine, but it still feels so smooth to write with. My writing is not small so I tend to prefer thicker line nibs mentioned above, but after some time I got used to the fine lines and like it. The grip took a little getting used to but after a few days it feels good in hand to do long writing sessions. I want to try the Medium now too. If you are new to fountain pens and like fine lines, I would recommend this pen over the ... MoreI have used fountain pens (Kaweco Sports and TWSBI Ecos) for over a year so I am not a beginner. From what I understand Kaweco Sport and TWSBI Eco have a European nib which have thicker nibs than the Japanese nibs like the one on this fountain pen. I normally used Fine and Medium on my Kaweco Sports and Fine for TWSBI Ecos. Kakuno's fine is soooo fine, but it still feels so smooth to write with. My writing is not small so I tend to prefer thicker line nibs mentioned above, but after some time I got used to the fine lines and like it. The grip took a little getting used to but after a few days it feels good in hand to do long writing sessions. I want to try the Medium now too. If you are new to fountain pens and like fine lines, I would recommend this pen over the Platnium Preppy, which was my first fountain pen and a horrible experience.

This was my very first fountain pen, a gift. To be honest, I wouldn't have chosen it myself, and while it's never been a favorite, it did win me over. The little smiley on the nib is such a cool little touch, and although the size has always felt a little ungainly, I have to admit it probably made it easier to transition to fountain pen use, for which you have to hold it at the sweet spot to write; the hexagonal barrel also helped with this (hexagons are the bestagons), so all in all it's a great beginner pen.In terms of longevity, it's all over the place. The body started forming a crack from the threads down in less than a year. What's surprising in a good way is that after I didn't touch it for over a year afterward, even with the cracked threads, the ink left ... MoreThis was my very first fountain pen, a gift. To be honest, I wouldn't have chosen it myself, and while it's never been a favorite, it did win me over. The little smiley on the nib is such a cool little touch, and although the size has always felt a little ungainly, I have to admit it probably made it easier to transition to fountain pen use, for which you have to hold it at the sweet spot to write; the hexagonal barrel also helped with this (hexagons are the bestagons), so all in all it's a great beginner pen.In terms of longevity, it's all over the place. The body started forming a crack from the threads down in less than a year. What's surprising in a good way is that after I didn't touch it for over a year afterward, even with the cracked threads, the ink left in there remained wet enough to still write! Don't get me wrong, it wasn't a particularly smooth experience, but there are otherwise better quality pens that couldn't do that (I learned some maintenance things the hard way at first), so it's still pretty impressive.

I bought this pen on Amazon quite a while before I even thought to look it up here, but I wish that I hadn’t bought it at all. I’ll start with the positives before I get to the negatives.The good: The pen is adorable, and the extra-fine nib is very, very fine, which is nice if your handwriting is super small or if you’re writing something super dense (like in a language such as Japanese or even very compact math equations). I also like the transparency of the entire pen (I have this odd fondness of clear objects, so the pen immediately gets a 5/5 in terms of aesthetics). The triangular grip is nice, as well.The bad: The nib was kind of scratchy at first, but that’s to be expected with a brand-new pen, and it will smoothen out as you write with it more. It’s also ... MoreI bought this pen on Amazon quite a while before I even thought to look it up here, but I wish that I hadn’t bought it at all. I’ll start with the positives before I get to the negatives.The good: The pen is adorable, and the extra-fine nib is very, very fine, which is nice if your handwriting is super small or if you’re writing something super dense (like in a language such as Japanese or even very compact math equations). I also like the transparency of the entire pen (I have this odd fondness of clear objects, so the pen immediately gets a 5/5 in terms of aesthetics). The triangular grip is nice, as well.The bad: The nib was kind of scratchy at first, but that’s to be expected with a brand-new pen, and it will smoothen out as you write with it more. It’s also not ideal for cleaning, which I’ll get to below.The deal-breaker: If you are going to use a fountain pen and clean it out regularly, do not buy this pen. It simply doesn’t dry properly, regardless of dry time or method. I thought that this was just my fault, but looking at images of other people’s Kakunos showed me that theirs didn’t dry completely, either. By this, I mean that there’s this small ring of water that remains at the top of the pen, right where the nib sits in the pen. I’ve tried a hair-dryer (on the coolest setting, by the way, don’t melt your pen!), I’ve left it sitting in microfiber for over a week, I’ve even tried threading a tissue into it, but that ring of water still wouldn’t go away. I could only find the root cause when I pulled out the nib and feed. The problem is that the hole where the nib and feed fit through that tube which connects to your cartridge/converter is too similar in diameter to the outer portion that you hold, so the water gets trapped inside.tl,dr: It’s an adorable beginner pen, but you shouldn’t get it if you’re going to write with it regularly, because it won’t dry out.

