It’s April, and you know what that means: it’s time for the annual update to my “Best Pens” Recommendations list. There may be a few surprises on here, particularly in the “beginners” category, the $100-200 price point, and my list of personal favorites. I’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts!
You can check out the updated list here. The 2018 list and the 2017 list are still live if you’d like to see how things changed.
I don’t know much about KACO as a Company - what little I do know comes from reading Frank Dong’s (Frank Underwater) series of articles on the best Chinese fountain pens on the market, many of which not only good writers, but extremely inexpensive. According to Frank, KACO is based in Shanghai and is a relatively longstanding stationery manufacturer known for their gel pens. I must say that they make a mean fountain pen as well.
KACO makes three fountain pens that are readily accessible in the U.S., through either Amazon or eBay: the KACO Sky/Sky II, the Retro, and the Edge. (New models are appearing every day as KACO expands its offerings, but these three have received the most attention so far.) While I’ve owned a KACO Sky the longest, my personal favorite thus far is the KACO Edge: a funky looking Makrolon fountain pen with a “blade” clip (hence the name).
KACO’s packaging looks clean and sophisticated, while still remaining appropriate to the price-point of the pen.
For those unfamiliar with the name “Makrolon,” it refers to a polycarbonate material known for its strength and light weight. Most notably, Lamy has manufactured it’s iconic “Lamy 2000” pen from Makrolon since the 1960s, but for some reason other manufacturers have shied away. Tactile Turn featured the material in its initial run of Gist fountain pens, but apparently had trouble sourcing quality raw material and ended up substituting Delrin, a durable plastic with a similar aesthetic.
Brushed Makrolon (polycarbonate) is comfortable to hold and may offer a bit more grip than stainless steel.
So what do I like about the KACO Edge (besides the price point)? Several things spring to mind:
The Brushed Finish. One of the things I love about the Lamy 2000 is that the finish is brushed, not just matte, and the KACO Edge incorporates that same technique. I wish more pen manufacturers would explore this technique, as it provides a comfortable, secure gripping surface.
Makrolon Grip Section. If you’ve previously passed on the Lamy 2000 because of it’s metal grip section, but appreciate the overall look of the Makrolon pen, the KACO Edge offers you an all-Makrolon alternative. While I ultimately prefer the brushed metal grip on the Lamy 2000, I’ve found the Edge to be a very comfortable pen to use as well.
Good Balance and Securely Posting Cap. The KACO Edge is well-balanced and comfortable to write with either posted or unposted. The cap closure uses small metal teeth (like the Lamy), which provides a secure friction fit, with the cap posting securely as well.
Schmidt Nib. By far the riskiest proposition for most inexpensive fountain pens is the nib, which can be maddeningly inconsistent from pen to pen. I’ve written with two or three KACO Edge fountain pens, and all three feature a smooth-writing Schmidt nib that has worked well every time. The fact that the pen uses a German stainless steel nib is what sets this pen apart from a $3 Jinhao, and it’s easily worth paying the (relatively small) premium.
General Quality Control. While there will be some minor quality control issues at any price point - and especially as you move towards the lower end of the spectrum - I’ve found the quality of KACO pens to be surprisingly consistent. As I noted above, I own three KACO pens, and have tried many more lent by friends, and all of them write very well.
The KACO Edge features a stock Schmidt Nib that is quite a nice writer.
Like any good German steel nib, the Schmidt “EF” writes a broader line that you would expect from an “extra fine” nib. It’s more like a standard fine, or even some mediums. (The “Imperial Orders” pad is another Skylab Letterpress creation, available from either Skylab directly or from the Well-Appointed Desk shop!)
A Note on Design: I generally dislike pens that are blatant copies of something else, and in my opinion, the KACO Edge borrows from the Lamy 2000’s design aesthetic without ripping it off. Other than the combination of a Makrolon pen body and a brushed metal cap, these pens look nothing alike, and behave differently in terms of performance, so the Edge shouldn’t be dismissed as “just another knockoff.” The “blade clip” is actually quite distinctive, and will be something that people either love or hate. One potential issue with this pen is that it can be difficult to clip to thicker fabrics or into pen cases, as the clip isn’t springy at all.
