Pilot Vanishing Point In Matte Black

[Gojira]

Stealth is the right word for this pen. I almost didn't notice it sitting on the top portion of the box!

 

Nice review hudsong...now you've got me hankering for another pen!

[thaugen]

Great review of a stealthy pen! I just ordered one from Richard Binder that should arrive on Monday!

[Richard]

I like the Capless concept but the Decimo is a better fit for me. A Stealth in that size would be perfect!

I have tried more than once to get Pilot USA to bring the décimo into the U.S., but they won't do it.

 

The explanation I got was that it's plastic, not metal, and that makes it cheap cheap. I pointed out that U.S. customers are buying it from Japan because it's lighter, sleeker, and -- for some people -- easier to handle. The next explanation was that it simply wouldn't sell for the price they'd have to put on it. I showed them the numbers, i.e., that at their required 80% of MSRP it would be priced low enough that it would cost less than people are paying to get it from Japan.. That didn't move them, either. So I asked how many I'd have to order to get them to bring in a special lot just for me. At that point, the answer changed to "We're not going to do it, period." Grrrrr!

[thaugen]

My Vanishing Point Matte Black arrived today...thanks for the quick shipping Richard Binder. This pen looks really nice in person and the fine point writes like a dream!

[davenukem91]

This is a great looking pen, I would just feel weird with a fountain pen you can click like a normal pen. Do you guys feel the clicking adds to the experience or detracts from it? I like to feel like i'm using a fountain pen when writing with one. But regardless, it's a really clever idea and I think eventually I will HAVE to try one.

[thaugen]

This is a great looking pen, I would just feel weird with a fountain pen you can click like a normal pen. Do you guys feel the clicking adds to the experience or detracts from it? I like to feel like i'm using a fountain pen when writing with one. But regardless, it's a really clever idea and I think eventually I will HAVE to try one.

 

I think the "click" is cool, but I won't go so far as to say it adds or detracts from the fountain pen experience. The VP is still all fountain pen in how it writes. I don't think you'll regret it if you try one.

[Jimmy James]

I like the Capless concept but the Decimo is a better fit for me. A Stealth in that size would be perfect!

I have tried more than once to get Pilot USA to bring the décimo into the U.S., but they won't do it.

 

The explanation I got was that it's plastic, not metal, and that makes it cheap cheap. I pointed out that U.S. customers are buying it from Japan because it's lighter, sleeker, and -- for some people -- easier to handle. The next explanation was that it simply wouldn't sell for the price they'd have to put on it. I showed them the numbers, i.e., that at their required 80% of MSRP it would be priced low enough that it would cost less than people are paying to get it from Japan.. That didn't move them, either. So I asked how many I'd have to order to get them to bring in a special lot just for me. At that point, the answer changed to "We're not going to do it, period." Grrrrr!

 

Was this before we started making them lots of money with that ink we also wouldn't buy or after that?

 

Boy, they need to listen to their retailers some time.

[lsmith42]

Mine arrived today... Sexy as heck... Matching watch should be here any day now!

[reprieve]

I've been using this pen all day today, and I really like how it feels in my hand. The satin finish isn't as slick as the other VP finishes and it feels warmer somehow. Plus it's all stealth and stuff. This is totally my new undercover-agent-assassin-taking-over-the-world pen!

[TMLee]

A very good looking pen.

 

What is the specs on the matte black finish?

A more scratch resistant paint?

Can't seem to find any info on this.

[thaugen]

So far my matte finish is holding up well and seems very durable. I am not sure it is more scratch resistant than the normal finish, but it does not seem more scratch prone.

[wykpenguin]

The previous versions of black trim had tended to become silver trim over the years. I hope this one is better.

 

Any idea whether this will be available outside the States?

[ecox]

The previous versions of black trim had tended to become silver trim over the years. I hope this one is better.

