Pocket Pen Roundup

(Kimberly (she/her) took the express train down the fountain pen/stationery rabbit hole and doesn't want to be rescued. She can be found on Instagram @allthehobbies because there really are many, many hobbies!.)

One of the more surprising things I discovered during my fountain pen journey thus far is how much I like pocket pens. Maybe they aren’t the best for writing for long periods of time, but for quick notes and to do lists and such, they’re really handy. My first pocket pen was the Kaweco Sport Macchiato with a BB nib. I specifically got it so I could get it ground to an architect to see if I’d like that grind. It may seem counterintuitive to get a grind on an inexpensive pen but that was precisely the point. If I didn’t like architects, at least I would only be out the cost of the grind and a $20 pen. Turns out I ended up liking the architect AND the Kaweco and thus, the rabbit hole within the rabbit hole began!

A few things to note:

• This isn’t a comprehensive list of pocket pens by far, just some of the more common ones as well as a few of the lesser known ones.
• I generally do not post my pens, but when I do, it’s only for ones that are screw-to-post or have some mechanism (like o-ring) to prevent scratching the barrel.
• Prices for some of the pens vary drastically if buying domestically vs overseas. As always, do your homework.

Kaweco Sport - This is one of the most common pocket pens out there and for good reason. They are inexpensive, come in a wide array of colors and trim colors too. The Classic is gold trim and the Skyline is silver trim. They have made some with black nib/trim too. Most folks use cartridges with their Sports but you can also use their piston converter (avoid the mini squeeze converter like the plague unless you like throwing money away). Kaweco Sports are also eyedropperable with a bit of silicone grease on the threads. The nib/feed can be pretty easily pulled from the housing; most of the Sports these days have glued in housings but that wasn’t always the case.

Price: $25-27

Nib: Steel, Bock 060

Cap: Screw

Postable: Yes

Filling system: Standard international cartridge, proprietary mini converter

Kaweco AL Sport in Golden Espresso (L) and Kaweco Sport, Galen Leather exclusive.

Kaweco AL Sport - I am calling this out separately because of a few differences from the regular Sport. The Aluminum cap/barrel makes this a slightly heavier pen that is also more durable. The nib units are fully removable; they screw in/out vs being glued in on the regular Sports. I don’t have the other metal sports like the Brass or Steel ones, as they are heavier and I don’t like patina. The AL Sports are also a fair bit more expensive than the regular Sport, especially for store or regional exclusives.

Price: $80-90 (more for exclusives)

Nib: Steel, Bock 060, screw-in nib unit is removable

Cap: Screw

Postable: Yes

Filling system: Standard international cartridge, proprietary mini converter

Cult Pens x Kaweco Mini - Cult Pens worked with Kaweco to design this adorable Mini fountain pen. The first release was grey brushed aluminum and the second/current one is navy blue. It is remarkably well made and very durable, while still being classy and cute at the same time.

Price: £25 (with vat) or ~$27 USD

Nib: Steel, Bock 060, screw-in nib unit is removable

Cap: Screw

Postable: Yes

Filling system: Standard international cartridge only

The Cult Pens Mini Fountain Pen by Kaweco is one of the smallest and durable pocket pens!

Ensso XS - I first heard of Ensso from Kickstarter years ago and backed their first pocket pen. I really like it because it is a “snap” cap and not a twist cap, making it very convenient for quick note taking or todo/packing lists (my favorite use for them). There is a rubber o-ring on the grip end of the barrel, so it is more of a slip cap when capping, but you get a bit of a snap or pop when uncapping. There is also an o-ring on the other side of the barrel so you can easily post without damaging the pen. I am a sucker for faceted pens and this one is no exception.

Price: $99 for the Titanium XS

Nib: Steel, Bock 060

Cap: Slip cap

Postable: Yes

Filling system: Standard international cartridge-only

Other: The Titanium one is the only one currently available as other colors are either sold out or discontinued.

Ensso XS in Red aluminum.

