Pilot Vanishing Point Review

[smileypen]

 

Ooooo boy here we go. This review has taken me so long to write because boy do I love this pen, and boy do I hate this pen. So, without further ado, let's take a look at a pen that has caused me all sort of joys and worries.

 

RATING:

How well does it write?

• What a question. That depends on really one thing. How do you hold your pen?
• Do you have a perfect triangular grip that will keep the clip right in the middle and not bother your hand? Do you hold your pen at a nice, lower angle? Do you keep your pen relatively front-on and not rotate your pen to any significant degree? If all of these apply, you're going to have a beautiful writing experience. I've had friends tell me how much they love my pen.
• But, if you're like me, where I told my pen in a fist grip, at a very high angle with a pretty intense rotation, this pen does not write well for me. Flow can't keep up when I write too quick, there's a tad too much feedback for my taste and I just have pens that write better than this. It's smoother than a Pilot Metro, but at this price I just want more.

How well is the pen built?

• Bleugh. Another difficult question. The "vanishing-point"/"capless"/"retractable" mechanism is a great feat of engineering. But everything about this pen other than that feels like they used sub-par materials. This resin is the softest of ANYTHING I own, to the point where it is scratched to hell. And OH MAN the metal is super soft.
• Something scratches something else if it is harder than it. For example, diamond is one of the hardest materials on earth and to find something harder to scratch it is very difficult. The metal used for the clip, the 'fineal', and the clicky part of the pen must be made of butter because EVERYTHING scratches it. I've got metal pens such as the Lamy 2K Stainless Steel, the Faber Castell Loom, Pilot Metros etc. This pen is EASILY the most scratched up pen I own.

How nice is the material the pen is made out of?

• As above, metal and resin.

How nice is the filling system of the pen?

• Cartridge/converter and it doesn't fit the big Con-70 converter. Meh.

Is this pen good value?

• It really really depends how you hold your pen. If you can get the Vanishing Point to write well with your grip, this is a solid pen for the price. If not, then get a different pen. The Lamy 2K is right in this pricepoint! The Platinum 3776 writes like a dream, the Sailor 1911 is an amazing writer.

GENERAL THOUGHTS ABOUT THE PEN

This is the Pilot Vanishing Point Black/Gold. This model here has a Fine 14kt gold nib. The pen is special in that the nib 'retracts' kind of like a clicky pen! This makes it super easy to take out and write with and great for taking down the quick note. That being said, as law student turned tax accountant, there's literally nothing in my life that is so urgent that I can't just uncap a pen to take down. Honestly, for the people out there that say that this is necessary, you're gonna have to really fight me on this, I really don't think it is necessary. Yes, I understand there are people that NEED a clicky fountain pen, but it's so niche I'm going to write you guys off.

The filling system used in this pen is a cartridge/converter system. You have to unscrew the pen and take out the entire nib unit to re-ink the pen, something I find quite annoying. Definitely not a deal-breaker in the slightest but not the most convenient either, considering the converter holds less than 1ml of ink.

Now, how does the pen write? Bleugh, we get to the hard part of the review. Fountain pens inherently are such a subjective experience as everyone holds their pen differently. And boy do I hold my pen weird. I hold my pen at a really high angle with quite a rotation and in a fist grip. The pen rests on my ring finger and I couldn't imagine a worse combination for this pen. The pen is not very smooth at all, and flow REALLY suffers. Taking a look at the image below, the feed can barely keep up with me doing a quick flick for the loop of a j, y or g. I'm even giving the pen a second of rest before going onto the next loop!

So if you don't write with a great, low, straight grip, then don't go for this pen. The Platinum 3776 writes like an absolute dream for me. The Sailor 1911 does as well. This pen, with its small nib and very small feed just don't work as well I wished it would.

Now, before people absolutely lose their (bleep) and chew my head off, yes I have friends that write properly, and they quite like this pen. They say flow is still a bit dry but they have a generally nice experience with a touch more feedback than comfortable. And as much as I acknowledge that, I also need to say not everyone holds their pen properly or hell even well.

And now we reach my other gripe about this pen. Whatever metal they use for the trims and cap/clip is the softest thing in existence. It's softer than butter, wet bread and Dwight Howard (https://media.giphy.com/media/xT1XGESDlxj0GwoDRe/giphy.gif).

