Kaweco Liliput Fountain Pen EF Nib Review

Kaweco makes some of my favorite products on the market, bar none. The Kaweco Al Sport has been a long time favorite and still ranks up there as one of my most used pens. It fits my needs perfectly for a compact fountain pen, but when I saw the Kaweco Liliput I knew one would make it into my arsenal before long.

The Liliput brings to the table an even smaller, more compact barrel compared to the Al Sport. It is still a fully aluminum body, and, even more importantly, uses the same exact stainless steel nib. I went with the EF nib on my Liliput (also available in F, M, and B) which is the first Kaweco EF nib I have used. It is now my go-to nib for any and all future Kaweco purchases. It is firm and produces a tight line, but does so while being one of the smoothest nibs I own. It is so impressive I have started to swap out some of my other Kaweco nibs for the EF.

One of my favorite features of the Liliput is the threading on the end of the barrel which allows you to post the cap solidly. Due to the size of the pen it is almost mandatory to post the cap to write comfortably. I completely missed this feature when ordering the pen, and only when I got it in hand did I realize the threads were in place. Good job me!

With the Liliput it all boils down to one thing: How are you going to use this pen? If you are going to be writing notes all day in class or in the office, you might want to look at a larger barrel pen. But if you are looking for a high-quality portable fountain pen for writing on the go, then the Kaweco Liliput should be on your short list.

Several of my pen friends have reviewed the Liliput, including Gourmet Pens, From the Pen Cup, No Pen Intended, and Pen Addict guest blogger Ben Dahl. Be sure to check out their great reviews as well. P.S. - We all like the black barrel.

Guest Review: Kaweco Liliput Al Fine Nib Fountain Pen

(This is a guest review by Ben Dahl. You can follow Ben on Twitter @TheBenDahl)

Between show reviews for Lost in Concert, posts for Cool Material and a general desire not to forget any brilliant ideas (upon reexamination most of them are anything but, but I wouldn'€™t know that if I didn'€™t write them down), my list of demands when it comes to pens includes everything but a jet fueled and waiting on the tarmac.

It has to be convenient enough that I won'€™t mind carry it all night, but durable enough to take a beating without it also serving as a paperweight. Reliable enough that I don't have to worry about turning it into a Shake Weight in the middle of a performance. Comfortable enough that I won't mind filling a few Field Notes with chicken scratch over the course of a day. Other bonuses include, but aren't limited to: not having a cap I have to hold and/or lose, not looking like a weapon (you'€™d be surprised how anal retentive security guards are), affordable and good looking. In other words, I'€™m asking for a lot in a single writing implement. When Brad suggested a fountain pen I thought he was crazy, but the Kaweco Liliput Al delivers.

The first thing everyone notices about the Liliput Al is its size. It'€™s tiny. Closed, it's about as long as a standard wallet and only slightly longer than a cigarette. With the cap screwed onto the end for writing purposes it'€™s barely longer than an iPhone. It fits into every place I can think of to put a pen: pockets, bags, pen slots, cups and office organizers. In fact, I'm having difficulty thinking of a place that this pen won't fit. That's fantastic, but it's also the only real flaw with this pen. If you're not careful, there's about a 75% chance you will lose this pen. It's ended up in the washer on more than one occasion simply because I didn'€™t realize it was still in a pants pocket. Obviously it'€™s tiny, but what about everything else?

In case a few trips through with the dirty laundry isn't enough of an inclination, the Liliput Al is built like a tank. The full aluminum body and stainless steel nib (F in this case) make it all but impervious to trips down stairs, being thrown at a wall (What? I had to test it!) and getting stepped on. I did everything short of running this thing over with a car and none of it even marred the gorgeous matte black finish.

You can beat it up however you want and nothing bad will happen, but there'€™s only one real way to write with it. If you don'€™t screw the cap on the back of the pen it'€™s about as comfortable and easy to operate as a stylus on a Palm Treo. It's as fun as Calculus so not at all. Once you put the cap where it belongs, though, writing is a breeze. There's no drag on the page, no tearing and no ink seepage. Once the ink's on the page, it doesn't bleed and dries quickly enough that you don'€™t have to worry about everything turning into a blob if you use a notebook that closes. It'€™s not beer resistant, but that's to be expected with liquid ink (standard cartridge).

All things considered, the Kaweco Liliput Al is a fantastic little fountain pen. I would happily spend $55 on one of these pens and recommend it to anyone looking for something a little out of the ordinary. You can take it with you everywhere without worrying about it, and you'€™ll always know it'€™s ready for service … as long as you don't lose it in your pocket.