Conklin Minigraph - I’ll admit that I snagged this because it’s adorably cute. Like many of the smaller, slimmer pocket pens, the grip is very slender so it’s not the most comfortable pocket pen. The screwed-in nib unit is easily removed; “Iridium Point Germany” engraving usually indicates that it is a Chinese-manufactured nib but I don’t have any compatible nib units.

Price: $40-50

Nib: Steel

Cap: Screw

Postable: Yes, but nothing protecting the barrel

Filling System: Standard international cartridge only

Other: Might be discontinued or difficult to find.

Conklin Minigraph in Purple Dunes.

Gravitas Pens Pocket Pen - Ben Walsh of Gravitas Pens has been making metals pens for some time and added the pocket fountain pen to his line up. It is available in a variety of finishes but I particularly like the flat edge on one side of the cap, so that the pen won’t roll away. The grip section is slightly knurled so it isn’t slippery. There doesn’t appear to be anything protecting the PVD-coated barrel, but the threads are further in the cap, so posting shouldn’t pose too much risk of scratching.

Price: €65 or $70

Nib: Steel, Jowo 6

Cap: Screw

Postable: Yes

Filling System: Standard international cartridge only

Other: There is a newly released Polycarbonate eyedropper version which is slightly larger and is available for 95EU/$100.

Gravitas Pocket Pen in Skittles Finish.

Namisu N1 Pocket Pen - Released as a Kickstarter in early 2021, the N1 was added to Namisu’s lineup of machined/metal pens. Several finishes were offered but all are currently sold out. They use Bock 250 nibs, which are a bit larger than the ones in Kaweco Sports. The three rubber o-rings on the barrel allow the cap to post without damaging the barrel.

Price: £57-99/$70-125 depending on finish

Nib: Steel, Bock 250

Cap: Slip cap

Postable: Yes

Filling system: Standard international cartridge-only

Other: The Titanium one is the only one currently available as other colors are either sold out or discontinued. Unclear if they plan on making more.

Namisu N1 Pocket Pen in Petrol finish (can you tell I love these rainbow finishes?)

Schon Dsgn Pocket Six - The Pocket Six houses a, wait for it, size 6 nib unit! Originally offered with Bock 6 nibs, most of Ian’s pocket pens are now outfitted for Jowo 6 nibs, though you can still buy Bock 6 sections. I really like that you can make your own Pocket Six as well as getting different grip sections if you wanted the rollerball attachment (which uses fountain pen cartridges!). There are also faceted and anodized aluminum versions as well as brass and copper options too.

Price: $125 and up

Nib: Steel, Jowo 6

Cap: Screw

Postable: Yes, screw to post

Filling System: Standard international cartridge-only

Schon Dsgn Pocket Six with a Jowo 6 nib on the left and a rollerball attachment on the right (currently inked with a Montblanc Pop Pink cartridge)

Pilot Petit 1 - One of the early fountain pens that I had discovered was this little inexpensive gem of a pen called the Petit 1. It comes in a Petit Marker format as well. The internal cap seal is incredibly good and I’ve misplaced my Petit 1s for several years, only to find out that they didn’t dry out and wrote immediately!

Price: $4

Nib: Steel

Cap: Snap

Postable: Yes

Filling System: Proprietary mini cartridge-only

I forgot how good the Pilot Petit 1 is!

Sailor Pro Gear Mini - A smaller version of the Sailor Pro Gear, the PG Mini has the same size cap, grip and nib as the regular PG, but a shortened barrel. There is also a Pro Gear Slim mini as well. Earlier models of the mini were screw-to-post but current models of the mini do not require screwing the cap to post. Mini converters are also available if you don’t want to use cartridges.

Price: $180

Nib: 14kt gold for PGS Mini or 21kt gold for PG Mini

Cap: Screw

Postable: Yes

Filling System: Proprietary Sailor cartridge or mini converter

Sailor Pro Gear Mini (early version with screw-to-post end)

Sheaffer Tuckaway Valiant - I will be the first to admit that I don’t know a lot about vintage, but I wanted to include an example of what the vintage world has to offer by way of pocket pens. I saw this beauty on PaperWantsAPen’s IG account and had to get it. The Golden Brown material is stunning and the little clip is there for a purpose. My understanding is that, back in the day, the military did not allow adornments on uniforms (other than medals and such), but folks needed to be able to pocket carry their pens so the little clip allows them to hold a pen upright in their pocket while still being discreet.

