Review Revisited: Is the Pilot G2 Still A Good Pen?

One of my major “pandemic projects” has been to bring the content on this website up to date: deleting years-old announcements and “deals” posts containing outdated links, advertisements and sponsor posts from companies no longer in existence, and other material that’s basically clutter and makes it more difficult to find truly useful content. In the process, I’ve come across many reviews that I hadn’t read in several years, including this piece from nearly five years ago in which I discuss my appreciation for the Pilot G2, and even call it my personal favorite gel pen. It’s time to revisit to see whether this opinion still holds true.

Short Answer: I Still Like the Pilot G2 Overall

For the most part, my original review holds up. While I’ve never been on board with the G2’s moniker as the “World’s Best Pen” or “World’s Most Popular Pen” or whatever, I also don’t believe that it deserves the shade thrown its way. For a pen that most people can find in their corner grocery store, the G2 is quite good and, in my mind, serves the same role as the Bic Cristal: a classic pen that’s almost universally available with a refill that provides a consistently decent writing experience whenever you need to just get some work done. For that reason, I continue to keep a handful of Pilot G2s in my desk. While the standard plastic G2 body has zero character and isn’t particularly comfortable, for a small amount of money you can upgrade to the G2 Limited, which offers a better grip and balance for less than $10. I still own two.

The G2 does an excellent job of preventing evaporation from the cartridge, presumably due to the plastic cap and whatever material Pilot uses to seal off the ink. The refill on the right is from a Signo 307, which shows significant evaporation. Both of these pens were left sitting for 2-3 years.

The G2 Vs. Everything Else

The biggest downside to the G2, at least as sold, is the design. Companies such as Uni and Pentel have the clear edge in terms of ergonomics. I simply don’t find the standard G2 grip that comfortable, and the standard pen body feels insubstantial. That said, what really interests me is the refill. The G2 continues to impress with its combination of availability, durability, and consistency. Is it a “great” writing experience? No. Will the G2 consistently offer a “good” writing experience, even in a pen that’s spent a couple of years unused in a desk? Based on my track record with this pen, the answer to that question is yes. With one or two exceptions, all of the G2s that I pulled out of my various stationery drawers wrote immediately, without any dryness or skipping, and when I checked the refills for evaporation I found that the G2s had much more ink remaining than its competitors, including the popular Pentel Energel and Uni Signo 307, the latter of which experienced significant evaporation after a couple of years. (Evaporation can cause gel ink to become sticky and blob and smear easily, which makes for a very unpleasant writing experience.)

View fullsize

Finally, I did notice some discrepancies in performance between the various G2 tip sizes. Curiously, all of the “problematic” pens (i.e., skipping and dryness) contained blue .5mm refills. The .7mm and .38mm G2 refills performed flawlessly across the range of available colors. I’m not going to draw any firm conclusions from this, as it’s not a representative sample and YMMV, but I did make that observation. The .38mm tip size has become my current favorite.

Takeaways and Where to Buy

The G2 remains my favorite inexpensive “office supply” gel pen. The combination of low cost, generally reliable performance, and the refill’s compatibility with a wide rage of different custom pens make it a quality option to have in your stationery cabinet. While the limited color options can be a considerable downside, the Pilot “Juice” range features the same refill format, though the pen itself is a bit more slender and less comfortable to use (in my opinion).

As I mentioned above, you can purchase a Pilot G2 anywhere. If you’re looking for the .38mm version, or one of the non-standard colors such as orange, burgundy, or blue-black, you may need to search around online, though I have occasionally seen them at big box office supply stores. G2 refills also ship standard in many custom machined pens, including Tactile Turn and Sunderland Machine Works. If you enjoy the G2 refill but can’t stand the default plastic housing, consider upgrading to Pilot’s G2 Limited or a third-party custom pen.

Disclaimer: The Pilot G2 products featured in this post were purchased with my own funds, for my own personal use. This post does not contain affiliate links. If you wish to support The Gentleman Stationer, please consider supporting us on Patreon or via The Curated Shop. Many thanks!

