Good review. Children can use fountain pens too. I got one of these for my 7 year old niece. She’s always admiring my fountain pen collection (which I unfortunately can barely let her touch). She loves her little pink cap Kakuno. She loves practicing her writing and drawing with it.She takes care of her pen mimicking the way I take care of mine. But the Kakuno only cost ten bucks. If she destroys it, no problem. I’ll get her another one. I’d recommend it for a kid you love.
Hi, Kerry. Here's another sleeper from Pilot you might want to check out: the Plumix. The nib is medium cursive and makes even the sloppiest of writing look elegant. It floats across the page and, while body itself is made of plastic, it'song and will fit comfortably in larger hand. I have a small hand and arthritic fingers, and thought I would have to give up on executing handwriting that looks polished and refined. Then I found the Plumix. For folks with hands or fingers that are in any way compromised, this pen is the bomb. And for those whose hands work just fine, it's indeed a gem. You won't find a better nib at five or six times the price. (Mine was US$9 if memory serves.) They're sometimes a little hard to find, but they're worth the hunt. Cheers...
About the eye-dropper thing. I get you, but I think the holes are very important in products intended for children. If a childe swallows a pen cup (don't ask me how, they do thing the philosophers didn't even dream about), the holes allow the air to go through until the medical help can be found. So maybe that's the reason behind this feature.
@@jennstns9 : I sometimes think we FP users can be a bit too persnickety. (LOL) The pen was designed for a younger audience as their first pen, but not for pen collectors of a certain age. I actually like my med. nib Kakuno, and will never compare it with another pen.
@@HJKelley47 nothing “persnickety” about my comment. The Kakuno was literally created for children, thus the necessity for the holes because it could be a choking hazard. Doesn’t mean adults can’t buy the pen. I used to have a couple of them when I got into the hobby years ago, and I was a college student at that time. I can assure you I wasn’t eating my pens.
@@jennstns9 : Jenn I was agreeing with you. There was absolutely nothing persnickety about your comment. Sorry my comment was misunderstood. I was just reflecting on the many persnickety remarks I've heard pen users make about certain models of FPs.
@@HJKelley47 ah ok. I see. Yes I can agree with you. I actually found the kakuno nib to be smoother than a lot of my $150+ pens! I plan to get another one in a year or so when my daughter starts writing. She will love the cute smiley face, and I might “borrow” it ☺️
I love my Kakuno. I think it's somewhat underrated. Yes, it's injection moulded plastic. But it feels solid, the design is quite nice, the colours are fun and the faceted barrel is a pleasant tactile feeling. The section is comfortable to hold. The nib of my Kakuno works very well too. I haven't had any hard starts or skips, and the writing experience was pretty good. It's a great inexpensive every day writer. Some would say that this pen looks like a school pen. They may be right but all those cheap office ballpoints people normally use look like school pens too. And using a Kakuno is so much more joy.
I love my clear one. Looks not at all childish either. And much prefer it to the metropolitan. I have the RD kaküno. It's the finest nib i own and is great for the Hobonichi small grid paper! Agree it's the best starter pen!!
I am a new fountain pen beginner. I have bought a few good pen so far and recently I’ve got Pilot Kakuno (EF). I am very happy with Kakuno the most! I feel WOW when first writing with it! 🙂👍🏼
Hi Kerry. I just read about you and your channel in Pen World and subscribed. I like the way you present the facts in a clear and easy to understand manner without a lot of “fluff”. Thanks
My Metropolitan wrote well, but it was kind of heavy and I just didn’t like the metal feel so I gave it away. Replaced it with 2 Kakunos: a fine clear and an extra fine yellow and white with con-D converters and Kaweco clips. Both write well and I also think they would be good starter pens with a fun look.
Hi Kerry, I have 3 demonstrators in EF for work, all fitted with the Con-70 converters. They write like a dream and I prefer it to the Metropolitan. The section Fells bigger to me and that is helpful as I have really big hands. Thanks for another great review.
I love the Kakuno....I used them at work since they are less expensive but love the writing experience and perfect length for my hand. I have the limited edition transparent cap colours...turquoise and dark blue....I have the lime green, hot pink, light purple and several clear ones. I use either con70 or cartridges. I prefer the feel of the Kakuno compared to the Metropolitan.
