PILOT MR Retro Pop Collection Fountain Pen in Gift Box, Orange Barrel with Flower Accent, Medium Point Stainless Steel Nib, Refillable Black Ink (91443)

I've got to be honest: the Pilot Metropolitan is the most overrated "cheap" fountain pen on the market. It was my first experience with fountain pens a few years ago, and I sold that first one with no regrets. Believing maybe it was the nib size (I used to have a fine, and have since found I prefer a medium nib), I took a chance on this one. I loved the orange flower design on the barrel and well, it's a pretty pen. I inked it once and when the cartridge was empty, I cleaned it, dried it and back in the box it went. I'd have to say, in terms of starter fountain pens, you should go with a TWSBI. Their nibs write a lot smoother right out of the box, and I've never had any hard starts with a TWSBI pen, unlike this Metro and my Lamys. If you're particular about staying within the Pilot family and you have the means to do so then spring for a Vanishing Point or a Decimo if you can, which are still very easy to use with cartridges even for a beginner.

I've used a few plastic fountain pens and nib holders in the past and this is my first metal fountain pen. The experience is totally different, it's so smooth, needs no pressure to start writing unlike ball-point pens. The weight is a little top heavy if you leave the cap on, but with is off, it' a nice solid feel. The brushed aluminum shimmers slightly under a light and looks super classy. This makes a great and inexpensive gift. It comes with one ink cartridge; the converter is installed in the pen by default so you'll want to remove that first and then install the cartridge. The ink it comes with is black. I's say it dried completely in about 6-7 seconds. The fine nib can allow some pretty small writing. See attached photos for reference. Demo writing was done on the Clairefontaine notebook.

I have been on a fountain pen kick lately and have bought five different kinds. This one is my favorite so I’m getting one more of them. I got the fine tip and its perfect for writing. Smooth and easy, not scratchy at all. The other types I tried were too wet and looked messy. This one feels right and well balanced in my hand, just the right weight. I find the grip on it comfortable and not too slick or too small. The cap posts comfortably on the pen while I’m writing. I cant find a single negative about it. Great value.

This is my first fountain pen in 18 years. I avoided them because how how cruel and leaky it used to be. After a bit of research, I found this and it is perfect. I needed something where the lines aren't too fat for drawing as well. Priming this pen took a few minutes. FYI, you will need an ink bottle with some ink or something where you could dip it well to the handle so that it will absorb the ink externally too. Just follow the instruction booklet that's included in the box with the pen.I'm glad I bought two of this in case one fail which I'm hoping any time soon. I also bought a Speedball 404696 3378 Super Black India Ink bottle for this pen as I plan to refill it forever.I highly recommend this pen.

**Update (2.4.19): Changed 3 to a 5 star rating. I received a replacement and have had no issues so far with the barrel pulling away from the body of the pen. Writes smoothly, consistent with another fine nib Metropolitan that I have. I'm actually preferring this medium nib. It's still a pretty fine line for medium, but I can actually see some shading using this medium nib with the sepia Namiki ink. **I'm a fan of the Metropolitan and wanted to expand my collection with the many different color choices that are available. I opted for the green medium nib pen. It arrived in good condition but when I went to uncap it, the bottom barrel pulled off instead. Upon closer inspection, it looks like perhaps an inferior glue was used. The caps snap on securely, but they are by no means extraordinarily difficult to uncap. I noticed some other reviews with the same issue. Hopefully this only affects a small population of Pilot's pens. I'm looking forward to receiving the replacement pen to see if it has the same issues. I also ordered the red pen/fine nib in this same collection to see if there's a trend. I'll update my review after the other pends have arrived.

I am impressed and I love this pen! So does my little kitty! Just kidding - my daughter :) She begins learning to write in cursive, and this medium nib fountain pen from Pilot is perfect for her effort. It writes smoothly, it comes in a nice (gift) sturdy box that also functions as a pen box. This fountain pen is practical, functional, and pretty with a nicely colored barrel and a subtle flair of a polished chrome pocket clip. As pretty as it is, this fountain pen is not too fancy for kids to carry to school and even suitable for adults to carry around in daily work.This pen is made in Japan and the quality is excellent! I plan to buy another one (for myself, maybe in another color). Amazon has fantastic selections of this Pilot pen line! And by the way, Pilot Pen customer service is also impressively good! I contacted them (for a different product / item), and they showed me that they truly cared about customers! Make me enjoy their products even more!

