Pilot Falcon
Writing with this pen is an utter joy. While writing in cursive, it has just that little bit of give and cushion. It’s comparable to wearing a pair of shoes with foam soles or suddenly replacing one’s shock absorbers on a bike. It really does bounce, and it’s so much fun to feel it snap back in place. The bouncy is continual; it doesn't require even remotely flexing. The nib is a work of art.
The feed on this pen is marvelous - except with really dry inks, it keeps up no matter how quickly I write or how much pressure I use. The pen does not particularly like dry inks, but even then, if you don't try to flex it, the feed doesn't have any problems with regular writing. I really love how Pilot doesn’t use standard feeds.
Pilot pens are reliable, no matter the price point. There's a reason the Metropolitan is such a great starter pen! A lot of people in the fountain pen community go to the Vanishing Point as that "next level" or first gold-nibbed pen, but the VP just doesn't appeal to me. This pen, on the other hand, is wonderful. I went with the black, rhodium trim model, so it's definitely classy. I considered getting the bright red pen, but in the end, I decided to go for the more subtle option.
The faux piston knob at the back has a bit of a weird angle. I’m not too fond of that design element. I wish that they’d kept the lines consistent through to the end. The way it is, it breaks up the streamlined nature of the pen. I actually really like the clip. It’s simple, yet that gentle swoop seems so modern and refined. The cap finial is not my style. It would be nice if it had some logo, the way that Sailor pens do. Or if it was at least matte. It works as a mirror in a pinch!
The weight and shape – everything – about this pen is insanely comfortable. For the first few months, I hardly wanted to write with anything else. Within a single page of writing with it, I made up my mind to sell over half of my pens. I immediately instituted a 5 pen maximum to my collection and a 1-in-1-out policy. (This did not last long...)
The main problem with the pen is the converter. The non-metal option (like what I have) can't take the Con-70. Therefore, the converter really doesn't have a big enough ink capacity to handle such a bouncy nib (even as a fine). More importantly though, the new Pilot converters have these little metal balls inside them to keep the ink moving. It works, but they're also noisy. So you have this beautiful, (relatively) expensive pen that sounds like it has something broken inside it whenever it moves. It really distracts and detracts from the writing experience.
So gradually I went from using this pen every day to rarely pulling it out of my pen case. It's currently cleaned out and back in its original packaging. I'm not going to get rid of it - I do love it - but it has lost some of its charm. I won't sell it because I do really like it. It fits the "gold nib" part of my collection, and I haven't felt the need to buy any others. I bought the Falcon on impulse when Goulet Pens said that the price was about to increase. I certainly don't regret buying the pen, but I couldn't justify the new price on my budget. Which is a shame because it really is a joy.