The Pilot Knight

[muinteoir]

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Imzadi]

Nice review. I'm considering buying this pen and was wondering about the thickness of a medium nib. Thank you.

[dashreeve]

I have been looking at these as well. Does the pen come with a twist converter or sac??

[Imzadi]

According to Fountain Pen Hospital, it's a cartridge/converter.

[muinteoir]

I have been looking at these as well. Does the pen come with a twist converter or sac??

 

I strongly recommend the pen! It has a sac converter that usually lasts me several days.

[bluefish65]

I just received mine today and it has a squeeze converter. Basically a rubber sac in a metal housing w/ a bar that you squeeze/"unsqueeze" to fill. Seems fairly simple (my first pen with that type of converter), but I haven't used it yet. I just popped in a cartridge.

 

It's a great pen that wrote super smooth out of the box. One word of caution, though. This a fairly heavy pen (approx. 35 grams with cap). I prefer a heavy pen, but I know it might be an issue for some.

 

[Imzadi]

How does it feel unposted?

[muinteoir]

How does it feel unposted?

 

I prefer the balance when the cap is posted. However, unposted is lighter and still rests comfortably in my hand. At work I tend to use the pen unposted for brief writing and posted when writing for longer periods.

[Imzadi]

Thank you muinteoir. I prefer my pens to be unposted. I'll have to give it a go.

[ericthered2004]

Interesting review--thanks. I've recently re-inked my Knight after a longish hibernation and have been reminded of what a class act it is. It's heavier than I'd prefer, but beautifully designed and executed, with a miraculously good nib. My (silver) finish seems to have held up quite well, although I have probably used it much less than you have yours.

 

Regards

eric

[winknut]

i do like my knight... however...

 

i am really puzzled by the poor quality of the finish. i think that may be its biggest flaw.

 

one day. and i mean it, it was only ONE day... i wore a shirt without a pocket and the cap fits on with a nice tight and substantial click i thought well i'll just pop it in my pocket for the ride to work. by the end of the day it looked like i had dragged it behind the train. that nice heavy brass barrell is not going to be damaged anytime soon but one day certainly gave the pen a lot of "character"...

 

also the end cap became dislodged and had to be super glued back in.

 

i think i paid something like 35$ US for the pen, so i don't expect something flawless, but a co-worker saw my pen and bought one and uses it daily. he transports in his pocket and the black finish is gone. it's a brass pen. i think something is wrong with the enamel that was used as i can't imagine pilot w3ould envision a world of battered looking brass pens. the brass flashes are endearing in a wierd sort of way though...

 

i use this pen unposted because i find that the heavy brass throws off the balance and is a little too much, but every once in a while when i do post i find that the cap doesn't hold on as securely as i would like...

 

on a more positive note...

the clip design is revolutionary. barring being run over i don't think you could damage it. the chroming also does not seem to be as suceptible to damage as the enamel. the brass (nee black...) pen i spoke of earlier still has the shiniest clip you've ever seen...

[PacificCoastPen]

I have a burgundy Knight and am waiting for my second in black. The medium nib writes on the fine side. It also writes well upside down for a finer line. When I first got it, I wasn't so sure about it. But, it is a great pen, well made. Good for gifting for the price. Under $40. In the daily rotation. You can't go wrong.

[muinteoir]

i do like my knight... however...

 

i am really puzzled by the poor quality of the finish. i think that may be its biggest flaw.

 

one day. and i mean it, it was only ONE day... i wore a shirt without a pocket and the cap fits on with a nice tight and substantial click i thought well i'll just pop it in my pocket for the ride to work. by the end of the day it looked like i had dragged it behind the train. that nice heavy brass barrell is not going to be damaged anytime soon but one day certainly gave the pen a lot of "character"...

 

I'm glad i'm not the only one with the puzzling wear from normal use!!

[GoLuxor]

Good review, but can I ask, how long is the grip? Like, how many fingers' widths can you fit across it? It looks pretty short in the pictures, and given the silver band being there, it would seem like it would be uncomfortable to write with if you have an "atypical" writing grip apart from the standard tripod grip.