I love my Metropolitan! The Kakuno is something I'm certainly considering for my kid's second pen after the Stabilo Easy Buddy. Never too early to indoctrinate the young into Pilot fountain pens, yeah? ;)
This was my first pen. I got the demonstrator model in ef. It's a really solid beginners pen. It even have a newbie friendly manual. I got compliments using it surprisingly! I drop it a couple of times and it's durable. Easy to clean and disassemble too!
Re: Eyedroppering. I have a J.Herbin ink rollerball, and used a small dab and wipe of Araldite to seal the holes invisibly. And it's a perfect solution.
I have a dark grey with a red cap Kakuno. I bought a Con 70 converter for it and swapped a B calligraphy nib from a Pilot Pluminix. I also put a Kaweco Sport style clip on it. My perfect pocket daily carry pen. I might get another one with a fine nib.
In Japan this pen is made for schoolkids, hence the cute look. I got one a long time ago and the first time I went to change the cartridge, the plastic piece in which you insert the cartridge broke, and that was the end of it :(
This Pilot steel nib fits to Metro, Kakuno, Prera, Plumix and 78g. It is an amazing nib that compares even to some gold nibs. I have the medium and fine and they are excellent. Waiting for an extra fine to see how it compares to the rest. Kakuno is one of my favourite too.
I love pilot kakuno, they are colorful, with really F and EF nibs, if I lose them I replace them with little money. I also just found that they fit the kaweko sport clip.
No, just no. The holes are there because of the way it's manufactured. That's it. It's just cheaper. No one markets any pen, not even a ballpoint, at choking age children. I've seen reams of marketing for this open, and none of it was aimed at children. It's just a cheap pen. That's it.
Decided to add this seperate - have had issues with Sailor inks staining pens (and converters!) And leaving smell behind. Tried flushing with Distilled water and also Distilled water mixed with light soap - but still takes forever and still leaves stains (which I'm sure are affecting the next ink fill as I've seen colours change.). I love Sailor colours though and would like to continue using them without damaging pens. Any thoughts??
Why does nearly every reviewer out there try flexing nibs that should never, ever be flexed. Whether it's steel or gold, if it isn't a true flex nib, trying to get line variation from it is, frankly, stupid. Not even soft gold nibs are meant to give line variation. I don't know who started this nonsense, but it's wrong. The number one way nibs get damaged is not from being dropped, it's from trying to get line variation from a non-flex nib. The damage usually happens over time, but in just a matter of a few weeks, you can complete ruin a nib this way, and never even realize you damaged it. The nib will just get wetter than it should be, or it will start dribbling ink into the cap, or it will start having hard starts, or it will start feeling a little "draggy" on paper, or just won't write as well as you remember it writing when it was new. Gold nibs die even faster from such treatment, and soft gold nibs fastest of all. The is a Kakuno that's a demonstrator with a perfectly transparent barrel and cap. It's a nice pen. And while you think the pen looks childish, thousands of young adults disagree completely. This is just standard fare for them. Half of what they buy, even their shoes and clothing, looks remarkably similar to the Kakuno. I don't think the writing experience is even remotely like that of the Metropolitan. Just because they use the same nib means absolutely nothing. The weight is different, the feel is different, the balance is different, and I find that even the flow is different. To me, the writing experience is about as close to the Metro as the Metro is to a Namiki Maki-e. This pen is NOT just marketed at children, or children at all, for that matter, unless you consider older teens children. This pen is no more marketed at children that the Platinum Preppy is targeted at children. This is simply a fountain pen made as cheaply as possible in hopes people of all ages might be willing to buy one, and get on the Pilot ladder because of it. The holes are just part of the manufacturing process, and are NOT there to prevent choking. No pen of any kind is aimed at children that young.
I like my metropolitan. The color snobs from our marketing department would bless us all with the name of the exact shade of turquoise (Turk-wah) we are seeing here on that cap. 🤣❤️😉😎
Just wondering how this compares to the TWSBI Eco nibs? I have the TWSBI Eco Fine and Medium but slowly falling out of love with them as I find the nibs are quite sloppy writers - the line isn't as crisp. If I prefer the TWSBI ECO Fine will I be ok with Medium in Kakuno?
Pilot nibs are super crisp. I don’t think you’d be disappointed by this or the metropolitan (for a more professional look if that’s what you’re wanting). I’d say a medium would be close to the TWSBI fine.