This is one of my favorite every day pens. I use it more than my Lamy All Star. The only pen that gets more use right now is a Kawecko Sport because it's new, once the novelty wears off, I'll go back to the Pilot as my number 1 pen. I keep it at work because it always writes right away. It never skips on any paper. The cartridges last forever, so they are perfect for work, although I've been using the converter lately. Live the Pilot blue-black ink cartridges or the Cross blue black ink in my converter. The fine nib is perfect for taking notes, it makes my writing neater and slightly smaller. I've purchased several pens from the Metropolitan collection, including pens in the Animal and Retro Pop collections. I'll probably pick up another soon. Coworkers are always impressed and comment that my supply budget must be larger than theirs. Love when that happens.

Fantastic pen for this price point.* Snap cap* Solid enough build* Aesthetics and section size a matter of taste* Came with an ink converter and one Pilot cartridgeNote: As with most pens in this price range, I found I benefited from removing and reseating nib and feed under an eye loupe before use to ensure proper nib/feed/tine alignment. Nib perfect out of the box.

Couldn't find this pen anywhere to test the nib, so just took the plunge on the basis that it had such outstanding reviews.Jury is out on that one for me, as the fine nib is just too fine. It is scratchy to write with. I ended up giving it to a friend.For me the fine nib is a 2-star writing experience.I would be interested in trying out the standard nib, because I do like the style of the pen. I suspect I should simply have got the standard nib.

Pen has proven in every regard to be a first class writer with an especially smooth, fine nib. Highly recommended!

Me gustó bastante esta linea de plumas Pilot: Metropolitan, MR Retro y MR Animal. Tiene colores vivos y con un toque de elegancia que no había visto en ninguna otra marca a este precio.Pros:+Calidad del cuerpo de la pluma. Están hechas de aluminio "grueso", tienen un buen peso y el acabado es pintura de calidad que no se raya o despostilla fácilmente. Tiene casi la misma resistencia que el aluminio anodizado.+Variedad de colores. Contando los colores y decoraciones de los tres subconjuntos, hay suficiente para traer un par de plumas distintas cada día.+Experiencia de escritura. Las puntas (nib) de Pilot son de las mejores que he probado, tiene la misma suavidad de Lamy, y una muy buenaconsistencia de grosor de linea; no se secan ni se tapan los conductos de tinta. No son puntas flexibles ni para caligrafía itálica.+Buena para tomar notas rápidas. La pluma tiene suficiente flujo de tinta como para escribir "rápido", no es necesario hacer movimientos lentos y cuidadosos como con otras plumas más "secas".+Incluye convertidor (cartucho) rellenable. Algo que me parece sorprendente es que plumas más caras (por ejemplo las lamy Joy/safari/Vista que suelen ser el doble de caras) no incluyen convertidores y estos pueden costar más de $100. Que Pilot incluya el convertidor se me hace una muy grata sorpresa (tomando en cuenta que las plumas  Parallel  no siempre lo inluyen).+Bonito estuche como para regalar. La presentación y empaque de la pluma también merece mención, otras plumas de este rango de precio vienen empacadas en cajas de cartón o en blister.Contras (son cosas menores, pero no quiero dar la impresión de que la pluma es perfecta):-Un poco desbalanceado el peso de la pluma. Se siente ligera del lado de la punta, cargada hacia atrás.-Ya que tiene "buen flujo" de tinta, si escriben "lento" se notan acumulaciones de tinta en las orillas de segmentos (ver foto). Se marca "mucho" el inicio de cada trazo.-Precio inestable. La compré por cerca de $250 y puede llegar hasta $500 según keepa.Como verán no se me ocurrieron muchos contras. Parallel

Obviously the box had been tampered with - no squeeze converter as advertised - replaced by an ink refill. Spent money for separate ink for nothing. Will seriously reconsider ordering anything for Amazon from n ow on.