Pen Review: Otto Hutt design07

Otto Hutt, the once obscure and under-appreciated German pen company, has finally begun to receive overdue attention in today’s market, years after I first reviewed a favorite model of mine, the Otto Hutt design06. Mostly the delay was due to fits and starts with Otto Hutt’s U.S. distribution, which now rests with experienced distributor Kenro Industries. As a result, certain Otto Hutt models have started to make regular appearances at U.S. pen retailers. Today, I look at the “design07,” a sterling silver pen that pays tribute to the company’s roots in Pforzheim, Germany, a city known for its jewelry and watchmaking industries.

View fullsize

Appearance and Build Quality

Otto Hutt unquestionably markets the design 07 as its “flagship” pen, and the craftsmanship and attention to detail make it a worthy representative of the brand. The barrel and cap are made from 36g of polished sterling silver, clearly the key selling point. One might think that with this much metal, the design07 runs the risk of appearing “blingy”, but somehow Otto Hutt pulls it off without the pen appearing ostentatious. I think this is partly due to the company not going overboard with etchings or other adornment. The barrel and cap feature an engraved thread guilloche pattern, and the resulting design strikes a nice balance between vintage inspiration and clean, modern lines.

Like Graf von Faber-Castell, Otto Hutt uses spring-loaded clips, which make it easy to clip their pens to the inside of a pen case or shirt pocket. Given the weight of the design07, however, most people won’t bother with the shirt pocket for this particular pen. Here, I should mention that certain parts of the trim, namely the clip, cap band, and section, are platinum plated as opposed to pure sterling silver. As the silver parts of the pen (i.e., the cap and barrel) develop a patina, there will also be a bit of a mismatch in tone unless you keep the pen polished, which is a matter of personal preference. A platinum-plated brass version is also available, which has a darker look and should not tarnish like the sterling silver.

I love the flat clip on this pen. The spring is sturdy, and the clip itself is not too narrow - it’s substantial enough to match the heft of the cap.

Like others, if I had one critique about the Otto Hutt design07, it would be the laser-engravings, which don’t look particularly “clean.” While not a deal-breaker for me, it’s a puzzling choice to see at this price point, especially on sterling silver, and I perhaps expected a bit more.

View fullsize

A Writing Experience on Par with the Otto Hutt design06

What has repeatedly brought me back to the Otto Hutt design06 over the years is the overall quality of the writing experience. I’m a fan of understated German pen design, particularly when you pair industrial aesthetics with good ergonomics and a quality nib. As I expected, the design07 turns out to be a highly usable workhorse pen.

View fullsize

This pen features a lot of silver, and as a result weighs a good 2.3oz/64g capped and 1.3oz/32g uncapped. (That’s right, the cap is as heavy as the barrel.) Suffice to say, the design07 is not a pen most people can use posted, myself included. I find the design07 most comfortable unposted, with a length and balance similar to a Pelikan M800 or the Montegrappa Extra 1930. I particularly like that this pen features an 18k two-toned JoWo nib. While perhaps not exciting, you can’t dispute that JoWo nibs are reliable writers - especially the 18k variants - and the two-tone gold nicely complements the sterling silver. (Again, the Montegrappa Extra 1930, which has a sterling silver section, uses a two-tone gold nib to similar effect.)

View fullsize

Takeaways and Where to Buy

Who should consider this pen? I can see the Otto Hutt design07 - and the brand as a whole - gaining traction in a couple of different market segments: First, fans of German pen companies such as Montblanc, Pelikan, and Graf von Faber-Castell looking to add something different to their rotation, and second, the “workhorse pen” crowd. I proudly count myself a member of both groups, and I’ve long sung the praises of Otto Hutt pens as well-built daily writers that might cost a bit of a premium, but will hold up to heavy use and not disappoint in either comfort or build quality.

Currently, you can purchase Otto Hutt pens from my friends at Vanness, who will soon have the design07 available as well. Sterling silver pens aren’t inexpensive, so this one comes in priced at $995 retail, with a street price at around $796. What can I say? It’s obviously a luxury item, but fortunately Otto Hutt makes pens across a range of price points, and every one I have used has been high-quality. If you enjoy this style, you shouldn’t come away disappointed.

