Appearance + Design
This is a bright, colorful, “candy”-like fountain pen! The color I own is “metallic green”, basically a Kelly green but a shade lighter and with a hint of blue and some shimmer. The accent color is solid blue and it pops against the white of the cap. The logo is also in white. Otherwise, there's really nothing special about the body.
Quality
First of all, I paid less than 20 bucks for this pen ($16.50 to be exact). According the Sailor website, this pen is made in Japan. As for the quality, well, I give it 3 stars (out of 5). The body is made of light plastic so I'm a bit worried about how long it's going to last knowing how often I drop things. With the ink cartridge inside, the pen feels marginally more substantial, but not by much.
Although this is a “cheap” fountain pen, I appreciate the fact that the cap is screw-on - it only takes two flicks of the wrist to secure the cap in place. This means I can take it with me when I travel and not worry about ink leaking everywhere.
In comparison to the LAMY Safari, the Sailor definitely feels inferior - perhaps this has something to do with the weight. Otherwise, the Sailor is very comfortable to write with (not to thick, not too thin).
Nib
I believe the nib is "fine" - the nib marking says "F-2". The nib is definitely wet. If you look closely at the writing sample you’ll see that the nib creates a gradient of ink depending on how long you’ve been pressing it. Also, after only a day of use, there are ink spots or droplets on the nib. The only other complaint I have is that the pen tends to skip at the beginning of capital letters like “I” or “H”, most likely because I’m pressing too hard or because the nib is at a right angle (?). The upside to the nib being wet is, of course, I can leave the pen uncapped for a minute or so without any effect on the flow. In comparison to the LAMY nib, the Sailor is wider and more flexible.
Value
If you have $20 to spend on a fun, cheerful pen, just get it. It will brighten up your pen collection. Since it's that time of year, I also suggest giving this as a stocking-stuffer - your writing aficionado recipient will be quite pleased.
