When it comes to understated (and consistent) quality, it’s hard to top Pilot. Regardless of whether you think their designs are “boring”, or that they don’t do enough to cater to the “cult of the limited edition,” one thing is inarguable: for your money, you nearly always get a well-built pen that’s an exceptional writer. That holds true across Pilot’s lineup, from the sub-$15 Pilot Kakuno, all the way into their $1000+ high-end fountain pens.
I’ve gradually worked my way through most of Pilot’s mid-range and high-end offerings, reviewing the Pilot Custom Heritage 92, the Custom 74, the Custom Heritage 912, and the Custom 823. What I’ve never done is go above the $300 mark, and delve into Pilot fountain pens on the ultra high-end, either in the standard Pilot lineup or the more custom urushi and maki-e pens from sibling brand Namiki. After I found myself with a bit of store credit plus savings from not having purchased any pens in a while, I treated myself to the Pilot Custom Urushi, in vermillion red lacquer.
An oversized ebonite pen coated in urushi lacquer and fitted with a huge No. 30 18k gold nib, the Custom Urushi, to me, represents everything great about Pilot as a brand. It’s the largest pen in the Pilot lineup (I’m categorizing the Namiki Emperor/Yukari Royale separately), and an absolute joy to write with. Pilot didn’t attempt to reinvent their overall design aesthetic here. From the cap band, to the clip, to the black finials, Pilot really just went all-in on the hallmarks of the “Custom” lineup and amped it up with the urushi lacquer and nib. If it ain’t broke….
The oversized Pilot No. 30 nib is roughly the same size as a No. 8 nib from brands such as JoWo or Bock.
The Custom Urushi comes in two colors: black and vermillion red. You can choose from three nib sizes: fine, medium, and broad. There’s no paralysis of choice here. I opted for the medium, since I find Pilot medium nibs to write what I consider the perfect line width for me. Don’t get me wrong - the craftsmanship on this pen, and especially the urushi work, are beautifully executed, but the nib steals the show. I only have a couple of oversized nibs in my collection, a Montegrappa Extra 1930 and a Montblanc 149, and neither wrote as well untouched and out-of-the-box as the nib on the Custom Urushi. It has just the right amount of tooth, and a slight bounce that gives you some line variation without sacrificing the “everyday writer” characteristics for which Pilot is known.
The Pilot Custom Urushi (left) shown compared agains the Montegrappa Extra 1930, center, and the Montblanc 149, right.
The Custom Urushi is a cartridge/converter pen, which I feel is the right call here for a couple of reasons. First, this pen ships with the Pilot Con-70 pump converter, perhaps my favorite converter of all time. it’s reliable and holds a decent amount of ink. Second, such a large pen would likely be extremely heavy with a piston, and a Japanese-style eyedropper would take this pen out of the mainstream “Custom” fan base. Pilot occasionally gets some snark for including a cartridge-converter system on a pen at this price point, but it’s no different than Nakaya, Platinum, and most other makers of urushi pens.
Takeaways and Where to Buy
While I was initially hesitant to purchase this pen, due to both the combination of size and price, I have no regrets. You would be hard-pressed to find a better writing experience from Pilot: the urushi lacquer and lightweight ebonite barrel, combined with the comfortable shape and grip section, make this a pen I could use for hours regardless of the oversized barrel. As long as they’re relatively lightweight, larger pens can even be easier to use for longer writing sessions. And I can’t emphasize how superbly the nib writes. Even if you don’t end up buying one, make it a point during your next pen show trip to test out a Pilot No. 30 nib.
The Pilot Custom Urushi fountain pen is available for purchase at most Pilot retailers, and overall availability has surprised me. For a pen with a $1400 MSRP and a street price starting at $1100, I expected them to be hard to come by. While I acquired this particular pen from Appelboom, both The Nibsmith and Dromgoole’s also stock this model (along with nearly all other Pilot and Namiki models).
I think the question becomes, is the Custom Urushi worth it? If you’re looking for a quality urushi pen that will serve you well as an everyday workhorse, the answer is an unqualified “absolutely.” In fact, for an urushi pen of this size, especially with a large nib, you could argue that the price is even on the lower side. Nakaya starts at around $700 retail (if you can find one in stock), with prices on some designs easily escalating north of $2000. Danitrio and the higher-end Namiki pens can easily run into the multi-thousands. I don’t think I’m going there, however. At the end of the day, the Custom Urushi probably represents the most I’m willing to spend on a pen that I would use regularly, and this one has earned as spot in the permanent rotation.
Disclaimer: This post does NOT contain affiliate links, though I did pay for a portion of this pen using funds generated from Appelboom’s affiliate program when I was still a member. Currently, T.G.S. is supported entirely by purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop and the T.G.S. Patreon Program. Many thanks!