Many thanks to Cary and the team at Kenro for providing this pen to me for review purposes!

Perfection, Modified: Penco "Perfection Light" Bullet Pens

I’m a pocket pen addict, and at any given time I have a dozen or so scattered around the house, in my car, in coat pockets, pants pockets, on dressers, you get the picture. I don’t even worry about losing them anymore, because I know they’ll turn up eventually, and I can always count on one being somewhere when I need it. Which is why I was especially excited to see Penco expand their lineup and release this series of inexpensive, multicolor “Perfection” pocket pens. Back in October, I started stocking the metal version of the Penco “Perfection,” and it’s sold quite well - I now offer this model in Chrome, Brass, and Black Anodized finishes.

View fullsize

As of today, you can pick up a Perfection “Light” from the T.G.S. Curated Shop in one of ten different colors, priced competitively at $10. While the stock refill is quite good and reminiscent of a black Uniball Jetstream, the Penco Perfection accepts any universal D1 refill so you can modify as you wish! Visit the Curated Shop to check out these and a wide variety of other pocket pens.

View fullsize

The T.G.S. Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all brands we sell.

Mini-Collections and Under-appreciated Pens: The Parker Sonnet

I’m making more of an effort to sort and organize my pen collection these days. After a decade in the hobby, I’ve accumulated a lot, with varying degrees of intention. While I’m far from a single-purpose collector - for example, I don’t have a specific pen or brand that I collect exclusively - I do have several major themes around which I’ve build an eclectic group of pens. I’ve written about a few of these before: I have a soft spot for “near-vintage” Waterman, as well as celluloid pens in general. Neither is a particularly surprising focus for someone seriously into fountain pens, and wouldn’t appear out of place at a pen show or meetup. What is surprising, however, even to me, is the extent to which I’ve built up “mini collections” of under-appreciated pens that don’t attract much attention as everyday writers, much less the focus of collections. One such pen is the Parker Sonnet.

View fullsize

I currently only have three Sonnets in my personal collection, though I’ve owned many more. Why do I like this pen so much? For one thing, I consider the Parker Sonnet to be a modern classic. It’s been around for decades now, and the shape recalls the vintage Parker Vacumatic Majors from the 1930s. Vintage Vacumatics are among the most comfortable pens to write with - they fit the hand well when posted, as does the modern Sonnet. While Parker (rightfully) has taken flack over the years for allowing quality control to slide, a properly tuned Sonnet nib makes for an exceptional everyday writer, and the most recent Sonnets I’ve acquired have written perfectly out of the box. (I will note that these have been the gold-nib versions. I cannot speak to the steel.)

View fullsize

Sometimes a brand’s heritage isn’t immediately obvious. Parker has never “reissued” the Vacumatic - at least not to my knowledge - but a similar writing experience lives on in the Sonnet.

Building on the piece I wrote last week, which offered my first impressions of Parker’s recently released “Next Generation” Parker 51, I do believe that the level of vitriol directed at the modern Parker Pen Company is unwarranted and unfair. Sure, much of it can be written off as your typical internet snark, but even setting that aside, people really seem to relish hating Parker, and hold it to a much higher standard than other companies. For example, I’ve not found Parker nibs to be less reliable than those released by Visconti, which often charges twice as much money. A Parker Sonnet with a gold nib will run you anywhere from $250-400, with the higher end of that price range covering the chiseled sterling silver models. Even if you factor in $20-25 for a nib tuning, I have a hard time viewing the Sonnet as a bad value, especially given that you can often find them on sale or the secondary market. Hunting Sonnets at pen shows can be especially rewarding, as many people pass them up in favor of trendier pens and vendors are often willing to unload them at a discount. (Side Note: A few years ago, I criticized Parker for trying to push up the retail price of the Sonnet to its current level. Given the degree to which pen prices have risen industry-wide over the past five years, this was hasty and probably unfair. A gold nib Sonnet is less expensive than many steel-nib pens these days.)

