Greetings from a Pilot nerd

[Echolane]

On 7/12/2024 at 7:21 AM, markofp said:

I think we would all agree that any Pilot would write at least as smooth if not smoother than any Sailor. 

I hope you will comment further here as to the differences between Sailor and Pilot  as I have tried only one Sailor with its 21k medium gold nib and I have tried no Pilots.  Are the Medium designations equivalent between Sailor and Pilot??  I want a Medium nib and I had the impression I might have to choose Broad if I wanted Medium in a Pilot.  I’m also curious as to how much difference there is between 21k and 18k and 14k nibs.  Will I find that much difference between my 21k Sailor and the 18k Pilot 845 I’m interested in?

[markofp]

If you want an 845 in the equivalent of a western medium, you should order it in a medium. While the Pilot fine point is in my experience more of an extra-fine, the medium seems to run true-to-size. 

 

I have had only one Sailor, a fine point Pro Gear, but I found it's nib to have more feedback than I like. Every Pilot I have ever had (3 912s, 2 823s, 2 845s) has been perfect right out of the box, and very smooth. The 912 is really my go-to pen. 

[Echolane]

17 hours ago, markofp said:

If you want an 845 in the equivalent of a western medium, you should order it in a medium. While the Pilot fine point is in my experience more of an extra-fine, the medium seems to run true-to-size. 

 

I have had only one Sailor, a fine point Pro Gear, but I found it's nib to have more feedback than I like. Every Pilot I have ever had (3 912s, 2 823s, 2 845s) has been perfect right out of the box

Thanks!  That’s exactly what I needed to hear,  it seems like Medium is the right choice for me.  I’ve discovered another dealer.  Kiichin.jp.  They are cheaper than Tokyo Quill. Though I've been trying without success to confirm whether they are a Pilot dealer.  I feel pretty comfortable now about buying the Pilot Custom 845 Urushi in Vermillion with a Medium nib.  And it is really reassuring to find help from folks with more experience than I in buying pens!i

[Echolane]

One more question.  I really appreciate the extras I get with Tokyo Quill.  They claim they do a meticulous check of each pen, especially the adjustment of the nib, with correction if needed, and even a writing test.  That’s worth something.  But the pen I’m interested in is between $80 and $100 more expensive than the same pen offered by Amazon.jp, eBay and Kiichin.jp.  I don’t know Japanese customs with respect to price.  Are they insulted if someone asks for a discount?

[markofp]

Let me say this: I have bought two 845s and three 823s from Yaz at Tokyo Quill. When the pens have arrived, I have never seen any sign that he has actually done any of these checks. There has never been any indication that the pen has been inked, or frankly tested in any way. I don't think that there is any real need for him to do that, because I have also bought an 845 and three 912s from the eBay sellers I mentioned above, and they have all been perfect right out of the box. Pilot's manufacturing quality is excellent, and I have never felt moved to have any of their nibs adjusted in any way. 

 

My advice is to buy the least expensive authentic one you can find. I would be unreservedly surprised if you were disappointed with it once you've tried it. 

[Surlyprof]

On 4/26/2024 at 12:09 PM, RPD said:

Hi everyone.

 

I come from r/fountainpens, but I've come to dislike the dynamic of new users coming to the forum, learning the term "grail pen", thinking that it means "nice pen that's on the very verge of what I'm able to spend on non-essentials" and buying it immediately. The community just became an enabler for quick consumerism and I'm annoyed by it.

 

I've always been a big mechanical pencil nerd, I didn't even consider fountain pens until two years back. I was living in Japan and I had access to a large pool of very cheap and nice Pilot pens (imagine buying an 823 for 80 bucks). Pilot is my favorite mechanical pencil brand, so for me it was an incredible deal. Long story short, I have about 30 pens, all except a few exceptions are pilots - and I love them! I'll probably nerd here about pilots from time to time, while I keep an eye on other brands to see if something catches my attention.

Welcome to FPN.  Sounds like you are in the right place for the right reasons.  I’ve only been a member here for a little less than two years myself.  Although “penabling” exists here, the advice and the thoughtful reviews I’ve read on FPN have led me to some great pens and saved me from many costly mistakes.  I’m very pleased with my humble collection of pens and owe most of the better decisions to what I’ve learned from FPN the past few years.

 

I’ll be in Japan in a few months.  Really looking forward to visiting pen stores with the additional knowledge I’ve gained in the past few years.  Hoping to find my second Pilot and Sailor pens on this trip.  A sub-$100 823 or Justus 95 would be delightful! 

[Echolane]

Yay!   I finally pulled the trigger and bought my Pilot 845 in Vermillion from Tokyo Quill.  I can hardly wait until it arrives.  I really appreciate the terrific guidance I received.  I really learned a lot.  Special thanks to  markofp!

 

I’ve got my eye on another Pilot, the 743 in verdigris.  I so wish the color wasn’t US only because now that I have a little experience buying from Japan, it’d be considerably cheaper if I could buy it in Japan.  I’m also a tad bit concerned it will be so similar to the 845 that I shouldn’t waste my money on it, but it gets rave reviews in the way it writes so I guess I feel I can’t have too many beautiful writing pens.

 

[Echolane]

On 7/15/2024 at 2:34 PM, markofp said:

Let me say this: I have bought two 845s and three 823s from Yaz at Tokyo Quill. When the pens have arrived, I have never seen any sign that he has actually done any of these checks. There has never been any indication that the pen has been inked, or frankly tested in any way. I don't think that there is any real need for him to do that, because I have also bought an 845 and three 912s from the eBay sellers I mentioned above, and they have all been perfect right out of the box. Pilot's manufacturing quality is excellent, and I have never felt moved to have any of their nibs adjusted in any way. 

 

My advice is to buy the least expensive authentic one you can find. I would be unreservedly surprised if you were disappointed with it once you've tried it. 

interesting, to say the least, since the website claims the virtue of honesty.  Hmmmm…..

There is another problem which is very slow response to correspondence.  I was encouraged when I got an answer to my initial inquiry in less than 24 hours.  Not so in the 2nd case which took three days, and my 3rd email has me waiting three days now.  Unfortunately, there are not many 845s for sale right now.  Pen pen has none, and two other sellers have less than 100% ratings and besides it looks like pens are not a common item in their inventory of items to sell.  Or they don’t have a pen available in a medium.  Or their price is well over $500.   It looks like I’ll have to be patient.

 

On the positive side, I am very grateful for your continued good advice.   Thank you! 

[Echolane]

On Friday my pen from Tokyo Pen Shop Quill arrived.  It was packaged perfectly, and inside was my very beautiful pen!  It writes beautifully and except for some minor delays in correspondence I’m extremely happy with this transaction.  And of course my pen writes smooth as silk and I couldn’t be happier about that, 

 

I am still waiting for my Pilot Custom 843 in Verdigris.  The seller has suggested he can provide me with the ink that is normally sold with this pen and he will do that if I give him a few extra days to ship.  This has made me a bit nervous, but I will continue to think positive as I wait for it to be shipped.

 

Meanwhile, I’ve got my eye on one more Pilot, the 823 in Amber.  I’ve found one at a very very good price by a Japanese seller, engeika.  He sells a lot of pens and has almost 100% positive feedback so I feel relatively safe.  But do I really need another Pilot?  Probably not, but it would definitely be the last Pilot, and the price is a steal, not to be passed up.  
 

I’ve already got my eye on a Pelikan pen!   But, really, I think it would be best to wait for the San Francisco Pen Show in August when hopefully I can finally see some pens in person.