[bluefish65]

I don't have a ruler with me at the moment, but I'd estimate the grip to be approx. 5/8" long. I believe I have regular-sized hands for a man and when I write with it, I find that the pad of my thumb rests on the silver part between the grip and barrel. It's not uncomfortable (at least to me) as there are 3, gradually larger, "steps" up the length the silver section where it attaches to the barrel.

Edited April 21, 2009 by bluefish65

[GoLuxor]

I don't have a ruler with me at the moment, but I'd estimate the grip to be approx. 5/8" long. I believe I have regular-sized hands for a man and when I write with it, I find that the pad of my thumb rests on the silver part between the grip and barrel. It's not uncomfortable (at least to me) as there are 3, gradually larger, "steps" up the length the silver section where it attaches to the barrel.

I see. Thanks for the input. I'm asking b/c I tend to use a modified tripod grip where I use both my index and middle finger on top, so a shorter grip might pose a problem (as I'm not sure if my particular grip would work as well with the silver band there). Unfortunately, I can't seem to find the Knight in any retail stores so I can't really try it out, so I'm hoping to gleam as much info as I can now so I can make as educated a decision before purchasing it online.

Edited April 21, 2009 by GoLuxor

[bluefish65]

I gotcha. I found a ruler (albeit a beat-up, plastic one) and the grip is 5/8" long and I'd say 3/8" wide at the top and 5/16" at the bottom. There's a slight taper of the grip towards the nib.

 

I tried to replicate your style and it seemed a bit crowded to me, but I'm sure it all depends on the size of your hand & fingers.

 

[GoLuxor]

I gotcha. I found a ruler (albeit a beat-up, plastic one) and the grip is 5/8" long and I'd say 3/8" wide at the top and 5/16" at the bottom. There's a slight taper of the grip towards the nib.

 

I tried to replicate your style and it seemed a bit crowded to me, but I'm sure it all depends on the size of your hand & fingers.

Wow, thank you for trying that out! I really appreciate it. I guess I tend to have thinner-sized fingers for a guy, so I might be able to fit better. The only thing I'd be worried about then is how long I'd be able to maintain my grip for extended periods. How does the silver band part feel? Is it like "sharp-edged" or is it more rounded? If it's "soft" enough, I think I may just risk it and buy it since I really like the look of it.

 

Oh, and one more quick question that I think might help sway me. Relatively speaking, how thick is the barrel? I know it's not as thin as one of those cheap Bic ballpoints, but would you say it's thinner or wider than a standard-sized Sharpie marker?

Edited April 21, 2009 by GoLuxor

[donwinn]

I gotcha. I found a ruler (albeit a beat-up, plastic one) and the grip is 5/8" long and I'd say 3/8" wide at the top and 5/16" at the bottom. There's a slight taper of the grip towards the nib.

 

I tried to replicate your style and it seemed a bit crowded to me, but I'm sure it all depends on the size of your hand & fingers.

Wow, thank you for trying that out! I really appreciate it. I guess I tend to have thinner-sized fingers for a guy, so I might be able to fit better. The only thing I'd be worried about then is how long I'd be able to maintain my grip for extended periods. How does the silver band part feel? Is it like "sharp-edged" or is it more rounded? If it's "soft" enough, I think I may just risk it and buy it since I really like the look of it.

 

Oh, and one more quick question that I think might help sway me. Relatively speaking, how thick is the barrel? I know it's not as thin as one of those cheap Bic ballpoints, but would you say it's thinner or wider than a standard-sized Sharpie marker?

 

Office Depot near my home usually stocks the Knight, don't know about where you live, though. I have a couple of Knights, and the body is thinner than a sharpie marker. The reason I don't use it as much as I could, is because it comes only with the medium nib, and I tend more toward the fine. That being said, I like them well enough that I purchased two, one silver, and one reddish. The grip is smooth, by the way. No sharp edges on the silver band, at least not on either of mine.

 

Donnie

 

[vans4444]

I recently brought a Pilot 78G with a medium nib. I like it a lot, but it would be nice if it was little heavier. Could the Knight be described as a heavier version of the 78G or would that be doing it an injustice?

 

 

Thanks