View fullsize

Currently, the Parker Sonnets in my collection include two pens from the now-discontinued “Great Expectations” special edition series: the “Subtle Big Red,” which I previously reviewed, and another matte black version which I believe was called “Secret Shell Black.” Just recently I also added the “SE18 Journey Blue” pen to my collection, which was the last one in stock at Appelboom and seems like it will make a nice companion to my Traveler’s Notebook. The extra fine 18k nib is sublime.

If I must say so, the blue “Journey” looks good on the blue Traveler’s Notebook!

I’m interested in hearing more about this concept of “mini-collections.” Do you all have any side interests apart from your primary focus (if you collect at all)? In addition to the Sonnets, I have managed to get my hands on all of the special Lamy 2000 releases (with the exception of the red one that cost like $18,000), most of the Lamy Studio special releases, and a handful of Leonardo Momento Zero Grandes. The fascinating part about this for me, personally, is that it was largely unintentional, and as I focus on paring down my pens going forward, I may see what happens if I do spend some time focusing more on the “collecting” aspect of the hobby and building out some of these interests. (While still using my pens, of course!)

View fullsize

The SE18 “Journey” edition spoke to me because I have a degree in international relations/foreign service, so while the etching might be considered superfluous or even “too busy” to some, I like it.

First Impressions: Hands On with the New Parker 51 Fountain Pen

It’s here! After much anticipation (and a few weather delays), yesterday I received one of the new Parker 51 fountain pens, which I first previewed in a (admittedly opinionated) post last year. I plan to review this pen in two parts: a “first impressions” post and a follow-up post after a longer period of use that will evaluate things such as build quality and reliability. While I of course will comment on how the pen compares to a vintage 51, please be advised that I ultimately plan to evaluate this pen on its own merits, as a functional writing instrument - NOT based solely on its faithfulness to the original design or from the perspective of a vintage pen collector looking for a modern replica. That’s never been my expectation for this particular pen, nor do I believe that Parker is targeting the vintage pen enthusiast market segment with this release. If that’s what you’re looking for from this pen, you will be disappointed (and in all likelihood have decided you dislike this pen already, without ever picking one up, so there’s no need to read further).

With that said, here we go!

View fullsize

First Impressions Out of the Box

I received a Burgundy/Chrome Parker 51 with a steel nib, which shipped from Appelboom in Parker’s standard pen box. While the presentation is nothing fancy, it’s quality packaging appropriate to the price point of this pen (approximately $109 USD MSRP / $89 USD street price). Visually, Parker has done a nice job recreating the look of the vintage 51, at least with the cap on.

View fullsize

Once you start to handle the pen, however, you immediately realize the various differences. Keep in mind that I have not had a chance to evaluate the more expensive gold-nib version, so I can’t speak to that particular pen. That said, the less expensive “Next Generation” Parker 51 definitely feels more akin to the “Super 21,” Parker’s lower-priced pen that sold alongside the Parker 51. While I would NOT say it feels cheap, the resin/plastic lacks the warmth of the original 51, which wasn’t unexpected since most pen companies have long since moved on from vintage materials to keep production costs down, especially at this price point. With only a day or so in-hand, there’s no way to evaluate long-term durability and the possibility of any brittleness, cracking, etc., which will require one or more follow-up reviews.

View fullsize

The most divisive aspect of the new design is Parker’s decision to incorporate a threaded cap in lieu of the traditional friction fit/clutch cap. While I think I prefer the vintage cap to the current design, I don’t consider it a deal breaker. (Certain well-regarded Wing Sung clones have also used threaded caps.) One concern I do have involves the combination of metal cap threads and plastic barrel threads, which already feel a bit gritty. Will metal-on-plastic wear the threads down over time? Possibly. Another thing to track.

View fullsize

The second most controversial design choice was Parker’s decision to go with a cartridge-converter filling system rather than a vintage-style aerometric or vacumatic filling system. I still don’t understand this critique, and have never considered it a realistic expectation for this reissue because Parker is a mass-market company that hasn’t made these filling systems in decades. While I enjoy vintage filling systems as much as anyone, cartridge-converter remains the standard for modern pen companies since the ease of use broadens its appeal, and the same mechanism can be employed across all of Parker’s various product lines. I also don’t see this particular point affecting sales of this pen. Vintage pen aficionados are going to buy vintage 51s. This pen is plainly intended for either (1) new customers or (2) those, like myself, who enjoy vintage-inspired design, and even the occasional vintage pen, but perhaps want something less “precious” to carry around with them and use on a daily basis.

