Why Aren't There More Capless Or Retractable Fountain Pens?

[jar]

 

I went looking for this pen. FPGeeks had an article in late 2011 about a TWSBI Click that looked like a knock off of the Pilot VP that they were going to sell for under a $100. Looked super similar, so might have been ditched to avoid legal issues.

The big issue is that there is simply not enough demand to interest a company in investing the significant costs in developing one.

 

I have three Pilot VPs and they are all over 20 years old. It has been at least five years since I last put ink in any of them.

 

They are a nice gimmicky pen and there could be areas where they would be perfect but I am not a student taking notes or a doctor making rounds. The VP offers me no real advantages over any of my other pens.

[Opooh]

To parafrase Randy Newman: don't want no short nib 'round here. LOL

No seriously, once bought a Pilot VP, after a month of use I burried it in the " wasted money" case. Definitively not my cup of tea.

[ISW_Kaputnik]

In addition to the points mentioned above, it must be hard to design a retractable fountain pen with a normal clip placement. The VP, the Lamy Dialog and the apparently-ain't-gonna-happen TWSBI all have it at the nib end, although I believe with the Lamy it retracts into the barrel at least part way. That's necessary to allow you to put it in your pocket nib up. Maybe you could redesign it so that you can carry it safely in your pocket with the nib down, and the clip at the other end, but it would mean extra development work.

 

I have two Vanishing Points with the clips removed, and they are very nice pens, one is a favorite, in fact, but they are now harder to carry than they were meant to be. I have a two pen leather case for them. Also have one with the clip still on there, but holding it just doesn't feel quite right. It's not bad, just a bit "off".

[Andrea_R]

 

Not enough of a similarity (especially in clip placement) to worry about legal issues unless Pilot somehow has a patent in the US for retractable fountain pens. I think it's more likely they could not find it feasible to produce them while keeping the selling point under $100.

 

The last paragraph pretty much says what I was thinking.

you got the the point

[Andrea_R]

P.S. i a pretty sure that the Visconti Pininfarina and the Stipula Leonardo da Vinci are both retractable but they are way too expensive, big and ugly for my taste ( and my wallet)

[Moshe ben David]

One of the problems may be with the pen drying out. Common ballpoint pens use a special, somewhat viscous and dry ink that can withstand exposure to air fairly well. Fountain pen ink is wetter, and therefore more of a problem when it evaporates. The Pilot VP and Lamy Dialogue 3 both have little doors that close over the nib when retracted. Of course those doors aren't as airtight as a good cap can be, so the pens can dry out and have hard starts.

 

Don't know anything about the Lamy Dialog 3 performance; have never handled one. However, I have 4 of the Pilot VP. NONE have ever had a hard start nor dried out -- even when left sitting inked for a couple of weeks. Usually using one or more of the following inks: Sheaffer Skrip, Pilot, Waterman, Aurora

[Moshe ben David]

The Pilot VP is often mentioned in the context of doctors who are making rounds and need to be able to pull out the pen for quick notes. I've used mine in two other situations demanding similar flexibility:

 

• during walk-throughs of a client's factory or warehouse for audit purposes or to identify areas ripe for improvement
• at another stage of my life, while active in sales, the VP was especially useful while on the sales floor

For those not put off by the clip placement (doesn't bother me in the least!), the Pilot VP is very useful for on-the-go note taking. As well as more 'traditional' fountain pen situations.

 

Then again, as we say around here, YMMV (your mileage may vary).

[inotrym]

I think TWSBI has officially cancelled their announced Click model.

They didn't explain why though.

 

Perhaps we could bug them to reconsider.

[LDWoodworth]

I think TWSBI has officially cancelled their announced Click model.

They didn't explain why though.

 

Perhaps we could bug them to reconsider.

 

I asked them if I should wait for their Clicky or get a vanishing point on their Facebook page, their response:

 

 

TWSBI unfortunately, please don't wait for the Click, its not coming out anytime soon. Probably next year. Sorry about the bad news

[inotrym]

Oh well, at least they are still working on it. That's great!!

 

I thought they had abandoned the whole project.

[tryphon]

The French Stypen-Up is a very inexpensive ($10) retractable fountain pen that writes very well.

[LDWoodworth]

The French Stypen-Up is a very inexpensive ($10) retractable fountain pen that writes very well.

Awesome! Adding it to my buy list.

[disillusion]

I have an unbranded retractable nib fountain pen that I received as a gift. I believe is made in India and is sold under the Nisstiiv brand on Amazon. It is an ok pen, not the smoothest nib I have tried but not too bad. sbrebrown has a YouTube review of it here.

[KBeezie]

I have an unbranded retractable nib fountain pen that I received as a gift. I believe is made in India and is sold under the Nisstiiv brand on Amazon. It is an ok pen, not the smoothest nib I have tried but not too bad. sbrebrown has a YouTube review of it here.

 

The cap kind of defeats the point. In this particular case it only looks like it's useful for making the pen pocketable, but not in the same respect as a VP, which offers writing without having to remove a cap or post it.

Edited May 16, 2014 by KBeezie