That leads to the pen being SUPER scratched up. Take a look at some of the photos:

I don't baby my pens. To me, pens are writing instruments that I carry about in a case. I bring my Lamy 2000 Stainless Steel with me. I bring my Faber-Castell Loom without a case. I do not own a pen that is more beat up than this.

Now, this doesn't really bother me. Yes, it looks like (bleep) and yes this freaks some people out. If that is one of you, don't get this pen. Staring at it too hard would probably leave some marks.

Now I do want to touch on another topic, which is people seem to enjoy collecting this pen. Nothing wrong with that. all power to them, but I couldn't own 10 of the same pen. But that is another thing to consider when getting this pen is that there is a huge!!!!! number of colours and options, some really really beautiful.

I buy pens for the writing experience. Other people buy pens for them to be beautiful or to look at. Both are completely fine.

But, overall, this pen is not the writing experience I hoped it to be. With how I PERSONALLY enjoy pens, I would recommend a Platinum 3776 or a Sailor 1911/Pro Gear over this pen nearly every single time.

PHOTO GALLERY

[hari317]

This pen is certainly not for you, if you hold the pen as you have shown in one of the pics. Why did you buy this pen in the first place? the long clip and your grip was never going to go together. I feel even the older faceted capless model, which is considered very ergonomic is going to be a problem.

 

Like you I also have no situation where a one handed pen operation is required, but some members working in the medical profession, emergency rooms etc have commented that the pen is useful to them. I have four variants of the pen: Fermo, Decimo, Regular and Faceted. The last is more ergonomic. The fermo is discreet and engages without making noise.

Edited March 12, 2018 by hari317

[prashant.tikekar]

I doubt that the pen is made of resin. It is brass with lacquer coating IMHO. Also I have the steel nibbed chrome plated version and it is quite scratch resistant. I agree that this pen is not for everyone and I like mine.

[smileypen]

This pen is certainly not for you, if you hold the pen as you have shown in one of the pics. Why did you buy this pen in the first place? the long clip and your grip was never going to go together. I feel even the older faceted capless model, which is considered very ergonomic is going to be a problem.

 

Like you I also have no situation where a one handed pen operation is required, but some members working in the medical profession, emergency rooms etc have commented that the pen is useful to them. I have four variants of the pen: Fermo, Decimo, Regular and Faceted. The last is more ergonomic. The fermo is discreet and engages without making noise.

 

The clip is actually the best of my worries as I hold it quite well even with it in place! It's more the steep angle and rotation that does in the writing experience for me!

 

And on the medical profession one, I totally get that! And for those who work in those professions, or if you work in construction etc. then you know who you are! My comments were really challenging people to have a think about their use-case and really decide if it's necessary or even a feature for them, because to me it really is a gimmick.

[minddance]

I am tired of seeing 'everything-good' reviews. Now, this is, finally, a different review, from a user's perspective, and not a vendor's.

 

Excellent job. And the picture of how you hold the pen helps readers think about the clip and possible writing experience.

[smileypen]

I am tired of seeing 'everything-good' reviews. Now, this is, finally, a different review, from a user's perspective, and not a vendor's.

 

Excellent job. And the picture of how you hold the pen helps readers think about the clip and possible writing experience.

 

Thanks for your kind words!

 

I find it really interesting that people are honing into how I hold the pen, but the point of the picture is actually to show people what I mean by a 'steep angle'! The pen really is high up!

Edited March 12, 2018 by smileypen

[RayOski1]

As a physician, the ability to use one handed is quite helpful. Unfortunately the small amount of ink is problematic as I still use paper charts.

 

My daily writers are Lamy 2000, Visconti with power fillers or Montblanc 146.

 

Btw. Permanent ink, blue or black is a must. I am using Pilot Blue-Black right now.

 

Reading this makes me remember I should sell. My 2 as they are gathering dust.

[alexander_k]

While I have a completely different appreciation of the admittedly temperamental Pilot Capless, I applaud the OP's attitude: don't baby pens; they're made for regular use and should be able to take some abuse while remaining reliable. Don't worry about minor wear, either: my body carries more blemishes than a pen of the same age.

[inkstainedruth]

Interesting perspective. I bought a used VP in an antiques/collecibles store a couple of years ago, and it was way too big and heavy for me. So I gave it to my husband. And then bought myself a Decimo, which is a much better size and weight for me. And swapped out the nib assemblies because he didn't like the F nib (he much prefers the EF nib from the Decimo).