Sheaffer Tuckaway - one of many pocket pens available in the vintage arena.

TWSBI Mini - The TWSBI Mini is the smaller version of the 580. (There is also the Vac Mini, which is the smaller version of the Vac 700R, but it is slightly longer than the Mini). This screw-to-post mini pen is great for folks who want large ink capacity but their reputation for cracking barrels makes this not the best pen to carry in one’s pocket. I like that their nib units are easily swappable and that you can buy Mini nib units separately.

Price: $50 for standard Mini, $60 for the AL version, $85 for Rose Gold trim

Nib: steel, screw-in nib units

Cap: Screw

Postable: Yes, screw-to-post

Filling System: Piston

TWSBI Mini in Rose Gold - Hard to find a higher capacity pocket pen than this one.

Franklin-Christoph 20P - The Model 20P is the pocket version of the Model 20, both of which are Franklin-Christoph’s only slip-cap model (other pens are screw caps). The 20P takes a size 6 Jowo nib and takes a cartridge or it can be eyedroppered with a bit of silicone grease (just don’t uncap too forcefully or you may expel a little ink). One other thing to keep in mind for eyedroppering this model is that people often forget that it’s a slip cap and will start to twist the cap, which will unscrew the section from the barrel and potentially make an inky mess. I like that the slip can be capped/uncapped single-handedly. If you can’t uncap it in one hand, you’ve cranked it down too hard.

Price: $145 (more for other grinds or gold upgrade)

Nib: steel, Jowo 6 screw-in nib units

Cap: Slip

Postable: Yes

Filling System: Standard International Cartridge or eyedropper

Franklin-Christoph Pocket 20 (or 20P)’s slip cap is one of my favorites for quick notes.

Pilot Elite E95S - The Pilot E95S is a great example of Japanese pocket pens often called “short-long pens”. These pens have a short barrel and long cap; the pens are also short when capped and long (nearly full-size) when posted. Also, the slip cap makes it easy to open/close/post. All 3 of the major Japanese brands (Pilot, Sailor, Platinum) had a variety of short-long models, some had steel nibs and others had 14kt or 18kt gold nibs. Vintage short-longs can vary in price from $20 to several hundred dollars, especially for the more sought-after/discontinued models like the Pilot Myu, M90, Volex and Murex.

Price: $136

Nib:14kt gold (for the E95S)

Cap: Slip

Postable: Yes

Filling System: Proprietary Pilot cartridge-only

Pilot Elite E95s (left) and Pilot Myu (right) are examples of “short-long” fountain pens.

After this point, it is difficult to categorize these pens as pocket pens as they are not marketed as such, but they are fairly small, so I am including some of the more common ones.

Pilot Prera - The Pilot Prera is an acrylic alternative to those who like the Pilot Metropolitan nib, but don’t like the heft or the grip. It has a wonderful snap cap and uses the same steel nib and feed as others in the Pilot lineup (which are easily swappable via gentle pull). Solid colors are harder to come by in the states but can often be found on Ebay and Amazon.

Price: $40-56

Nib: Steel

Cap: Snap

Postable: Yes

Filling System: Proprietary Pilot cartridge or converter

Sporting a great snap cap, the Pilot Prera is a nice (but pricier) alternative to the Metropolitan.

Pelikan M2xx/M4xx - The Pelikan M200 and M400 series are the same size with the former having steel nibs and the latter 14kt gold nibs. Both models are readily available from many retailers at a variety of prices depending on color, limited edition, etc. The nibs are swappable between them; this is also true with the M600s as well too but not necessarily the other way around, due to the M600 nibs being longer, there may not be clearance in the cap.

