My Take On The Pilot Metropolitan

[lmarine0510]

Overview: The Pilot Metropolitan is a "budget" fountain pen from Pilot. the reason that I put the word budget in quotes is the fact that the only thing budget about this pen is the dirt cheap price of USD $13.78. I got everything that i expected and even more when i bought this pen.

 

Looks: This pen has simple styling and a very utilitarian design. it is dressed in matte black with a glossy plastic midsection. when capped, a small silver metal band is visable. the cap itself is marked "pilot japan" and has a simple silver clip. it does not stand out, but it is not too plain either. 10/10

 

Construction/Build Quality: this pen has a surprisingly qualitative build. With the matte black painted brass barrel and cap, it has considerable heft. The main thing that originally made me nervous about purchasing this pen was the cap. up until this point, I have never trusted a pen with a cap that doesn't screw on, with the exception of the innovative clutch system on the iconic Parker 51. I took the risk on this pen, figuring that if the cap doesn't clip on to my liking, i could keep this pen on my desk as a desk pen, and i do not regret the risk at all. the cap fits on like a glove and it takes considerable force to remove it, therefore, i trust this thing just as well as my screw on caps on my old sheaffers that are my usual daily drivers. 10/10

 

Filling System: This pen employs a cartridge-converter system, and accepts special Pilot cartridges/converters. this pen came with a squeeze converter installed that holds a considerable amount of ink. the converter itself is of very high quality. it almost reminds me of a thicker variant of a standard ink sac from a older style pen like i normally carry. at $8.59 for a 12 pack of cartridges, i believe that i am going to be going to be using the converter full time. no complaints here. 10/10

 

Writing Quality: a pen can have all the looks, but what really matters in the end is how well the pen writes. this pen doesn't fail to deliver in this department, either. it has a medium nib that lays down a line that looks a little bit finer than my Sheaffer Touchdown that also has a medium nib. This pen writes fairly dry, but is far from being skippy and problematic. the nib is extremely smooth and overall, this pen performs much better than a pen normally found within this price range. 10/10

 

Price/Value: this pen costed me a grand total of $13.78. thirteen dollars and seventy-eight cents. the price is the only thing cheap about the pen. Pilot could have sold this thing for $50 and, even then, i would have felt like a got a good deal. 'nuff said. 10/10.

 

Conclusion: As i stated earlier, this pen is an incredible value and i would recommend it to anybody. if you're a seasoned pen collector/user that's looking for another pen or a novice that's looking for a first pen to see what the world of a FP is like, this is the pen for you.

 

Here's some pic's. sorry for the blurriness. the iphone camera ain't all that great.

 

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k457/lmarine0510/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpse949c469.jpg

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k457/lmarine0510/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpsd6286bed.jpghttp://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k457/lmarine0510/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps5366c41c.jpghttp://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k457/lmarine0510/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps9730d549.jpghttp://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k457/lmarine0510/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps1416ac4a.jpghttp://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k457/lmarine0510/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps01dc93fd.jpghttp://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k457/lmarine0510/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps4618da04.jpg

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k457/lmarine0510/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpsd3e85789.jpg

[KBeezie]

That's a nice clear case, I didn't get that with mine:

http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/pmetro/uncapped.jpg

 

For my Bronze Lizard I just got a black flip box with a white bed in it to pull the pen out with, and a black cartridge. Though I have a CON-50 converter now so the squeeze one is set aside. I spent $15 for mine, plus $5 for the converter, but I still didn't get that clear-top box like you have.

[FayeV]

Filling System: This pen employs a cartridge-converter system, and accepts special Pilot cartridges/converters. this pen came with a squeeze converter installed that holds a considerable amount of ink. the converter itself is of very high quality. it almost reminds me of a thicker variant of a standard ink sac from a older style pen like i normally carry. at $8.59 for a 12 pack of cartridges, i believe that i am going to be going to be using the converter full time. no complaints here. 10/10

 

 

I'm happy to hear you thought highly of the squeeze converter. Is there any special trick to filling one of those? I've never used one before. I've only used the piston type where you twist the top end.

 

I ordered one of these, in the blue Leopard print, to try out. I received it the day before leaving town (good thing I stopped by the office on Sunday, was pleasantly surprised to see boxes on my desk since I was expecting my orders to arrive during the week while on vacation) and didn't have time to play with it. I looked at the squeeze converter and didn't know what to make of it. But I decided not to worry about it too much since I had also ordered another converter for it which had shipped separately and not arrived yet. I'll get to play with the pen this coming weekend. I'm trying to find a new cheapo EDC pen (one I won't cry too much about if I happen to lose it), so I ordered a Pilot Metropolitan, Parker Vector, Lamy Safari and a Hero 448(?) to try out.

[KBeezie]

 

I'm happy to hear you thought highly of the squeeze converter. Is there any special trick to filling one of those? I've never used one before. I've only used the piston type where you twist the top end.

 

With Pilot's its actually easier than I expected (I just like being able to see what amount of ink I have in there, which you can't really do with theirs cuz it's opaque latex). They have a full wrap around bar that can be squeezed (as opposed to just a little encased window you squeeze thru) allowing you to easily compress most of the sac then release to suck it in.

