Pilot Vanishing Point - Product Review

It’s been a while since I’ve posted a pen review, but I'm very excited today to review the popular Pilot Vanishing Point fountain pen. Pilot first came out with a retractable fountain pen called the Pilot Capless in the 1960s, and has been refining and perfecting their retractable pens ever since. The Vanishing Point came out in 1998 and has been a popular pen ever since. I have been using the Matte Black version with a medium nib for the last few weeks and with this review will uncover whether this pen lives up to the hype.

The Pilot Vanishing Point Matte Black fountain pen has a sleek and modern design that is both elegant and functional. The pen features a matte black barrel made of durable metal with a smooth, satin finish that provides a comfortable grip. The metal barrel does add some weight to the pen, which gives it an expensive pen feel without being too much. The pen's clip, accents, and retractable button are also finished in matte black, creating a cohesive and understated look. 

The most distinctive feature of the Vanishing Point is its retractable nib mechanism. When not in use the nib is concealed within the pen's body with a hidden trap door to prevent the ink from drying. With a click of the button, the nib pops out from the top of the pen, ready for use. The click is very well designed with a great tactile feel when pressing the button with smooth movement in and out. Pilot has done a great job with the click action giving it just enough resistance to prevent accidental discharge of the nib. Due to the retractable nature of the pen, there is no cap and no need to worry about posting or losing the cap. It all fits conveniently in a singular and sleek design.

One controversial design element of this pen is the placement of the clip. Since it’s best to pocket a fountain pen with the nib facing up, the clip is placed on the barrel right where one would hold the pen while writing, and this may be an issue for some. However, to me the placement made it very easy to hold the pen in the correct angle every since time and there is a slight dip in the clip where my fingers go, allowing for a very secure grip. So for me this was a non issue.

To load the pen you have to open it up by twisting the barrel where the rings are. I loved how well the pen was machined, and opening the barrel was one of the smoothest of any pen I have tried. Inside you’ll find the nib assembly. Pilot does sell the nib assembly in several nib sizes, making it very easy to swap nib sizes in this pen. The pen is a cartridge converter style fountain pen, however, you are limited to Pilot proprietary converters and cartridges only. One of each is included in the box.

The pen has an 18K gold nib, matching the shiny accented black rings of the barrel, and goes well with the overall stealth theme. The nib is narrower than a traditional nib, similar in width to a hooded nib. The nib and feed of this pen work well and were ready to go every time I retracted the nib from the pen, no hard starts at all. In another test I was able to write two pages in my A4 journal without any skipping. As expected from Pilot, the line width was consistent throughout my writing. Overall medium nib has a smooth buttery feel on tomoe river paper that I was using, and the 18K gold added softness to the pen that just made it oh so easy to write with. No wonder the pen is so popular even after all these years.

The retractable nature of the fountain pen allows for a quick and convenient writing experience, especially for those who like to switch between writing and other tasks frequently. The matte black is a great stealth fountain pen for professional use. The durable build of the pen, the well thought out design, and an 18K nib at entry level gold nib price all make this a great value purchase. Overall I would have to say, the pen does live up to the hype, and I will continue to keep this one around for my use.

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