Price: $200 for M200s and $300+ for M400s

Nib: Steel for M200s, 14kt gold for M400s

Cap: Screw

Postable: Yes

Filling System: Piston

Pelikan M215 Rhombus is one of many styles available in the M2xx and M4xx size.

Sailor Pro Gear Slim - The regular sized Sailor Pro Gear Slim is often mentioned as a pocket pen because it is on the smaller size. Their 14kt gold nibs have a pencil-like feedback that is loved by many. And if you don’t like a particular color/style, just wait a bit and chances are high that more designs will come out to tempt your wallet.

Price: $180+

Nib: 14kt gold

Cap: Screw

Postable: Yes

Filling System: Proprietary Sailor cartridge or converter

Sailor Pro Gear Slim, Bungubox special edition for the 2019 San Francisco Pen Show.

Here are some comparison photos showing the pens while capped, posted and unposted (for folks like me).

L to R: Schon Dsgn Pocket Six, Ensso XS, Conklin Minigraph, Gravitas Pocket Pen, Namisu N1, Cult Pens Kaweco Mini, Kaweco Sport, Kaweco AL Sport, Pilot Petit 1, Sailor Pro Gear Mini, Sheaffer Tuckaway, TWSBI Mini, Franklin-Christoph 20P, Pilot Elite E95s, Pilot Myu, Pilot Prera, Pelikan M215, Pelikan M405, Sailor Pro Gear Slim.

It always surprises me to see how much a pens length can change when it is posted.

Well, that’s about the extent of my pocket and pocket-adjacent pens! I know there are way more out there, even in my own collection, that wasn’t included in here but hopefully it gives you an idea of the variety of pocket pens that exist in our little rabbit hole.

(Disclaimer: All pens are my own and links used were based on where I could easily find the products.)

Sailor Tea Time Series Fika Coffee Ink Review

There are many fountain pen inks in the world, and Sailor Tea Time Series Fika Coffee Ink is one of them. It just so happens that, at the time of this writing, you can’t have it. Easily at least.

I’m sure it’s out there, somewhere, but don’t let the FOMO get to you. I was able to get mine from JetPens, where, at $18 for 20ml it lands in the “expensive per ml but I’m glad it’s a small bottle” category that I love.

Fika Coffee is a color that I have fallen in love with. I’ve raved about it on the podcast, and on stream. But don’t let that sway your thoughts of chasing it down, and I’ll tell you why right now: This is a basic ink color. Good performance, good flow, minimal shading, no sheen. Basic.

For some reason, I have found basic brown inks that meet my description of basic brown inks hard to find. What is my idea of a basic brown ink? Medium roast coffee. 72% cacao dark chocolate. No signs of caramel, toffee, orange, or red. Rich ink color, but not mixed with black ink. Simply, a pure dark brown line.

My issue, and why I’m fawning over this ink, is that I didn’t put in the work to find this shade of ink before Fika Coffee fell into my lap. This shade HAS to exist somewhere, right?

Col-o-ring paper.

The first place I went to look is the amazing resource that is Mountain of Ink. On the sidebar, scroll down to Ink by Color, click on Brown. Scrolling through the samples, you can eliminate 95% of the inks shown as it relates to my ideal brown ink. The rest, say Papier Plume Bad Bad Leroy Brown, Kaweco Caramel Brown, or Kobe 03 Kyu-kyoryuchi Sepia deserve a click through to the review and a decision on whether to explore them further.

That there are so few inks that represent my ideal brown is disheartening. Am I asking too much?

Yoseka Notebook.

Step two involves the mega-database that is Fountain Pen Companion. I pulled up the page for Sailor Tea Time Fika Coffee (all of 8 entries) to see what matches there might be in the digital color spectrum. You are unable to click through the color square to see which other inks are tagged with he same color (feature request!) but I could at least go to the Brands page and search for “Brown” and “Coffee” to see what other colors are assigned the same color space as Fika Coffee - inks like Laban Greek Mythology Demeter Brown.

With those two resources, I now have a list. I also have the wisdom of the crowd on my side as well. Readers with much more experience than myself will certainly have some great recommendations to take into account.