I mostly like the Decimo, but I find that I do have hard starts with it sometimes. Right now I have Iroshizuku Kon-peki in the pen, and previously used Iroshizuku Yama-budo. I bought my husband a bottle of Namiki Black because that's the ink he was using (right now the cartridge from the Decimo, but previously he was using a sample of it, and I still have a bit of it left).

We'll see how the VP does after a week and a half of non-use: he's out of town and was afraid of losing the pen (and given some of the crazy stuff he's been dealing with so far -- and it's only Monday! -- I can understand his concerns, because he's not really a FP person yet...).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Orval]

OMG, what a grip. Blame your teacher in the primary school but not the pen.

My experience is totaly different than the topics starters.

My vanishing point is daily in my pocket since more than 10 years and I don't see 1 visible scratch, not on the metal parts, not on the lacquer.

I agree that the capacity is tiny (1 ml), but I have a extra fine nib and, unlike Visconti e.g., Pilot can make real XF nibs.

The result is that my VP XF has in real life a better ink capacity than my Visconti Homo Sapiens dreamtouch XF nib, that I have to refuel ennoyingly continuously, wich makes him unusable for every day carrying.

[Bluey]

This model here has a Fine 14kt gold nib.

 

The old 14k ones that the OP has aren't sold anymore, and haven't been for quite a while, I believe.

 

Is the pen second hand?

[Uncial]

The capacity is annoying.

The nibs are a bit hit and miss. You can get a very good one that is smooth and very wet or you can end up with a very dry writer with a lot of feedback. I have a fine nib that I find very forgiving, but not especially fine in terms of the line it produces.

The clip placement isn't for everyone, but I was pleasantly surprised at the girth of the pen and didn't find the clip placement annoying. When I used one it clicked as to why this pen is so loved.

Not all finishes are prone to scratching up so badly. Many Waterman pens of gold and black lacquer also scratch up very easily in a very similar way, but the textured blue surface of the Pilot VP carbonesque (Kasuri) and the white metal is very robust. I did a review of that one a while ago on here. I like it because it reminds me of a whale shark and I like the feel of the textured finish.

Oh, and that is the weirdest grip I have ever seen.

[smileypen]

While I have a completely different appreciation of the admittedly temperamental Pilot Capless, I applaud the OP's attitude: don't baby pens; they're made for regular use and should be able to take some abuse while remaining reliable. Don't worry about minor wear, either: my body carries more blemishes than a pen of the same age.

 

Thank you!

 

I mostly like the Decimo, but I find that I do have hard starts with it sometimes. Right now I have Iroshizuku Kon-peki in the pen, and previously used Iroshizuku Yama-budo. I bought my husband a bottle of Namiki Black because that's the ink he was using (right now the cartridge from the Decimo, but previously he was using a sample of it, and I still have a bit of it left).

 

Very interesting, for me it's more of a flow problem! Iroshizuku Yama Budo in my pen is a very wet ink with good flow, so having it skip or miss a beat when writing is really sad to see!

 

 

OMG, what a grip. Blame your teacher in the primary school but not the pen.

My experience is totaly different than the topics starters.

My vanishing point is daily in my pocket since more than 10 years and I don't see 1 visible scratch, not on the metal parts, not on the lacquer.

I agree that the capacity is tiny (1 ml), but I have a extra fine nib and, unlike Visconti e.g., Pilot can make real XF nibs.

The result is that my VP XF has in real life a better ink capacity than my Visconti Homo Sapiens dreamtouch XF nib, that I have to refuel ennoyingly continuously, wich makes him unusable for every day carrying.

 

My grip actually comes from being left handed but being forced to write with my right! My hand was far too shaky so I had to really hold down the pen in order to smoothly write. That's very interesting! I don't even keep the VP in the same pocket as my keys, just my phone!

 

I used to have a Visconti HS EF as well and they really write wet. I think the rate they burn through ink is due to how wet they write, which makes for a beautiful writing experience but practicality takes a hit!

[smileypen]

 

The old 14k ones that the OP has aren't sold anymore, and haven't been for quite a while, I believe.

 

Is the pen second hand?