The KACO Edge has impressed me so far, and I’ve also had positive experiences with my KACO Sky and KACO Retro fountain pens. Look for additional reviews to follow. You certainly can’t argue with the price point of any of these pens (generally the sub-$20 category), which punch well above their weight in terms of design, components, and overall writing experience. I would grade the KACO Edge as the best of the bunch, due to the materials used, manufacturing quality, and the fact that the pen sports a reliable Schmidt nib.
As noted, you can easily acquire the KACO Edge via Amazon, which is how I purchased the pen pictured here. Most KACO products are Prime-eligible (at least as of the time of this review), meaning that they will be in your hands a couple of days after placing your order, if not the same day. Note that the KACO Edge does not ship with a converter in the box, so if you’re interested in using bottled ink with this pen, you will need to purchase a Schmidt converter separately, or you can sometimes find sellers who will throw in a KACO-branded converter.
Despite the overall good quality of both Wing Sung and KACO pens, I've experienced cap cracks with both, which I accept as par for the course in this price bracket. At sub-$20, you're going to have to accept a lower level of manufacturing quality control on the front end, and what becomes important is the extent to which the retailers and manufacturers will support their customers on the back end. In the case of the KACO Edge, I was warned by a reader to be on the lookout for cap cracks, and a week or so after finalizing my review, I found one. I reached out to the Amazon Seller (who I assume is affiliated with KACO), who literally responded within 5 minutes offering to mail me a new cap, and requesting that I send her a photo of the crack with details of its location so she could share with the factory. I was quite happy with this level of service!
Disclaimer: This post contains links to paid sponsors and affiliates. I purchased the pen featured in this review with my own funds, for my own use.
I initially reviewed the Tactile Turn Gist fountain pen back in 2016, following the close of the Kickstarter project. The Gist Kickstarter can only be considered an unqualified success for Tactile Turn, raising $129,000 in pledges and cementing their status as one of the premier manufacturers of machined “EDC-style” pens. The “Gist 1.0”, as I’ll call it, garnered generally positive reviews. Most attention focused on the Gist’s pairing of a lightweight Makrolon (polycarbonate) pen body with a textured metal section made from either common or rare metals, including copper, brass, bronze, Damascus Steel, zirconium, and titanium. All-metal versions were also available, though they could be quite expensive due to the difficulty of machining pens from certain materials (i.e. zirconium, which has a tendency to combust and do inconvenient things like destroy machinery).
Will changed quite a few things with the Gist 2.0, but the signature Tactile Turn texture remains intact!
As I noted in my initial review, the Gist 1.0 was not without a “few hiccups,” most notably the Makrolon’s propensity to crack around the cap lip, and for the nib to dry out due to some caps not sealing properly. The pen body was also too short to accept a standard Schmidt international converter, so you had to use a different one supplied by Tactile Turn which, in my opinion, wasn’t as good since it had lower ink capacity and ink flow issues. None of these issues made the Gist 1.0 a “bad pen” - to the contrary, I enjoyed the weight, balance, and overall look. I know several people who still use their Kickstarter Gist as a daily writer more than two years later, and issues are to be expected with any “version 1.0” product release. How a company progresses from version 1.0 to version 2.0, incorporating feedback from customers, is more telling about the Company’s future prospects. From my experience with the Gist v. 2.0, the future looks bright for Tactile Turn.
For the next iteration of the Gist, Tactile Turn made several notable design changes:
No More Makrolon! Tactile Turn stopped using Makrolon in favor of Delrin, a plastic used by high-end penmakers such as Conid. According to Will Hodges of Tactile Turn, the Makrolon he was able to source was not up to his standards in terms of durability, so he made the decision to switch materials on the non-metal pens. I think the Delrin pens look great, and they’re now available in white as well as black. As of now, metal sections are not available - you either go all-metal or all-Delrin.
A Longer Body. The Gist now accepts a full-size Schmidt international converter, and the added body length provides better balance, whether you write with the pen posted or unposted.
Shorter Threads. It now takes only 1.5 turns to cap/uncap the pen, as opposed to the 3+ on version 1.0. The threads also aren’t nearly as tight, reducing the risk of cracking the cap lip.
