Kakuno Fountain Pen of Biginners, Fine Nib, Orange Body (FKA-1SR-OF)

another 5 star review, at least upon opening up and inking within hours of receiving and writing out the alphabet on the back of an envelope, so I guess things could go sour, but I don't expect so: Pilot makes a solid, solid, pen line-up and this pen, aimed at the Japanese school kids learning to write with a proper pen, is just that: a workhorse that can take some abuse but will write as well as pens costing TONS more. Here's why: it's made of plastic, for one thing, so light as a feather. In the right hands, that is perfect (I adore lightning quick pens), but it will never have the heft of an oversized pen made of substantial material. (The latter, however, can be heavy in long writing sessions.) You will also not get a flexy 14k nib, but it is only a nail when you keep your touch light, at which point it remains a FINE point you could write the Declaration of Independence with on a 3x5 card, and only use a drop of ink--for that matter, a wetter ink is best, and the fantastic standard Pilot ink is just that--I recommend you hunt down a converter and try the bottled Japanese stuff among others, but the cartridges offered by Pilot are really second to none. Anyway, yes it might be a stingy dryish pen on crappy paper with the wrong ink I would guess, but with the included ink it puts down a nice wet line that will fatten if you put a little pressure on the nib, and even has a little spring to it that you don't so much have to worry about busting--it's a school pen, right? anyway, at the 11 buck price point, these are a steal, and an absolute best buy for those who want to dip into fountain pens. other thoughts: most of my pens are screw tops, which can unwind at times if carried about. this little guy without a clip of any kind (so not a dress or work shirt pen at all) would slip easily into a pants pocket. I think I will really like the quick pop on/off of this cap, and really the pen writes great unposted. I didn't try posting it and might not do so often for fear of cracking the cap, though it may just click on lightly. nothing would surprise me that the engineers of this pen would not cover. makes me wish I had bought more of the 78g pens when they were cheap. I did not get a fine nib then because I had to write fast and furious and the fines don't always keep up, but it is true that these Japanese fine points with that bit of flex are something special, and you should own at least one version of it (I think this may be the same nib as the 78g without the gold plating and in one other Pilot series as well) if you are into pens and a great starter if you are just interested. It really writes as well as pens double or triple the price, easily, as long as you know what a fine point brings to the table (i.e. don't complain that it's scratchy if it's really just the tiny footprint of the nib, of course it's sharper than a Bold or medium point). It's gonna be hard for me not to start price watching the other colors (chose orange for low price/quick ship and visibility). final word of advice, but before I inked the pen up, I wrote somewhat aggressively on some decent paper to give a little polish to the nib. If you happen to get a rough example, do the same on progressively coarser papers (brown paper bag is final resort) until you rub out any imperfections. A cheapo loupe (little magnifier) is great to see if your tines are aligned on the nib and it does not take too much persuasion to make them even, if you do get a crappy one, but my experience with Pilot has been the same as with Japanese cars from the 80's: high quality, super high performance to price ratio. I covet their higher end models, like the vanishing point. Now that's a pen for a dress shirt!

Newly purchased. Wrote for several hours last night and found this pen to be easy on my hand and a smooth writer. There is also a charm to this pen,, a toy that is also a tool, looking like a child while doing an adult function. It is light, but in a floating way. And what a low price for such a quality fountain pen. (I hope all of you are enjoying your writing.)

Great starter pen, it writes very nice and smooth just like all pilot pens

Got the wrong color sent, papa blue, but I’ll keep it. I love the Pilot Kakuno no matter the color. I now have three with red, black, and blue inks. The con 70 converter fits these amazingly well.

I love finding great pens that are both functionally top-notch and very affordable. The Pilot Kakuno Fountain Pen of Beginners, Fine Nib, is just such a pen. BUT it's not just for beginners. I have several fountain pens and I typically use them every day in my journal. This pen has been used more than the others lately because it writes so well. It's size fits my hand (med/lg man's hand), the nib is not scratchy, the "fine" designation is accurate, and the ink flow is strong but not too much. I also love the look, which is playful and I assume plays into the "for beginners" designation. I plan on get at least one or two more in different colors.

This is my favorite fountain pen. I received one as a gift from someone who visited Japan and brought it back as a gift. I loved it, then I misplaced it and was super bummed to be missing my favorite pen. I found a replacement on Amazon and ordered it right away. What I like about the pen: It is lightweight The barrel shape is comfortable. I also have another Pilot fountain pen in metal with a tapered barrel but prefer this one for its straight barrel. Nib writes well, the replacement nib is in fine although I prefer the medium (which I had in my original pen) Posted -- I like that the cap fits snugly onto the pen when writing Refills are easy to find Price is great What I don't like: Pen cap clip - I wish it had a pen clip to put onto a notebook (which is how I lost my first pen, it must have fallen off a pile of papers). I created a have with a rubber band and paperclip. Converter -- I wish it came with a converter to make it more environmentally friendly, I can get around this by using a syringe and refilling but having a true converter would make it better. But for the price I can't complain too much.

