I'm interested in trying out a Sailor pen. To be fair, I did have a 1911 with an XF nib a few months back, but I sold it. The two things I didn't like about it were:

1. It had an XF nib This was my first try with an XF nib and I simply don't like them. I'm an M/B guy.

2. The Montblancish cigar look. Not that there is anything wrong with MB (I own a 146), I just don't like it when other brands borrow so heavily from a more popular brand. It makes it feel very Chinese knock-offish, even if the pen in question is a very good one.

But I keep hearing wonderful things about how glassy-smooth Sailor nibs are, and I would like to put a Sailor on my wish list. The newer Sailors, like the Sapporo and Professional Gear, still have that pleasing cigar shape, but with just enough deviation from the aforementioned MBish style to make it its is own.

What gets me is that while the Sapporo retails for $120, the Professional Gear is twice that, and by all appearances is the same pen, just slightly larger with a two-tone nib. Something I'm missing here?

Anywho, I've read of people who are happy with their Professional Gears, but the search engine doesn't turn up much for the Sapporo. Just looking for any opinions on these newer Sailor pens.

The Sapporo and Sapporo Mini have the same nib units as the 1911M did - these are 14K.

The Professional Gear series has 21K nibs.

I have a 1911M with an EF nib that I *love*. I have ordered my Sapporo and a Sapporo Mini with EF's nibs too.

If you get a Sapporo with an M nib, you’ll probably like it just fine.

I have the older style (embedded anchor logo on cap top) 1911 full size with HM nib and the Pro Gear (silver trim) with HM nib. The Pro Gear is shorter, but the same girth. The difference is accounted for by the torpedo end caps on the 1911. Both are wonderful pens and the nibs are great. Both start immediately, no matter how long they've sat unused (even up to 5-6 weeks). I prefer the Pro Gear for aesthetic reasons, plus it sits better in my shirt pocket.

I'm sorry I can't help but hearing "Sapporo" reminds me of this:


I think Sapporo series are called Professional Gear Slim, Professional Gear Mini, Professional Slim Mini in Japan.

Recently a Japanese pen magazine had made limited edition blue Mini with Naginata-togi nib.
http://www.sideriver.com/stationery/pickup...rmini_blue.html

EDIT: I just noticed that Japanese Professional Gears (including Slim, Mini, etc) all have 21K nibs.

so, not to get too far off on a tangent here, but I am always hearing how the 1911 is just a MB knockoff, but honestly, there are a gazillion pens out there that have that same basic shape--if it's just a sort of generic pen shape, is it really a knockoff? And NOBODY else ever used that general shape before MB did? This is just a general question since I hear that same thing regarding any number of other models

I actually like the look of the newer style 1911 better than the older style I think, but looks are subjective. Some have suggested they will be discontinuing the 1911 or 1911M--somewhat hard to believe. Anyway, I have a 1911M which should be arriving any day--if it uses the same nib as the new Sapporo, which seems likely, I'll give a review of what I think when it gets here.

Can anyone tell me if the Professionals made of the same light weight plastic as the 1911 series?

I have a Pro. Gear with an EF nib that I absolutely adore. I refuse to write in my Moleskines with anything else if I have it on me. I find the EF nib on the PG is freakishly smooth but very easy to control; in contrast, the EF on my 1911m is not only a bit thicker (1.5x the PG, say) but was relatively scratchy out of the box and took a while to smooth down; in fact, it's still not as smooth as the PG's nib.

The feel of the plastic, the feel of the pen, and the weighting between the PG and the 1911m is quite different, in my experience--the 1911m has a very light plastic and feels almost too light in my hand, whereas the plastic seems denser and the pen itself is thicker and more solid feeling in the PG--as well as being balanced like it was made for me. I don't post on these pens, so ymmv.

Oh, and the PG's nib is bigger than the 1911m.

According to Nibs.com the 1911 will be discontinued shortly and is being replaced by the Sapporo series. Here's a comparison photo from Nibs.com.

I went to order two pens from nibs.com, the Sapporo Mini, and Sapporo, but they were not yet available with EF nibs.

It is not yet known when the EF nibs will be available on these models.

Did you get the Sapporo Ryan offered on the GB? That was a very sweet deal...

Just to raise awareness: all Professional Gear and Sapporo models are meant to be posted, as they have all rather short barrels. They are not for people who mind posting.

With the Sapporo line replacing the 1911M ,do you think one is better off purchasing a 1911M(I am assuming these will drop in price) or the new Sapporo line?Also,when are the extrafine points going to be available at Nibs?

I never post my full-sized 1911, and it's not a problem. The pen is very nicely balanced without posting and the barrel doesn't feel short to me.

I know they are available in the UK with EF nibs, but the GBP does not convert kindly to AUD.

I *think* Nibs.com might advise interested parties when the EF is available... Otherwise, just keep checking the website.

I love my Professional Gear.

Get it. You won't be sorry.

A little OT, but I need help here

What line width should I expect, when buying a 1911 with Naginata MF nib? Will it be between Western fine and medium or narrower?

Would like to buy a 1911, but have a problem with deciding on the nib width...

From my experience, it's narrower than many Western fines--much finer than a Pelikan F, for example. I'd call it between a fine & an XF.

Got my Sapporo today, it is a fantastic little pen. And it is indeed a shortie! This is the first pen I own that I am comfortable posting; having said that, I am also comfortable writing without the cap posted, but I think this will be my first pen I routinely post: the balance is simply perfect that way. There is validity to the claim that these pens are intended to be posted.

Here is a pick to give you some more size perspective:



Sailor Sapporo pictured with a Pelikan M760, which is the same size as an M200/400. Note that both pens are lined up with one of the blue lines on my ampad.

The nib is a fantastic M nib, which writes like a wet Pelikan F. I would not describe it as glassy smooth; rather, it has a consistent and subtle touch of feedback. The flow using PR Midnight Blues is superb, as good a flow as I've ever felt on an FP.

I'm very pleased with this purchase, and am looking forward to seeing how the pen handles itself after some time spent in the rotation.