Plastic Cap Inserts on Metal Pens. You can now post the cap on the metal versions of the Gist without any unwanted metal-on-metal contact. I can’t speak to the other metal options, but the titanium pen posts nicely without too much added weight.
The Gist v.2.0 features Higbee thread starts, and the pen caps/uncaps in 1.5 turns.
This particular Gist sports one of the best Bock nibs I’ve ever used. I’ve had much better luck with Bock recently. I do think they’ve upped their quality control.
You can read more about the various design choices on Tactile Turn’s website, including specific details on the machining and engineering. Fans of the first Gist will be happy to know that the Gist continues to feature Tactile Turn’s signature texture, which serves a dual purpose of making a metal pen easier to grip (no slippage!) and hiding the small scuffs and scratches that polished metal tends to accumulate through everyday use.
My Gist is a joy to write with, and I’m happy to report that I’ve written through three straight fills of ink since acquiring this pen at last month’s Arkansas Pen Show. The Gist presents a durable, well-priced option for a daily writer, and “Version 2.0” is everything I hoped it would be. The Gist comes in both fountain pen and rollerball configurations, with prices starting as low as $99 for a Delrin pen. The titanium version reviewed here runs $219 for the fountain pen, with copper and brass versions priced at $139 and $119 respectively.
The Titanium Gist was one of my purchases from this year’s Arkansas Pen Show.
Disclaimer: Will Hodges at Tactile Turn was kind enough to provide me with a discount on my purchase of the titanium Gist featured in this review, which I purchased with my own funds. Many thanks to Will for making this review possible! This post contains links to paid sponsors and affiliates (ink notes below).
The eye-popping purple ink that appears below, and that I’ve been using in this pen, is standard Waterman Violet (or, as it’s known now, “Tender Purple”). Surprising, I know! I recently broke out my Waterman inks after a long hiatus, and love them as much as I did when I first got into fountain pens years ago. They’re currently available for the bargain-basement price of $11 per bottle at Vanness Pens, making Waterman ink one of the best buys out there. The paper pictured in this review is, of course, the “Shit to Do” notepad from Skylab Letterpress. Ink swabs are done on Col-o-dex cards, courtesy of Ana Reinert and Skylab.
One note of caution: while Waterman inks are generally regarded as “safe” inks, the purple, in my experience, will stain celluloid and light-colored acrylics, as well as demonstrators and converters if you let the pens remain inked long enough. This isn’t uncommon among purple inks, but since Waterman ink has a reputation as being "safe for anything,” it’s worth mentioning.
“King of Pen? What King of Pen? What just happened to me?”
I don’t know where to begin with this 2019 Atlanta Pen Show Recap. Everyone always remarks that the Atlanta Pen Show “feels like family,” to the point where it seems cliched, but it’s not - that’s the best way to describe it. Alongside Baltimore, Atlanta puts on one of the friendliest, most open pen shows of the year, somehow managing to keep the physical size of the show relatively small while attracting a high-quality group of exhibitors and vendors. Be warned - this will be a lengthy recap. This year’s Atlanta Show had so much to offer in terms of new products and new vendors that I’m still not sure I managed to catch everything.
When I arrived late Thursday night, #penshowsafterdark was already in full swing!
By far one of the more anticipated releases at the 2019 Atlanta Pen Show were Pilot’s 100th Anniversary Iroshizuku Inks. Vanness had all of the Iroshizuku Inks and the Lamy Crystal inks at their table.
For as long as I’ve been attending, the Atlanta Pen Show has been held at the Wyndham Atlanta Galleria. The location is fine - the hotel is clean, outside the center of Atlanta so traffic is as much of a non-issue as it can be in Atlanta, and there is a reasonable variety of restaurants within walking distance or a short drive. The main drawback to this hotel is that the staff seems anywhere from indifferent to annoyed at big groups, which limits the after-hours activities somewhat because they always try to shut the bar down by 11 p.m. and this year even turned the lights off on everyone Saturday night to try to make them leave. Given this, and the fact that the show itself has now outgrown available ballroom space, I wouldn’t be surprised at a change in location over the next couple of years.