Love it! Love the design! Love the colors of the plastic! Love the shapes! Love the quality! Everything! NOTE: in these photos the cap may appear as soft and some vendors do use the phrase "soft cap." However, that is NOT true. The cap is made out of hard plastic, the same as the barrel. That plastic feels to be similar to plastic used in LEGO parts. Great news: the feed and the nib of this pen and the Plumix (with 1 mm stub) ARE interchangeable! Just take a paper napkin (to prevent leaving skin oil on the nib and the feed), grab around the nib and the feed, and pull them out carefully. The swapping between two pens take seconds! Also, it is extremely important and useful for cleaning. If you will forget one of your Pilot Kakuno pens with ink for a while or worse, with permanent ink, then you don't need to panic. Just disassemble and clean! I use mine for testing permanent inks where I cannot risk pens from other brands that are not as easy to disassemble. The size of the pen is just right for sketching. I have family big hands, but I love this design! By the way, there is a small knob on the cap to make it easier for removing the cap. Also, it is great that it does NOT have a clip on the cap! I love it! Those clips always get in my way. I own Lamy and Pelican, but after trying my friend's Pilot Kakuno, I was hooked and purchased four of these in various colors and nibs along with four of Plumix (for their 1 mm stubs).

Great pen I’ve had it a while even if it’s been laying in the sun for a while it doesn’t dry up and for the price can’t complain

Amazing how comfortable these pens are to use! They lie good in my hand, are very light so that my hand won't get tired, and the nib writes very smoothly. I've got some 8 these pens in total, and highly recommend them!

It is a very smooth writer. It really flows over the paper. Its size is comparable to that of Kaweco Perkeo, which is an almost equally smooth writer. However, I prefer the latter! The Kakuno is feather light and its particular size and form together with the extreme smoothness in writing makes it non comfortable to hold in my hand. If it had a bit of feedback to give you the feeling of the pen on paper or if it had some more weight, it would be better I think, at least for me. The Perkeo is not a heavy pen either but its form makes it sit in my hand much more comfortably and be lees tiresome for long writing sessions. In any case, if you have small hands and like extreme smoothness, then Kakuno may be a good choi.

Per lavoro scrivo moltissimo, ed ero interessato a comprare una penna stilografica senza fronzoli, ma solida e capace di durare. Molte recensioni su Internet mi hanno indicato questa penna (di cui, essendo un profano, non sapevo assolutamente nulla), e devo dire che non sono rimasto affatto deluso! Passati i tempi biblici della spedizione dal Giappone (che erano però chiaramente indicati durante l'ordine), mi sono ritrovato con una penna leggerissima ed incredibilmente scorrevole: dal giorno in cui mi è arrivata ho iniziato immediatamente ad usarla, e mi sono scomparsi in un colpo i quotidiani crampi alla mano. La penna è fornita con una cartuccia di inchiostro nero, che ho finito in pochi giorni. Ma insieme alla penna ho acquistato un converter CON-50 e una boccetta di inchiostro Pilot nero, che sto già usando: con l'aiuto di alcuni video su YouTube non ho riscontrato alcun problema a ricaricare la penna. Insomma, un acquisto di cui sono pienamente soddisfatto!

Die Spitze ist sehr fein. Its a very lightweight pen but the cap can be posted on the pen to give it a little bit more weight and makes it a comfortable length for just about any hand size.

This is a very good pen. Like all Pilot products it's very reliable. It's made out of plastic completely except the nib obviously. I bought it with a F (fine) nib and I'm happy with it. Bear in mind, though, that a japanese-F tends to be more like an European Extra Fine (EF). It writes smoothly but it can be a bit scratchy depending on the kind of paper you use. If you habitually write in cheap paper you definitely have to use a F or a M, otherwise there will be a lot of feathering and bleedthrough. Definitely a good purchase. Una pluma excelente. Como todos los productos Pilot es muy fiable. Hecha totalmente de plástico excepto el plumín, como es de esperar. La compré con punto fino y me gusta, aunque es importante recordar que los puntos finos japoneses tienden a ser como un extrafino europeo. Escribe con suavidad aunque puede rascar un poco dependiendo del papel que uses. Si escribes habitualmente en papel barato es mejor usar un Fino o Medio para evitar que la tinta ramifique o cale hacia la otra cara. Una buena compra sin duda.