Pilot Metropolitan Review
Although I first received my first fountain pens in 2014, 2015 has been the year I have really gotten into the fountain pen hobby. And what an addiction it turned out to be! I am still really interested in mechanical keyboards but with my future move out, it makes a lot more sense to be carrying a bunch of fountain pens than a bunch of mechanical keyboards. And so begins my reviews of my fountain pens.
The Pilot Metropolitan, quite well-known as one of the best starter fountain pens in the market. If you look on basically any “Best Starter Fountain Pen” kind of list, you will see this pen. And what a deal it is.
Features
The Pilot Metropolitan comes in a simple plastic case with a transparent window that presents the contents. The Metropolitan comes included with a cartridge of black ink, and a squeeze converter. Interestingly, I have heard the converter is actually a “cleaning converter” but I have no actual idea if anyone actually uses it purely for cleaning and not just for holding ink. The Metropolitan comes in either Fine and Medium nibs, in some colour combinations. Note that the Japanese nibs are usually finer than their Western counterparts (Fine is Extra-Fine in Western terms).
Looks
The Metropolitan comes in a number of finishes, with 3 different collections, each collection with their own colours and patterns. The classic collection comes in black, gold and silver; Animal Collection that comes in white, matte gold and purple in addition to the classic colours; and the new Retro Pop Collection with colours and motifs from the 60s and 70s. The one I got is the plain and simple black finish with no pattern on the plastic section. Fairly simple and understated, though I have some regrets getting such a plain pen, let alone two of them, which makes picking the right one harder.
The body is made of brass, giving the Metropolitan a little more heft but not so much to fatigue you while writing. The body a simple cigar or torpedo shape, which gives it the classic look but the cap being flush on the body keeps the profile sleek and modern.
The clip is simple, only slightly adorned with the words: “Pilot” and “Japan” and 3 decorative lines on each side of the clip.
Finally, the nib is a small size, with imprinted lines as flourishes, which is very simple when compared to other nibs, especially as you go up in the price range.
Writing Experience
While the body isn’t very large, those with bigger hands may need to post the pen, or not enjoy the size of the Metropolitan. The body and cap is around 22g, which makes it weightier than pens made of acryllic, and the brass body does give it a nice feel to the hand. However, the plastic section is the weakest part. The section is clearly injection molded together, as you can see (and possibly feel) the two halves join together. This isn’t the biggest deal but it is a letdown for a almost completely brass construction. The cap posts on the back, but I don’t feel that it posts deeply, nor very securely but it is good enough if you really need to use it posted. Personally, I don’t like using the Metro posted, though my hands can use the pen comfortably enough to not need that.
The nib is nice and smooth, though this is something you need to feel yourself in relation to other pens. The wetness is moderate, maybe slightly on the dry side but consistent and well behaved for use on cheap paper. While it isn’t the smoothest pen in existence, probbaly beaten by the Lamy Safari nibs in the same “Starter Pen” categeory, the Metropolitan is almost always consistent in terms of new owners, something that doesn’t really happen for a widely owned pen. And for what it’s worth, the Metropolitan can write as well as basically any pen in the $50 price point.
Misc and Final Thoughts
The Pilot Metropolitan is a very high value pen at a low price point. For under $15 before shipping, you get a brass body pen, with a converter (value of a couple dollars), a fine nib (good for cheap paper, small writing) and a consistently good writer. On top of that, the Metropolitan shares the same feed and nib size as the other cheap Pilot fountain pen lines, notably the 78G [Stubby Broad], Penmanship [Extra-Fine], Plumix [1mm italic/stub], Kakuno, and Prera (some more include the Knight, Lucina, Cocoon [Japanese Metropolitan]) which allows one to swap more interesting nibs into the nicer body of the Metropolitan.
This makes the Metropolitan one of the best starter fountain pens which will always have a use even when the new fountain pen collector moves onto more expensive pens.
I bought a two-pack of Metropolitans from Massdrop, both in black (a bad idea) and in fine and medium nib. I lost the fine nib embarassingly but at least now I will always get the right pen.
Disclaimer: I purchased this pen with my own money and was not compensated for this review. There are no referral links in this page.