Jonathon Brooks and his new helper. If I had sold that many pens, I’d be in good spirits too!
The Leonardo Momento Zero: quite possibly my favorite pen on the market at the moment.
I’ll run a vendor-by-vendor breakdown later on in the recap, but while I was taking some time to collect my thoughts on Sunday night, I put together the following list of “show highlights,” which are, of course, highly subjective.
Leonardo Momento Zero. Dan Smith of The Nibsmith now carries Leonardo, and while the pens aren’t yet up on the website, I understand they’re coming soon. Dan basically had the entire line set up at his table, and I added yet another Momento Zero to my collection, this time in matte black. It’s early, but at Leonardo’s price point, this pen has the potential to kill the Sailor Pro Gear Imperial Black.
Pilot Iroshizuku Inks (100th Anniversary and Standard Colors). Much of the pre-show buzz focused on the release of two new series of inks: Pilot’s 100th Anniversary Iroshizuku colors, and the Lamy Crystal inks. I picked up two of the Iroshizukus (Hoteison, a dark green, and Bishmonten, a pinkish red), and one Lamy (Topaz) from Vanness Pens. Look for reviews of these inks soon.
Newton Pens. Shawn Newton has gotten me bad at these last two shows, Little Rock and Atlanta. Since he added some new machinery and lowered the price point on certain production-line pens, it’s become increasingly difficult to walk away from his table without buying something, and this show I acquired three (!?!?!) pens from Shawn: a Prospector in blue and gray ripple Japanese ebonite, and two Orvilles.
New (to me) Vendors Matthew C. Martin Custom Pens and Truphae. Matthew Martin’s machined metal pens are about to take off big time, and he was clearly the sleeper hit of the Atlanta Pen Show. And while I had heard of online retailer Truphae, mainly on account of their “Inkredible” subscription box, I had not seen their collaboration with Visconti on two gorgeous Opera Masters: Stardust (featuring ruthenium trim) and Corvina.
Conid. While Conid wasn’t officially present at the show, a group of enthusiasts who collectively (and maybe individually) owned ALL of the different models of the Bulkfiller set up tables to show them off and let people test the pens. Once again, I’m blown away by the generosity of the pen community, since I’ve been considering a Bulkfiller and these tables were incredibly helpful in deciding which one I want to order.
A few Shawn Newton Orvilles in some gorgeous custom acrylics that I had never seen before.
A Quintet of Conid Kingsize Bulkfillers (with a Conid Giraffe peeking out at the back).
Visconti Opera Masters from Truphae, with the Stardust pens on the left and the “Corvina” pens on the right.
Other new discoveries included PK Custom Goods pen cases and wraps, which you can purchase from their Etsy store. I picked up Star Wars and Harry Potter-themed versions, and you’ll see a review up on the site at some point in the future. Here’s a further run-down of some other things I saw at the show, by vendor:
Total Fine Writing/The Pen Show. Jimmy and Suzanne Dolive once again organized a great show, and they also attended as vendors with multiple tables that included one of the show’s largest selection of Montblanc limited edition pens and inks (as well as the Penlux Snake).
Papier Plume. Patrick always attends the show from New Orleans, with the full range of Papier Plume’s hand-mixed ink, wax seals and stamps, and fountain pens from brands such as Cleo-Skribent that you don’t see very often. I also picked up two bottles of the exclusive inks that Papier Plume always makes for the Chicago Pen Show, which I won’t reveal quite yet.
Nock Co. Instagram is on fire with pictures of the “Coleman” tall-boy cozy - I mean pen case. I’m not sure whether or not Brad and Jeff plan to make these available on the site or whether they will be show exclusives, but they sold well and I definitely saw dozens of them walking around (mostly used as actual pen cases).
Tactile Turn. Will and his team are now attending more pen shows, and he has, IMHO, perfected the design of the Gist fountain pen, now available not only in Titanium and Delrin, but in “fireblue” Titanium! Look for a review of the “Gist 2.0” soon.
