2005-09-05
15:54
Pilot V4 – Disposable Fountain Pen
What Is It?
A disposable fountain pen, using Pilot’s well-known V-system for ink delivery.
Any Good?
You’d think not, wouldn’t you? I was expecting it to be unpleasant to use and scratchy, but actually it feels quite nice. It’s not got the weighty feel of a good fountain pen, but it writes and glides smoothly, and the ink keeps flowing even when you go very quickly.
Good For
Seems to work ok for most things, really. Writes nicely, and even draws pretty well. Doesn’t vary line thickness with pressure much, but enough to get a bit of expression in there.
Not Good For
Well, the ink is a little on the gray side – not a nice solid black. Quite similar to the Shaeffer bottled ink we have. Not quite the quick convenience of a ballpen, because you have to make sure the nib is the right way up for writing, but certainly easier than most fountain pens.
Conclusion
I quite like it, but a really black black is important to me, so it’s not going to be used regularly.
I’ve been meaning to try a fountain pen for awhile now. I never really knew which one to try. I would see pens ranging in every price and couldn’t find any good information online. I didn’t want to waste money because I wasn’t sure if I was going to get a good pen for $30, the typical starter price.
I recently found this very interesting site and purchased a Pilot Varsity, the American version, and like it. I plan on buying a thin nib Lamy Safari soon. But for now I’m happily comparing this pen to others I own. I’m interested to see what style differences I can get between this pen and my Micron pens.
I have been using these since they invented them. I get terrible writers cramp from holding pens and pencils tightly for very long. the Pilot V4 takes almost no effort to write with – attribute that to the GEl ink and the fountain pen nib. Usually I can only get the 3 color set – the purple is deep and dark and quite usable. When they stop making these i am gonna be in deep trouble. i will have to find a REAL fountain pen i won’t mind if i lost. 8(
The V4 is liquid ink, not gel – gel takes a bit of pressure to get it flowing, so if it’s light pressure you want, liquid ink is better.
Have you looked at the Lamy Safari? It’s not disposable, but it’s not too expensive either, and writes very nicely. Add a converter and buy bottled ink (Noodler’s is good), and it will work out cheaper than disposables in the long run. The Safari costs around £13 in the UK – around $20. Depends how often you lose them, I guess