View fullsize

Nib and Writing Experience

Finally, we get to the part that I care most about, and which pleasantly surprised me: the nib and the writing experience. One thing I love about the original Parker 51 is the ergonomics of the pen, which was designed with daily use in mind. While I don’t have a vintage 51 currently in my possession to do a direct comparison, Parker appears to have maintained the original proportions, and this pen is a very comfortable, balanced writer even with the metal cap posted on a plastic barrel. The medium stainless steel nib is also quite smooth - better, in fact, than the steel nibs on vintage Super 21s and 51 Specials (the steel-nib vintage 51s) I have had in my collection in the past. The pen wrote immediately out of the box, with no skipping or hard starting after I left it sitting overnight and picked it up again in the morning. While this seems unremarkable, it’s a common problem with many modern pens, including those that sell at much higher price points.

View fullsize

Honestly, I was prepared for this pen to be a scratchy, dry writer that skips and hard starts. It’s none of those things. This stainless steel medium nib writes a reliably wet, traditional medium line, so regardless of how you may feel about the “reissue” aspect, this pen does what a pen is supposed to do.

Value

I can only offer preliminary thoughts here, since one component of value is quality and durability, and this is a “first impressions” review. Based on my experience so far, though, I don’t have an issue with the $89 street price for this pen, which is comparable to similar offerings by other companies. The inevitable comparisons will be to (1) buying a vintage Parker 51 on the secondary market; and (2) buying a Parker 51 “clone” from companies such as Wing Sung or Hero. So many different factors go into personal purchasing decisions that it’s not fruitful to comment extensively on either argument. I will say, however, that I find these to be apples-to-oranges comparisons. Someone looking to purchase this particular pen is not necessarily looking to buy vintage, nor should they drop $150+ on a vintage pen unless they understand the implications of caring for and maintaining a pen that hasn’t been manufactured in more than half a century. Yes, vintage 51s are remarkably durable, but they do break and wear out, and you’re on your own in terms of manufacturer and/or dealer support. With respect to the “clones,” I’ve had great ones, and I’ve had bad ones. I will say that now that Parker has resumed making modern 51s themselves, I personally would prefer to support the owner of the actual design rather than those who arguably are misappropriating others’ intellectual property.

View fullsize

View fullsize

Overall Takeaways

After years of declining quality control and less-than-exciting designs, Parker has made a sincere effort to turn things around and release better pens with more interesting designs. The last several Parkers I have purchased have actually been nice writers. (I have a few modern Sonnets and a modern Duofold in my collection.) Continuing this trend, the steel-nib version of the “Next Generation” Parker 51 pleasantly surprised me. Frankly, while I tried to be optimistic and was happy to see Parker take a risky move in reissuing this pen, I wasn’t expecting much. At the end of the day, however, they seem to have delivered, especially relative to my expectations, and if Parker continues with the “51” line and introduces new colors, cap designs, etc., they could really have something interesting on their hands. Granted, I’m not as emotionally invested in this as some people apparently are, which allows me to evaluate the pen on its own merits. I do believe there is a market for a modern 51: The reality is that vintage Parker 51s will start to age significantly in the coming years, and while they are quality writing instruments of exceptional durability and longevity, they won’t last forever. They will become more scarce, and more expensive to both purchase and repair. While the vintage pens will always have their fans, and many will settle for nothing less than the original, that doesn’t mean that Parker shouldn’t offer another option. Stay tuned for a follow up!

Editor’s Note: I understand that this pen has generated strong opinions. That said, we need to keep things in perspective and the comments civil. I actively moderate the comments on this site, and reserve the right to reject any comments that contain obscenities, personal attacks on other commenters, and anything which, in my discretion, crosses the line from civil discourse, polite disagreement, and even gently poking fun at me and my opinions, into trolling or general nastiness. That is not the community I want to build here. Thanks for your understanding.