I did a search for Pilot Knight and nothing came up in this forum. Does anyone know much about this pen?

There's a review of the pen in Stylophile's June/July issue HERE.

I haven't seen one up close, but from the pics I've seen and what I've read about it, the Pilot Knight looks like a nice affordable pen for everyday use.

Thanks, just what I was looking for!!

Looks like a real workhorse, Apollo.

Bet that press bar aerometric filler converter will fit the Namiki VP, also. It's probably the same aerometric filler converter that some have mentioned as being available for the VP in addition to the twist converter furnished with the VP.

I think it only comes in a M nib. This prevents me from putting it on my list until I can afford to send it off to be reground.

I bought a Pilot Knight from Pam a few weeks ago. Very solidly made and a good writer. The nib is marked M but writes more like a fine. Mine is very smooth with a nice medium ink flow. Hard to beat for under $35.

I think Namiki - Pilot probably has some of the best nibs on the market. I have several in gold and they are wonderful. I don't have any in steel though, but would expect good things.

Is the Knight M nib writing about as "thick" or thin as the VP M nib?

yes. I would expect that.

Yes, I have both(VP and Knight) with medium nibs. They look the same on paper. My Mandarin VP is a little smoother, but I think the Knight is more comfortable in my hand. Both are good pens.

Larry, how's the converter on the Knight? Do you have any pics?

The convertor on the Knight is an aerometric type. The top half of the sack is open except for a pressure bar that runs over the top. Not at all like the screw type on the VP. I have been an avid ameteur photographer for over thirty years, but I have never posted a picture on one of these boards . I plan on fixing that soon. I'll post one here soon. I hope.

Larry

Thanks.

I ordered one from Pam today and asked if there was a piston option for convertors. My falcon also had an aerometric, and frankly I didn't care for it - too little capacity, and no breather tube so what you could get out of one pump was all you were going to get.

She tried the VP piston convertor in the Knight and said it didn't fit. Sooooo, I ordered some carts to go with it.

Knight arrived (next day as usual ) I am impressed with the pen. very good value. Smooth nib, albeit not as smooth as their gold ones. I'll work on it with mylar and see if I can up the quality. The texture is nice and grippy. The blue is a dusy midnight blue. My faaaav. Convertor... eh.... Got 2 boxes of carts. Solid feel and weight, but not too heavy.

I'm very impressed with it too. I picked up a navy coloured Pilot Knight today. It's a superb pen for the money. I can't help but to compare it to my Lamy Studio (fine nib). The Knight is a little shorter and less expensive, but I would place it in the same class. The Knight's steel nib is a little stiff, but fantastic. It puts down a sweet smooth line every time. They're only available in medium nibs, but like most Japanese FP's, they run closer to fine. It's hard to believe a pen like this can be bought for under $40 bucks.

Bringing back an older thread...

I was in one of the local office supply stores here in the Seattle area, (Office Depot,) when I noticed that they were now carrying the Pilot Knight. Hmm...I didn't really NEED another pen, but I'd been very curious to see what the Knight was like. It was priced at less than $40, so it took me all of about 45 seconds to decided that this little guy was coming home with me.

Like the other posters here, I'm pretty impressed! The pen is similar in size and feel to my Parker Sonnet. It has a VERY smooth medium steel nib, which puts down a relatively narrow line. If anything the line is a slight bit narrower than the medium gold nib on my new VP. (Perhaps due to the stiffer tines on the steel nib?)

I took a few quick photos last night. It isn't a fancy pen, by any means, but you'd be hard pressed to find a better writer, especially at that price.

TMann

Hi TMann,
Congrats on your new writing instrument .Maybe you can post a writing sample too?

Take Care and enjoy new pen!!!
Emrecan

I think that is a very nice looking pen. That brushed metal look is classy! Wish my Office Depot carried more than 3 FPs...

*Note to self: Move out of the sticks!

Tmann-

Which Office Depot did you go to find that? Congrats on the pen!

Chainwhip,

The Bellevue Office Depot. It's on Main and 108th N.E., right next to the CompUSA.

TMann

Ha! Right up the street from my place - I'll have to drop by today.

You work at Overlake Hospital?