Carolina Pen Company. Jonathon Brooks brought tons of pens turned from his “Primary Manipulation” acrylics, and they went fast. Somebody picked up the pen I had my eye on when I was taking an initial turn around the room - one of the perils of hesitating at a pen show!
Franklin-Christoph. It wouldn’t be a pen show without a mad dash to the Franklin-Christoph table first thing after opening to grab the latest prototype acrylics. This year I finally picked up a Penvelope 6 pen case, which was long overdue.
Dromgooles. These guys can cost you a LOT of money. Dromgoole’s brought an expansive selection of Danitrios, Graf von Faber-Castell Pens of the Year, Pelikan, and Montblanc, a few of which featured custom urushi and maki-e work by Studio Bokumondoh.
Vintage Pen Shop/Jessica Coles. Jesi was set up directly behind the Nock Co. table with her vintage Esterbrook pens and nib testing station. If you’re interested in testing the waters with Vintage Pens, Esterbrook is THE place to start, and Jesi has you covered.
Kenro Industries. Cary attended with samples of Esterbrook’s upcoming line of pen cases, as well as Loclen, a new line of machined metal pens out of Italy that feature a unique design incorporating an integrated converter/piston.
Luxury Brands. The distributors of Platinum, Noodlers Ink, and Benu Pens had a table, where a display of updated Platinum Mix-Free Ink bottles caught my eye. If you’re unfamiliar with the concept, the Mix-Free Inks are designed to - wait for it - be mixed together to create your own ink colors. Apparently Platinum is releasing these inks in new bottles and as part of a set.
Look for this line of Esterbrook pen cases later this year!
Dromgoole’s always brings an unparalleled selection of high-end Japanese Pens, including custom urushi work from Studio Bokumondoh, Danitrio, Pilot, and more!
You rarely see Graf von Faber-Castell “Pen of the Year” editions, much less are you able to handle them. I love the size and balance of these pens, despite the fact that they are heavy, both figuratively and literally. (I’m not kidding when I say that the Dromgoole’s table can do serious damage to your wallet.)
You know the industry is truly evolving when a pen case that doubles as a tall-boy cozy becomes a reality.
Look for Loclen pens soon at your favorite Kenro retailers!
The PK Custom Cases table on Sunday (minus the two I bought).
Other vendors included pen show staples Desiderata Pens (with Pierre’s Soubriquet pens!), Michael Sull, Nik Pang, Ryan Krusac, Bittner Pens, Toys from the Attic, and many more!
The second ballroom late Saturday afternoon. The Nock Co. table had already sold a bunch of cases!
I spent time at the show during all three days this year, and traffic seemed pretty steady in all three ballrooms, with most vendors reporting brisk sales skewed towards entry-level pens and inks. The friendly, open atmosphere of the Atlanta Show lends itself to beginners, and many people I met described how they were attending their first pen show. Their excitement is always contagious, and there was a lively after-hours crowd in the bar every night (at least until the hotel staff kicked us out by turning out the lights). You can bet I’ll be back next year!
Note: I missed the live podcast recording this year, since my family joined me in Atlanta and I spent some time with them on Saturday, visiting the Georgia Aquarium and going out to dinner that night. I did listen to the show afterwards, and you won’t want to miss this year’s special guests!
My preferred way to close out the Atlanta Pen Show.
Disclaimer: This post contains links to paid sponsors and affiliates.
My recap from the Atlanta Pen Show is going to be a doozy, so I figured I’d break it out into a couple different posts. The first one is simple: a picture of my “show haul,” since I went a little crazy this year. (Hey, I’m not attending another show until D.C. in August, right?) Pictured here, clockwise from left: Penvelope 6 from Franklin-Christoph, Wax Seal Stamp from Papier Plume, Iroshizuku 100th Anniversary Hoteison (green black) and Bishmonten (a pinkish red) from Vanness, Lamy Crystal Topaz from Vanness, a Leonardo Momento Zero in Matte Black from Dan Smith (the Nibsmith), three pens from Shawn Newton (two Orvilles and a Prospector), and two hand-sewn pen cases from PK Custom Goods! More details to come via a full recap later this week.
Disclaimer: This post contains links to paid sponsors and affiliates.
