I have read the posts on this forum and spent some time on the Nakaya web site. Ordering one of their pens is like making a bespoke suit -- just about every option is available. I'm a bit overwhelmed -- it's difficult enough deciding on a pen at a local pen shop when I can take them out for a test drive. The size, shape and color are probably the easiest to choose -- I'm leaning toward the long-size cigar model. It seems like the best size to write un-posted. Nib choices are difficult without being able to try them. Does anyone have any insight to make the nib decision any easier? For those who have orders pens, did the outcome meet your expectations? What would you done differently?

Thanks in advance,
Twotone

I had the same reaction as you. There is another option available now, however: John Mottishaw of Classic Fountain Pens is now the agent for Nakaya in the US; just give them a call and talk it through with them. They don't mark-up the price of the pen over what is posted on the Nakaya website and I believe you can order any model through him.

When I decided to purchase one I just contacted Tay with Pensinasia. Asked if he had a Piccolo with a fine nib in reddish-black. He said yes, I said send it and that was that.

The nibs are great, my soft medium is actuyally a nice soft springy fine nib that wrote great out of the box. My elastic music nib is wonderful. Your best bet is to go to this year's Chicago Pen Show and try all the pens and nibs yourself. If they don't have the pen you want, they will take your specs and send it to you from Japan.

I know what you mean about there being too many options on the Nakaya website. I just ordered my second Nakaya, and I think it took me a couple of months of going back and forth before deciding on my order. This time, I went with the soft medium nib (which is supposed to be a flexible Japanese medium), but my first Nakaya had the regular medium nib, which is just outstanding. If you like a nib on the finer side, I think it's an excellent choice for your first Nakaya nib. It is an instant writer (even after weeks of inactivity) that is very smooth with a hint of tooth. Very nice feel and writing experience.

In fact, I bought mine from john Mottishaw at the fountain pen show in LA. I was able to try out what he had in stock, which was quite nice. I ended up buying the Nakaya Writer portable in the Aka tamenuri finish. I decided to buy this one with a clip, normally I go clipless but I am going to use this one at work and put it in my shirt pocket, of course being careful!!! I bought the pen with the monotone gold nib in the flex medium. It is a fantastic writer.

So if you get a chance to go to a pen show and if John mottishaw is there, it is a great chance to try out the pens and see for yourself. Indeed, you can order just about any model through him, unfortunately, he has a limited amount of pens on hand but as Rufus said, you can order any style through him. If you have questions about which pen you want, I am sure you can always call him and either him or one of his workers can assist you.

To be very honest, like you, I would have a hard time trying to order my pen through Nakaya and not knowing what i was getting!!! If you like Platinum pens and you are very familar with them, then you can have a pretty good idea what you are getting IMHO. Good luck and I am sure that you will like your pen!!! I sure love mine!!!

TNS

I've never dealt with Nakaya, so I can't comment on what it would be like to order from them. I have done business (on other pen brands) with both John Mottishaw and Tay (at Pensinasia), and I can assure you that they can make any sale easy and can help you make the right choices.

Last night I ordered a Decapod from John Mottishaw, and the process was very easy, even considering that the person I talked to was a temp. She was very good, excused herself if she felt there was a question she couldnt answer, and pretty much went through the same kinds of questions that you'll find on the Nakaya site.

Now if the pen is as great as all the hoopla I've heard...............

The Decapod is one nice looking pen. I've toyed with getting one myself, but think it might be too big; the biggest pen I'm comfortable with is the Pelikan M800 and I don't post. I've been mulling over the Piccolo Writer, i.e. the Piccolo with the clip, but I can't decide if I should get it in the basic black urushi or spring the extra $$ for the red black urushi; althougn there is more to it than just the colour the $110 premium seems a bit too steep for my pocket.

I sort of went through the same process. Like most the Piccolo is my favorite body style, but at this point, the price of admission is pretty steep for the Decapod, and I thought it would be easier to spend the $$ now while I had the cash, and then when I am ready for the Piccolo, I will have the option of doing just the black one (which seems to be a bargain for a hand crafted pen), or moving up to one of colors (I really like the purple, blue and the bright shiny red-I might be in trouble here..).