Kaweco

That tedious trip back in July wasn’t a complete ordeal. I was somewhat comforted by the happy accident of a new pen. Stylus, a pen and stationery shop on 102nd Ave., happened to be on the route between my parking space and the visa agency offices.

As a reward for my efforts, I rationalized the purchase of a Kaweco Sport.

This is a creative mix of modern and classic elements; modern in its use of plastics, proportions that give the pen a compact size when capped, and there is no pocket clip. Despite the size it will still take full-size international cartridges and converters. The classic styling is mostly in the nib. It has that stereotypical profile and they have sprung for a gold finish on the otherwise modern steel body.

I picked the extra-fine nib, which is a rarity amongst modern non-Japanese pens and very scarce in my collection. I have developed a preference for fine nibs because it improves legibility in my otherwise horrendous handwriting and since it uses less ink, it has better success on paper that wouldn’t normally react well to liquid ink.

Buying new pens is always a gamble. As much as I may like the look and style of a pen I never know how well it works until I spend some time writing with it. I have a cheap Waterman which is so unpleasant to use that I am seriously considering parting with it somehow. I have a Pilot Prera, which is functional and attractive but it was never suitable for long-time use. It dislikes saturated inks so only the reds seem to behave properly. I like the Lamy Safari but it has no charm and I get bored quickly.

The Kaweco is a delight, not quite as satisfying as the Schaeffer Diplomat or the old-style Muji but it is very easy on the hand. And at under $25 it’s a really good deal.