 

I would say the trick is similar to the twist type you've used. Expel the excess air after you've dipped the nib into the ink, then release to create a better vacuum.

 

I will say their squeeze fillers seem to take in ink much more nicely than others I've used since it's almost the closest thing to a lever filler, minus the lever (the others seem to be silicone, and usually has a little breather tube to help bring in ink, but you have to like pump it several times to get anything close to what the pilot one takes in one squeeze).

 

I still have a Pilot CON-50 set aside though (the metro will take the CON-50 but not the large CON-70 twist converter).

[kvz]

nice review KBeezie

[WilsonCQB1911]

I'm with you on this. I think Pilot could probably charge $100 for it. I bought a second just to see if my first was a fluke. It wasn't. My second is every bit as awesome. Their quality control must be great, as both pens write identically.

[maverink]

Yes these pens are value for money and these are the pens sold by Luxor pens pilots official distributor in india

[OneBadBadger]

I just ordered a silver one. Hopefully should be here tomorrow. It seems like a nice pen. I'm just using my Noodler's Ahab. It's pretty nice other than for here at work I have to keep screwing the cap on and off. While it's a nice upscale touch, as a security guard having to jot down things at a moments notice it's not completely convenient. So hopefully this pen fits the bill a little better.

[Anabasis]

I bought a Metro about a year ago and have hardly used it since. I agree that for $15 it is well-constructed and is a consistent, good writer - this has been well-established. However, it has no soul, no idiosyncrasies that make writing with it a pleasure. It simply writes. For some, this is the goal and that is fine. But, what attracts me to fountain pens are the features that one can only get with a fountain pen: juicy, variable lines, the feel in the hand, pleasant feedback. The Metropolitan offers none of these.

[Gloucesterman]

I bought three when they first came out. Staples had a deal and there was a nice discount along with some good pricing on the Iroshizuku ink. I used my Staples reward money so it was even better and I spent very little in the way of cash.

 

FYI, the Metropolitan takes the same friction fit nibs as the Prera, 87G, Plumix and I think Penmanship, so these nibs are all swappable (which I did).

 

As I understand it, Pilot will have the "Met" available sometime after May 1st with a fine nib. Might want to check out some online places as there may be discounts available with this first round of "new" pens.

[CrimsonM]

I wanted to like this pen but the grip bothered the hell out of me. Too aggressive of a taper coupled with an annoyingly sharp edge from the grip to the pen body, it just isn't comfortable. I'll stick to the 78G.

[lehrer07]

Swapping a Plumix [M] nib (1mm stub?) for the Metro’s [M] made all the difference for me.

 

I use the Metro alongside my Lamy Dialog3 or Sailor Pro Gear quite often and have never once had the thought that the Metro was not worthy of that place. I love the pen and it is, along with the Lamy Safari, easily the best bet for the money for those both starting off with fountain pens or for those who have been around a while.

[usk15]

Pilot MR

 

 

From UK market there is a Pilot MR, using standard international C/C.

[Gloucesterman]

Just bought a new fine Metropolitan from Goulet Pens (no affiliation). Am looking forward to testing it out over the weekend.

[Scootz]

Waiting on the new fine nib version to arrive, then I will buy my second Metropolitan.

[Adrianc]

Should get my new gold Metro with fine nib later today. Looking forward to trying it out.

[Bookman]

My Metropolitan F arrived today. And I can report that the nibs and feeds on both the Met and the Pilot Knight are identical. So add the Knight to the list of pens with swappable nibs. (The one on my Cross Solo looked like it might fit. It didn't. But it was close.)

[KBeezie]

Interesting thing I noticed.

 

When I Got my metro, I didn't get a pretty box like that, rather I just simply got a little flip cover type of cardboard box (well the windowed one is sorta cardboard too, but prettier).

 

But when I got my Falcon:

 

I got this :

 

... so I'm wondering if who gets what box with whatever pens varies by retailers or something. (the retailers without the windowed box probably got a price break on them by not having the 'gift box' would be my guess, but I could be wrong).

 

But I would have liked that rounded windowed box for my metro like you got. oh well.

 

I got a Black Crocodile Metro in Fine on the way.

Edited May 11, 2014 by KBeezie

[Scootz]

Both my Metropolitans came from Goulet Pens. The Medium Leopard came in a cardboard flip top box, while the Fine Python came in the clear case. Maybe the clear case is the newer packaging?

[KBeezie]

Both my Metropolitans came from Goulet Pens. The Medium Leopard came in a cardboard flip top box, while the Fine Python came in the clear case. Maybe the clear case is the newer packaging?

 

It's possible, I have a black crocodile in fine coming, but it won't be here til maybe middle or end of this week. So if it does come in something other than the flip box, I'll mention it here. Because if so, then yea maybe it's just newer packaging. While I rarely would use the box in terms of every day writing, it's nice to have, especially if I either plan to resell, or just want to move it out of the rotation for a little while.