@@jennstns9 Thank you! I have a Pilot Prera on the way as well in Medium, but have been eyeing the Kakuno for awhile. I might have to put a couple of Pilots on the Wishlist if this works out ;)
2:07 why do you think that a CHILD would want to eyedrop the pen? And also, for that to be considered a kids pen, it need air holes in swallowable parts so that the child can breathe if swallowed. And I just think that eyedropper is super messy(kids do not want ink all over their brand new shirts).
The preppy is a finer nib , I find..at 0.3...it will scratch alot on certain paper. The Kakuno flows very nice, in Fine nib. and won't scratch. they are both super affordable.
It does, but for Kakunos intended for European and some Latinamerica markets, at least. They come with Standard International cartridges and take Standard International converters.
Con 70 fits all but the very oldest Kakuno pens. This was designed as a child's pen. It has smiling nibs on the box. Unfair to criticize it for being childish. Terrible review.
Good review. Children can use fountain pens too. I got one of these for my 7 year old niece. She’s always admiring my fountain pen collection (which I unfortunately can barely let her touch). She loves her little pink cap Kakuno. She loves practicing her writing and drawing with it.She takes care of her pen mimicking the way I take care of mine. But the Kakuno only cost ten bucks. If she destroys it, no problem. I’ll get her another one. I’d recommend it for a kid you love.
Hi, Kerry. Here's another sleeper from Pilot you might want to check out: the Plumix. The nib is medium cursive and makes even the sloppiest of writing look elegant. It floats across the page and, while body itself is made of plastic, it'song and will fit comfortably in larger hand. I have a small hand and arthritic fingers, and thought I would have to give up on executing handwriting that looks polished and refined. Then I found the Plumix. For folks with hands or fingers that are in any way compromised, this pen is the bomb. And for those whose hands work just fine, it's indeed a gem. You won't find a better nib at five or six times the price. (Mine was US$9 if memory serves.) They're sometimes a little hard to find, but they're worth the hunt. Cheers...
About the eye-dropper thing. I get you, but I think the holes are very important in products intended for children. If a childe swallows a pen cup (don't ask me how, they do thing the philosophers didn't even dream about), the holes allow the air to go through until the medical help can be found. So maybe that's the reason behind this feature.
Yep, that’s exactly why the holes are there :)
@@jennstns9 : I sometimes think we FP users can be a bit too persnickety. (LOL) The
pen was designed for a younger audience as their first pen, but not for pen collectors of
a certain age. I actually like my med. nib Kakuno, and will never compare it with another
pen.
@@HJKelley47 nothing “persnickety” about my comment. The Kakuno was literally created for children, thus the necessity for the holes because it could be a choking hazard. Doesn’t mean adults can’t buy the pen. I used to have a couple of them when I got into the hobby years ago, and I was a college student at that time. I can assure you I wasn’t eating my pens.
@@jennstns9 : Jenn I was agreeing with you. There was absolutely nothing persnickety about your comment. Sorry my comment was misunderstood. I was just reflecting on the many persnickety remarks I've heard pen users make about certain models of FPs.
@@HJKelley47 ah ok. I see. Yes I can agree with you. I actually found the kakuno nib to be smoother than a lot of my $150+ pens! I plan to get another one in a year or so when my daughter starts writing. She will love the cute smiley face, and I might “borrow” it ☺️
Con-70 converters will fit newer Kakunos
I really don’t like my metropolitan but I love this pen:))
I love my Kakuno. I think it's somewhat underrated. Yes, it's injection moulded plastic. But it feels solid, the design is quite nice, the colours are fun and the faceted barrel is a pleasant tactile feeling. The section is comfortable to hold. The nib of my Kakuno works very well too. I haven't had any hard starts or skips, and the writing experience was pretty good. It's a great inexpensive every day writer. Some would say that this pen looks like a school pen. They may be right but all those cheap office ballpoints people normally use look like school pens too. And using a Kakuno is so much more joy.
I love my clear one. Looks not at all childish either. And much prefer it to the metropolitan. I have the RD kaküno. It's the finest nib i own and is great for the Hobonichi small grid paper! Agree it's the best starter pen!!
That's EF not RD!
I am a new fountain pen beginner. I have bought a few good pen so far and recently I’ve got Pilot Kakuno (EF).
