Review: Pilot Kaküno Fountain Pen - Medium @PilotPenUSA @JetPens

Finally! A review of the very adorable and, in my opinion, pretty awesome: Pilot Kaküno fountain pen.

ABOUT

Body Material: Plastic
Trim: Plastic
Length (capped): 131.0 mm/5.16"
Length (uncapped nib-end): 126.5 mm/4.98"
Length (posted): 157.4 mm/6.19"
Barrel Diameter: 11.0 - 12.3 mm/0.43" - 0.48"
Section Diameter: 10.0 - 11.1 mm/0.39" - 0.43"
Nib material: Steel
Weight (all): 10 g
Weight (cap): 4 g
Weight (body): 6 g
Fill type: Cartridge/Converter
Price: ~$15.00USD
Where to buy: Amazon

PACKAGING

The packaging for this pen is simple and nice - it's a plastic cover that opens easily. It shows off the pen well and is pretty tough. The pen comes with a black ink cartridge. I like this packaging. Simple, easy to open, and recyclable.

APPEARANCE

I have loved these pens from afar for awhile, but I didn't want to go for the ones with fine nibs. Finally! I have a medium! The pen is cute and fun. It has six rounded facets and is somewhat rounded off ends. The finial is light blue with three open holes in it. There is no clip or other trim on the pen. Just below the top of the cap, there is a small indentation that I like to touch. I'm weird, I know. The cap is marked with Pilot and Kaküno, Kaküno in a very cute font. At the end of the cap is a small plastic notch.

The barrel is straight, and the section is clear. It has three flat facets on it and a ridge before the nib. The barrel is a creamy white and the cap is a soft, pastel blue. It's so cute. I love the colors and design of this pen!

NIB & PERFORMANCE

The nib is one of the highlights of this pen. It's a steel medium with one breather hole and a single slit. It is marked with for the nib size and a cute winking face. That's part of the cute appeal of the Pilot Kakünos! Others have a regular smiley face. 

The nib wrote immediately out of the box - no tuning or adjusting required. Like almost every other Pilot nib I have used (exception: Pilot Knight), this one was great. It flowed well and wrote consistently. It's a firm nib but will give a little with moderate pressure, if you really have to squeeze out some line variation. I thoroughly enjoy the writing experience this nib offers. It's not scratchy at all, and for its size, I find it comfortably smooth.

IN HAND

The section might be uncomfortable for some because of the three facets, similar to the Lamy Safari-type of grip. It's a hard plastic section so it's not soft and squishy, but the pen is light so a light grip is sufficient. The ridge before the nib is a little sharp if you grip your pen low.

Unposted, the pen is lightweight and balanced and I enjoy using it like this. The cap does post securely by friction. Posting works well on this pen - it's still not too heavy or unbalanced, so it can be used either way.

The faceted shape of the pen also prevents it from rolling off the desk - something that drives me nuts about some other pens.

I find the pen very comfortable for my hand - the shape, the weight, and the balance. Again, I find the writing experience very pleasant and I love holding it and using it.

PROS & CONS

OVERALL

I'm annoyed with myself for having waited so long to try this pen. It's not world's most comfortable section or softest nib, but it writes really well, it's affordable, it's adorable, and I think it might be my current favorite starter pen. I like it better than the Pilot Metropolitan fountain pen. The light weight of the body doesn't bother me, but others may prefer the looks and weight of the Metropolitan over the kawaii look of the Kakünos.

---

Do a gal a solid and if you fancy any of these and want any item of your own, use my affiliate links :)