 

 

That's not really true. Here's my 12-year-old original Stealth VP. It's been my daily user for pretty much that entire time. I don't think you can say that this pen's trim has become silver:

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v311/ecox/DSC08947.jpg

 

Most of the areas where the underlying brass (it's brass, not silver under the "trim") shows through are the spots where friction has worn off the stealth finish -- the tip of the clip and a little bit on around the hole where the nib comes out:

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v311/ecox/DSC09667.jpg

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v311/ecox/DSC09668.jpg

 

The click button on the other end of the pen has a couple lines where the stealth finish looks like it was scratched off by the click mechanism, but overall, the pen has help up remarkably well to years of daily use.

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v311/ecox/DSC09666.jpg

 

I expect the new stealth VP's finish to hold up just as well.

Edited April 23, 2011 by ecox

[Dino71]

I like the Capless concept but the Decimo is a better fit for me. A Stealth in that size would be perfect!

I have tried more than once to get Pilot USA to bring the décimo into the U.S., but they won't do it.

 

The explanation I got was that it's plastic, not metal, and that makes it cheap cheap. I pointed out that U.S. customers are buying it from Japan because it's lighter, sleeker, and -- for some people -- easier to handle. The next explanation was that it simply wouldn't sell for the price they'd have to put on it. I showed them the numbers, i.e., that at their required 80% of MSRP it would be priced low enough that it would cost less than people are paying to get it from Japan.. That didn't move them, either. So I asked how many I'd have to order to get them to bring in a special lot just for me. At that point, the answer changed to "We're not going to do it, period." Grrrrr!

 

To be expected. In the end, the FP market probably pales in comparison to their markets for BPs and RBs and Gels so I can't fault them. Am currently assigned to Asia and even in my area, the FPs are not available. If I want something from Pilot, I'm better off ordering from the US, or flying to Hong Kong or Singapore to get the pens.

 

On the brighter side, the price of Pilots in HK is really attractive if you know how to haggle and are paying in cash. I'm scheduled to visit in a few months and the 74s, 823s and Decimos are in my sights.

[Theodorable]

I can only dream of owning this pen, it truly is beautiful. Have you taken a look at the internal components? I would love to see how it is put together.

[lsmith42]

Has anyone had any issues with the smoothness of the Rhodium-plated gold nib vs. the unplated gold nibs on the standard VPs? I was expecting a very smooth fine like the last VP I bought, and I'm really not happy with how scratchy this one seems to be. Yes, I've louped it, no issues there. Not sure if this is an anomaly that should be exchanged, and haven't done any smoothing operations yet. It was a surprise since my previous four VP nibs have been flawless from day 1.

 

Thoughts?

[thaugen]

I can't tell a difference between the rhodium plated nib and he unplated gold...both are smooth writers.

[mcg1355]

I have the medium rhodium plated nib and it is super smooth. I have never owned or used a gold nib unit in a VP so i can't give a comparison. All the inks I have thrown at mine have been smooth in the nib, even whaleman's sepia which has been a particularly "grabby" ink in my experience. Sounds like you have something funky going on with yours I would consider sending it back or getting it worked on.

 

-Nick

[lsmith42]

I have the medium rhodium plated nib and it is super smooth. I have never owned or used a gold nib unit in a VP so i can't give a comparison. All the inks I have thrown at mine have been smooth in the nib, even whaleman's sepia which has been a particularly "grabby" ink in my experience. Sounds like you have something funky going on with yours I would consider sending it back or getting it worked on.

 

-Nick

That's what I'm thinking... my bad habit is to put these things away and ignore them hoping they'll change... and they don't...

[mcg1355]

I tend to put disappointing thing off to the side as well... then find it slightly more disappointing when I forget about the problem and think hey I haven't used that in a while, only to find out about the original problem all over again...

 

I'd lean towards being slightly more proactive about your nib issues because this pen is a special edition and the rhodium nib unit (to my knowledge) can not be purchased on its own. So putting the pen aside may make the problem much more difficult to resolve in the future.

 

-Nick