the nib on this pen is very fine, very VERY fine. I find it finer than a 0.38 mm uni-ball one. I sometimes see people complaining that it’s scratchy, but it’s not awfully scratchy, and feedback is to be expected when it has a nib this fine. It writes quite dry. This is a wonderful pen, especially for it’s price. It doesn’t skip. I love the shape of the body. The length is perfect posted or unposted, I can write with it either way (I have small hands). I’ve heard that it fits the con-70, (and I do not doubt it with the length of it) which is awesomesauce. I also like the smiley face on the nib, and how “kakuno” is stylised with an umlaut to make the u a smiley face as well.

My new favorite drawing tool!I was pretty bummed when Platinum discontinued their Extra-Fine Desk Pen before the re-released this new version with the cap that has a clip, so I started to hunt for fountain pens that could product a comparable Extra-Fine line for crisp hatching and cross-hatching sketches, especially for highly-detailed still life or urban sketches that I like to do on occasion. Surprisingly, I found that the Pilot Kakuno extra fine produced the kind of thin lines I needed to build up layers of shading in my sketches!This comes with a caveat, however—you have to use the right paper. Normal sketch paper (like my travel Strathmore Sketchbook) absorbs the ink, producing thicker lines that bleed and feather, rendering the Extra-Fine tip useless for ... MoreMy new favorite drawing tool!I was pretty bummed when Platinum discontinued their Extra-Fine Desk Pen before the re-released this new version with the cap that has a clip, so I started to hunt for fountain pens that could product a comparable Extra-Fine line for crisp hatching and cross-hatching sketches, especially for highly-detailed still life or urban sketches that I like to do on occasion. Surprisingly, I found that the Pilot Kakuno extra fine produced the kind of thin lines I needed to build up layers of shading in my sketches!This comes with a caveat, however—you have to use the right paper. Normal sketch paper (like my travel Strathmore Sketchbook) absorbs the ink, producing thicker lines that bleed and feather, rendering the Extra-Fine tip useless for precise sketches. I ended up using a Canson Pen and Ink spiral book, and the lines remained crisp and thin without feathering. I haven't tried it on Bristol paper yet, but here's hoping it retains the same line quality on that. . .Overall, I was pleasantly surprised at how good this pen has been for my sketches. I know this pen wasn't built for drawing, but it ended up being a really good drawing tool that travels well and can put up with a little wear from the lightweight plastic body and cap. The only thing it lacks is a clip, but that problem was easily solved thanks to another reviewer of this pen, who suggested using the Kaweco Sport attachable clip. (Thank you, btw, for that genius idea!)

Heavenly to write with. I am a beginner/new to fountain pens. Started with Pilot Preppy extra fine - which was not too smooth (bought it from another seller - maybe thats why) and found that the barrel was uncomfortable for my hands - my hands are small and I deal with pain stuff). This is very comfortable and I love the medium tip. So great. Will purchase a fine point too (not extra fine though as I am thinking they are just not as smooth in general). Love the yellow color too. Fav pen ever!