 

I bought this one brand new! However, I believe this is quite old stock from a retailer, that has been sitting around for a very long time, as I received the old box with it!

 

 

The capacity is annoying.

The nibs are a bit hit and miss. You can get a very good one that is smooth and very wet or you can end up with a very dry writer with a lot of feedback. I have a fine nib that I find very forgiving, but not especially fine in terms of the line it produces.

The clip placement isn't for everyone, but I was pleasantly surprised at the girth of the pen and didn't find the clip placement annoying. When I used one it clicked as to why this pen is so loved.

Not all finishes are prone to scratching up so badly. Many Waterman pens of gold and black lacquer also scratch up very easily in a very similar way, but the textured blue surface of the Pilot VP carbonesque (Kasuri) and the white metal is very robust. I did a review of that one a while ago on here. I like it because it reminds me of a whale shark and I like the feel of the textured finish.

Oh, and that is the weirdest grip I have ever seen.

 

I feel the same way too regarding the nibs, as some I've tried in store really aren't quite too bad. I think compared to nibs that are nearly always well tuned from Platinum and Sailor, I'd have to give the nod to those brands instead. Which is quite unfortunate because other gold nibbed Pilots are also very well tuned!

 

Yes the grip is quite weird! That being said for everyone else as well, even if I use a triangular grip the pen is at a very high angle due to the way my hand is shaped. No getting around it, it seems!

[senzen]

Thanks for an interesting and informative review, first time I've seen someone holding a pen worse than I used to, although I ended up with an indentation in my forefinger, not that I'm proud of that, it was really painful; took me years to retrain myself. The VP has never been on my radar, it seems impractical, a gimmick that won't prevent me from ruining a shirt, I don't really care for clicking pens, and it just seems like a risky purchase; I might change my mind if I ever come across it in person.

[Drawing61]

Thanks for your honest and informative review. Vanishing Points are my next to favorite "thrown in the bag" pens when I go on a sketching trip. My favorite are my Sailor minis. My VPs have not had an easy life but they are aging gracefully. As your review illustrates not every pen is for every person.

[Bluey]

I had 2 Capless - one Decimo and other a non-Decimo - but sold them both. They both wrote very well, but the Decimo was too slim and the non-Decimo wrote way too fine.

 

In hindsight, most of the attraction of them was in my imagination. I tried to convince myself that they would come in useful when i was travelling on British trains, which break down for hours leaving me with lots of spare time, even though I never take my fountain pens out of the house. Just think of their practicality with their one handed operation, I thought to myself, except i couldn't think of any situation where I would find them practical. For note taking I usually use one of my Falcons which stay wet for half hour or more depending on ink.

Although I'm mostly a pragmatist and a realist, I am perhaps 10% idealist, and this is the part of me that the Capless appealed to.

 

I won't be getting another Pilot Capless. At the end of the day, I use fountain pens for their writing enjoyment(for journalling etc) of which i only do at home. With their less than ideal balance I couldn't see them becoming part of my core favourites.

When I want practicality, I'll use a cheap disposable ballpoint.

Edited March 13, 2018 by Bluey

[smileypen]

For reference, I can actually write fairly decently using a triangular grip. Due to the shape of my hand, the angle is still very steep.

 

[Honeybadgers]

I have one with the special alloy (steel) nib coming from japan. I figure that with the fine nibs, you would not be able to tell, and for about $70, I can get an 18k stub nib for it.

 

My wife's grip is similar but even more pronounced, she literally holds a pen between her ring and middle finger.

Edited March 13, 2018 by Honeybadgers

[SoulSamurai]

One day I was trying to take notes with a client while standing, and I was finding it awkward to support my notebook while capping and uncapping my pen, so I decided to take the plunge and buy a Capless Decimo. Well, I found that the clip didn't bother me; on the contrary, is was useful for effortlessly aligning the pen in my hand. Coupled with the convenient (and satisfying) action, I found it to be the most effortless fountain pen to use when you're paying attention to something else (like a client or your boss).

 

However the nib was too soft for my uncultured hands (I think I sprung the nib the first time I tried writing with it). It was also unuseably wet (possibly a result of my heavy hand), and would dry out after a couple of days unused (which I can't stand). And finally, the grip was too slippery for me.

 

Overall I love the idea of the pen, but it's just not a good fit for me in it's current form.

Edited March 13, 2018 by SoulSamurai