I am very happy with Kakuno the most! I feel WOW when first writing with it! 🙂👍🏼
The childish design is supposed to be childish because it is marketed in Japan at school kids, not at adults. ;)
Hi Kerry. I just read about you and your channel in Pen World and subscribed. I like the way you present the facts in a clear and easy to understand manner without a lot of “fluff”. Thanks
My Metropolitan wrote well, but it was kind of heavy and I just didn’t like the metal feel so I gave it away. Replaced it with 2 Kakunos: a fine clear and an extra fine yellow and white with con-D converters and Kaweco clips. Both write well and I also think they would be good starter pens with a fun look.
Hi Kerry, I have 3 demonstrators in EF for work, all fitted with the Con-70 converters.
They write like a dream and I prefer it to the Metropolitan. The section Fells bigger to me and that is helpful as I have really big hands.
Thanks for another great review.
I did convert to eyedropper with super glue. It works fine. Use the gel version so it doesn't drip inside.
I have two Kakunos both I put the con-70 in. I also have a prera which I switched nibs with one of the Kakunos with. I love them all.
The Pilot Con-70 converter fits the Kakuno.
if you tune the nib by flatting the writing spot a tiny bit and polish it, it honestly writes as well as their gold nibs minus the bounce IMO
Thank you for the points you covered- helpful.
I love the Kakuno....I used them at work since they are less expensive but love the writing experience and perfect length for my hand. I have the limited edition transparent cap colours...turquoise and dark blue....I have the lime green, hot pink, light purple and several clear ones. I use either con70 or cartridges. I prefer the feel of the Kakuno compared to the Metropolitan.
I love my Metropolitan! The Kakuno is something I'm certainly considering for my kid's second pen after the Stabilo Easy Buddy. Never too early to indoctrinate the young into Pilot fountain pens, yeah? ;)
This was my first pen. I got the demonstrator model in ef. It's a really solid beginners pen. It even have a newbie friendly manual. I got compliments using it surprisingly! I drop it a couple of times and it's durable. Easy to clean and disassemble too!
Re: Eyedroppering. I have a J.Herbin ink rollerball, and used a small dab and wipe of Araldite to seal the holes invisibly. And it's a perfect solution.
I have a dark grey with a red cap Kakuno. I bought a Con 70 converter for it and swapped a B calligraphy nib from a Pilot Pluminix. I also put a Kaweco Sport style clip on it.
My perfect pocket daily carry pen.
I might get another one with a fine nib.
I put the Kaküno nib on my Metropolitan 😉
In Japan this pen is made for schoolkids, hence the cute look. I got one a long time ago and the first time I went to change the cartridge, the plastic piece in which you insert the cartridge broke, and that was the end of it :(
oh and the holes are meant for kids not to choke in case they put the parts in their mouth or something like that, I read
I got the demonstrator instead of the colors. Love this pen except for the lack of a clip
I just got the soft violet/white one in a medium and am loving it
The only problem with these Kakuno fountain pens is that it’s not in a lot of brick and mortar stores. Thanks for the review.
This Pilot steel nib fits to Metro, Kakuno, Prera, Plumix and 78g. It is an amazing nib that compares even to some gold nibs. I have the medium and fine and they are excellent. Waiting for an extra fine to see how it compares to the rest. Kakuno is one of my favourite too.
I'll have to check, but the section looks larger, which is my biggest beef with the Metro.
I love pilot kakuno, they are colorful, with really F and EF nibs, if I lose them I replace them with little money. I also just found that they fit the kaweko sport clip.
great video thanks..
I have one with fine nib (and a violet cup). Yeah, looks childish, but I love this pen. My absolute favourite since I started to use it 😍
I have an all clear in EF and gray F, Gray/red F and gray/blue F - good overall pen
It has the holes because the target market is children and the cap and barrel are choking hazards, mitigated by the holes.
No, just no. The holes are there because of the way it's manufactured. That's it. It's just cheaper. No one markets any pen, not even a ballpoint, at choking age children. I've seen reams of marketing for this open, and none of it was aimed at children. It's just a cheap pen. That's it.
@@jamesaritchie1 they have smiley face nibs on the package. You don't think that's aimed at kids. SMDH
Will any standark ink cartridge work with this pen.
Decided to add this seperate - have had issues with Sailor inks staining pens (and converters!) And leaving smell behind.
Tried flushing with Distilled water and also Distilled water mixed with light soap - but still takes forever and still leaves stains (which I'm sure are affecting the next ink fill as I've seen colours change.). I love Sailor colours though and would like to continue using them without damaging pens. Any thoughts??