The Paper Mind Mitsubishi Bank Paper.

Why am I telling you all this? Fountain pen ink FOMO is the most pointless FOMO out there. I get it. I’ve been there. I FOMO’d plenty of Sailor Apricot back in the day, and later, Montblanc JFK. And it was pointless, as Sailor just reproduced it later, and Montblanc, well, Montblanc’ed themselves time and time again. Plus, plenty of other inks launched that are close enough matches by other brands.

I love Sailor Tea Time Series Fika Coffee. I’m fortunate to have a bottle. I don’t need to chase another bottle down, because I have endless options out there right now that are just as good. I just have to find them.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Sailor x Tinterías - A Deliciously Inky Collaboration

(Kimberly (she/her) took the express train down the fountain pen/stationery rabbit hole and doesn't want to be rescued. She can be found on Instagram @allthehobbies because there really are many, many hobbies!.)

The year was 2019, and Jeffrey Coleman, a Spanish professor and pen enthusiast, decided to start a pen blog. Fast forward to June 2020 (which seems like an eternity now but it was just 18 months ago) when Jeffrey thought a podcast would be a better format for his pen musings. He roped in his fraternity brother, Erick Gama, to be the co-host and together, they launched a podcast. Not just any pen podcast, but one in Spanish, called Tinterías, which is a combination of the words “tinta” (ink) and “tonterías” (foolishness or silliness).

As of this writing, there are already more than 75 episodes, which are released weekly on Mondays at 8am Central Time. They often have guests on the show like brand representatives from PIlot and LAMY, distributors, pen makers and nib workers. They also have their own slack (email hola@tinterias.com to be added) and run a Spanish version of Rock Your Handwriting called Luce Tu Escritura. You can find Jeffrey Coleman on Instagram as @drcoleman1102 and Erick Gama @erickgama and also through the podcast account @tinteriaspodcast

Homemade Tortilla (top) and Spicy Chipotle.

The idea for the Deliciosa inks came about when Jeffrey and Erick saw that Sailor North America had begun entering the Mexican market and wanted something akin to the 50 states series that wasn’t US-focused. Sailor asked them to propose something for Mexico and Latin America and the duo came up with a line of inks based on food - Homemade Tortilla and Spicy Chipotle. Of course, I have to add that despite their yummy sounding names, the inks aren’t meant for eating/drinking :-). These two inks were launched in summer/fall of 2021 and come in 50ml square glass bottles like the Manyo series and standard inks.

Homemade Tortilla is a lovely golden brown while Spicy Chipotle is a hotly-debated (see what I did there?) brownish red or a reddish brown color. I think it’s the latter.

You can see that this ink has great shading potential.

Cult Pens Louise, Kobe 21 Taisanji Yellow, Robert Oster African Gold, Diamine Golden Brown (most similar) and KWZ Honey are all similar to Homemade Tortilla.

Homemade Tortilla writing sample on Cosmo Air Light 75gsm, 52 gsm Tomoe River, 68 gsm dot-grid Tomoe River.

Spicy Chipotle has a subtle green sheen that can be seen with wetter swatches.

Blackstone Barrister Brown, Taccia Cha Brown (most similar), Robert Oster Aussie Brown, Diamine Inkvent 2019/Blue Edition Roasted Chestnut, and Monteverde Sweet Life Pumpkin Cake (also pretty close).

Spicy Chipotle on CAL 75, TR 52 and TR68. You can see some of the green sheen in the TR 68 swatch.

Both inks had average flow, neither too wet nor too dry. Homemade Tortilla is more of a shading ink while Spicy Chipotle is more saturated with just a hint of sheen with a wet, broad nib or in big swathes of ink.

The inks are still available for purchase on the Tinterías website. Due to shipping costs, they can only be purchased as a set for $60 (shipping is not included). I bought mine from Jeffrey and Erick at the Chicago Pen Show, where inks could be sold separately with no shipping costs. They already have the next pair of inks ready to go to production now and will be launched later this year. I can’t wait to get my hands on the next two inks!