Evansville is hardly "the sticks," IMHO. If you want total cosmopolitan immersion in the USA, you'll have to pay the accompanying housing costs, car insurance premiums and car bodywork bills (body damage is a certainty in American cosmopolitan environments). It takes lots of shipping charges and long-distance shopping trips to equate that difference!

Speaking of the Pilot Knight, I'd have bought it if I'd discovered it earlier in my fountain pen hobby; now it is on my list of useful gift items.

The Pilot Knight is a great little pen. I believe this is now a regularly stocked item at Office Depot, although they only carry the fountain pen in silver.

Do they carry Namiki bottled ink or cartridges? I didn't find them on my visit. It would be sad if they didn't carry refills for the pen. Oh, I don't recall seeing a converter with the Knight either.

Sidney, the Knights at Office Depot come with 2 Namiki blue cartridges and an areometric converter inside the pen. They're packaged in clamshell packs and should be found where they stock their Cross, Yafa, Sensa and Waterman pens. Unfortunately, Office Depot doesn't carry any bottled inks.

Apollo,

My local OfficeDepot stores carry both Quink and MontBlanc...only in black.

Randy

Then my local Office Depot is lame. They only carry Parker, Waterman, and Cross cartridges. The Staples in town is the only one that carries bottled ink but it's only Parker Quink in black.

I guess it's a trade-off. My OfficeDepot stores don't carry the Pilot Knight!

Randy

Yes, I found the Knights in the Office Depots in my city. I saw that they come with two blue cartridges, but I do not recall the package stating that a converter is included. And Office Depot's fountain pen ink choices are pitiful.

Sidney, I bought a silver one at Office Depot, and although the package doesn't mention the converter, it's included inside the pen itself.

Got my black Pilot Knight (The Black Knight?) in the mail today from Pam. I liked the navy blue but, well I've got too many blue pens. Filled it with Waterman Florida Blue and scribbled a bit...writes great! Finer line than my Vanishing Point medium nib, I think. I love the clip design on the Knight.

Overall I agree with other comments, excellent pen for the price!

I have black Knight too. Just confirming to already said, great writer VERY smooth. But my sample is hard starter after sitting unused (day or two). Anybody else has that problem? Is it typical or I need to contact Pilot on that matter?

Does the Pilot Knight come in a fine or extra-fine nib?

Ditto here... I left mine sit for a few days and it didn't start.

Once it did, it was all good. I'll try some other inks to see this happens again.

Hi Mac. No, the Knight only comes with a medium nib. Remember that being a Japanese-made pen, the nib runs a little narrower so it writes more like a fine compared to Watermans, Lamys, etc.

After reading some comments in this forum and Stylophiles review, I decided to pick one up at our local Office Depot. I bought the matte silver finish. The medium nib is definitely a fine when compared to most US and European nib sizes. As a matter of fact, I think it's right in between my VP's fine and medium nibs. Great weight and balance, as well as size. After investing many $$$ in my collection (a little over 130 pens), I'm finding it hard to believe that this one was only $40. It will undoubtedly end up accompanying me often!

Office Depot misquoted me $10 less than actual price and honored it. Plus, I had a $30 reward card, so that would mean I paid only $4.99. Can't beat the price. It's a great writer, very much like my VPs, but the bands near the nib was very uncomfortable. Maybe because I write fast?? My hubby was very happy to take it off my hands.

My Pilot Knight did the same. After using the converter to fill and empty with water several times, I haven't experienced the problem.

It is on sale now. pretty good value:

http://www.worldlux.com/cgi-bin/navigate.c...night&dept=PENS

David

This pen writes nicely, but I thought it was on the heavy side, which led me to give it up.

I don't use my Pilot Knight often. I used to think it was the weight. I weighed my pens on a postage scale. The Waterman Kultur is .6 ounce, Waterman Phileas .8 ounce, Rotring Core 1.0 ounce, and the Pilot Knight is 1.3 ounces. I think it also has something to do with the balance. If I loosen my grip, it tends to slide out of my hand. My other pens don't do that. It write so smoothly, but it is my most uncomfortable pen.

Then you are going to be in for a real shock if you go over to isellpens and put down ten bucks for a Baoer 3013, Wality 69L, or a Hero 616.

sorry, couldn't resist, the current popular use of the word "invest" just triggers so many conflicting emotions....