Empty out a cartridge and just use it for sailor inks. Use your converter for other inks.
@@jennstns9 A good idea! Thank You!
Turned out, not all inks work on Pilot Kakuno feed and nib, only the wetter one does like Diamine stuffs
What's a vintage pen that writes similarly to the Kakuno?
Why does nearly every reviewer out there try flexing nibs that should never, ever be flexed. Whether it's steel or gold, if it isn't a true flex nib, trying to get line variation from it is, frankly, stupid. Not even soft gold nibs are meant to give line variation. I don't know who started this nonsense, but it's wrong.
The number one way nibs get damaged is not from being dropped, it's from trying to get line variation from a non-flex nib. The damage usually happens over time, but in just a matter of a few weeks, you can complete ruin a nib this way, and never even realize you damaged it. The nib will just get wetter than it should be, or it will start dribbling ink into the cap, or it will start having hard starts, or it will start feeling a little "draggy" on paper, or just won't write as well as you remember it writing when it was new.
Gold nibs die even faster from such treatment, and soft gold nibs fastest of all.
The is a Kakuno that's a demonstrator with a perfectly transparent barrel and cap. It's a nice pen. And while you think the pen looks childish, thousands of young adults disagree completely. This is just standard fare for them. Half of what they buy, even their shoes and clothing, looks remarkably similar to the Kakuno.
I don't think the writing experience is even remotely like that of the Metropolitan. Just because they use the same nib means absolutely nothing. The weight is different, the feel is different, the balance is different, and I find that even the flow is different. To me, the writing experience is about as close to the Metro as the Metro is to a Namiki Maki-e.
This pen is NOT just marketed at children, or children at all, for that matter, unless you consider older teens children. This pen is no more marketed at children that the Platinum Preppy is targeted at children. This is simply a fountain pen made as cheaply as possible in hopes people of all ages might be willing to buy one, and get on the Pilot ladder because of it.
The holes are just part of the manufacturing process, and are NOT there to prevent choking. No pen of any kind is aimed at children that young.
I want the red cap/black body but there is always another pen I want more. I will get this next!
It can take a CON 70
I like my metropolitan. The color snobs from our marketing department would bless us all with the name of the exact shade of turquoise (Turk-wah) we are seeing here on that cap. 🤣❤️😉😎
Hey Karen, why so many chuckles.... Although I loved it!
Just wondering how this compares to the TWSBI Eco nibs? I have the TWSBI Eco Fine and Medium but slowly falling out of love with them as I find the nibs are quite sloppy writers - the line isn't as crisp.
If I prefer the TWSBI ECO Fine will I be ok with Medium in Kakuno?
Pilot nibs are super crisp. I don’t think you’d be disappointed by this or the metropolitan (for a more professional look if that’s what you’re wanting). I’d say a medium would be close to the TWSBI fine.
@@jennstns9 Thank you! I have a Pilot Prera on the way as well in Medium, but have been eyeing the Kakuno for awhile.
I might have to put a couple of Pilots on the Wishlist if this works out ;)
2:07 why do you think that a CHILD would want to eyedrop the pen? And also, for that to be considered a kids pen, it need air holes in swallowable parts so that the child can breathe if swallowed. And I just think that eyedropper is super messy(kids do not want ink all over their brand new shirts).
Which one is better. Kakuno or preppy?
The preppy is a finer nib , I find..at 0.3...it will scratch alot on certain paper.
The Kakuno flows very nice, in Fine nib. and won't scratch.
they are both super affordable.
Mmm... I love Sailor ink.
So is this extra fine, fine or medium?
I say in the video that it is a medium nib 👍🏻
Annoying that they can't let you use a 'standard' converter - I have three spare ones. Not friendly.
Second
Hi Kerry, did you receive my email about the Dunhill AD2000 fountain pen? I would really appreciate a reply, thanks.
Too bad it doesn't take standard converters.
It does, but for Kakunos intended for European and some Latinamerica markets, at least. They come with Standard International cartridges and take Standard International converters.
Well it’s a Pilot pen. They’re proprietary, and that’s kind of a given being that it’s a Pilot 🤷🏼♀️
Deleting critical comments SMDH
Con 70 fits all but the very oldest Kakuno pens.
This was designed as a child's pen. It has smiling nibs on the box. Unfair to criticize it for being childish.
Terrible review.