Pilot Kakuno Fountain Pen - Red/Gray
Kakuno is a delightful fountain pen that is ideal for both first time fountain pen users and experienced writers. "Kakuno" means "to write" in Japanese, and that's just what this pen helps users to do by featuring an appealing smiley face on the steel nib, when oriented upward, ensures perfect nib orientation. This grey resin fountain pen with a red cap has a hexagonal shape, similar to the classic wooden pencil, so that the pen is comfortable to hold and doesn't roll away. Indentations in the cap also make it easy to grasp when uncapping the pen. A black Pilot ink cartridge is included to get you started writing right away. It also accepts a Pilot CON-40 or CON-70 converter (sold separately). Novices will soon be on their way to becoming seasoned fountain pen users, and seasoned users will enjoy the fun, exuberant writing the Kakuno fountain pen delivers. Everyone can enjoy writing with a Kakuno fountain pen.
Click here to shop all compatible Pilot ink cartridges.
- Condition
- New
- Brand
- Pilot
- Type
- Fountain Pens
- Color
- Red, Silver/Grey
- Demonstrator
Whether or not the barrel of the pen is translucent, allowing you to see the ink and filling mechanism inside.
- No
- Body Material
- Resin
- Cap Type
How the cap is opened/closed from the barrel of the pen. Some common options include Snap-Cap, Screw-Cap, Magnetic Cap, or Capless (no cap).
- Snap-cap
- Compatible inks & refills
Which ink this pen will accept. Choices include bottled ink and various styles of pre-filled ink cartridges.
- Bottled ink, Proprietary Pilot ink cartridges
- Filling Mechanism
How the pen fills with ink. Click here to watch our video tutorial on common filling mechanisms.
- Cartridge, Converter
- Grip Material
- Resin
- Nib Size
- Medium
- Nib Color
- Silver
- Nib Material
- Steel
- Postable
Whether or not the cap fits securely onto the back of the barrel when open.
- Yes
- Retractable
Whether or not the nib/tip can retract into the body of the pen (usually for click or twist-open style pens).
- No
- Diameter - Body
- 13.4mm (0.5in)
- Diameter - Cap (without clip)
- 15.9mm (0.6in)
- Diameter - Grip (mm)
Measured from the place most people choose to rest their fingers, which varies with each pen.
- 10.4mm
- Length - Body
The measurement from the back end of the barrel to the tip of the nib.
- 127.4mm (5in)
- Length - Cap
- 56.6mm (2.2in)
- Length - Nib
The measured length of the visible portion of the nib when it is installed in the pen, from grip to tip.
- 18.6mm (0.7in)
- Length - Overall (Closed)
- 130.9mm (5.2in)
- Length - Overall (Posted)
When the cap of the pen is posted onto the back of the pen body, this is the measurement of the entire pen including the nib.
- 159.7mm (6.3in)
- Weight - Body
If a converter is included with the pen, this weight is reflected in the total.
- 7g (0.2oz)
- Weight - Cap
- 4g (0.1oz)
- Weight - Overall (g)
- 11.0g
- Max Ink Capacity - Cartridge
The maximum volume of ink that can fit in the pen when using a cartridge.
- 1.10ml
- Max Ink Capacity - Converter
The maximum volume of ink that can fit in the pen when using a converter.
- 1.30ml
Customer Reviews
Great stuff
I got this to introduce my 8 year old daughter to writing with fountain pens and she loves it ....she's already been sketching with it and 'journaling' with it too! I have use one of the cartridges supplied but will look at converting to a standard converter that I got from you with this too, later. Very satisfied ----- Also thanks to Ebonique for taking the time to pack my items. <3
GREAT PEN IN IT'S CLASS!
The fine nib is was too fine and not interchangeable. On advice, I ordered a Kaukuno with a medium nib and swapped them. The medium nib doesn't seem to flow well or be that much different. So I'm somewhat disappointed. It's difficult, as a new user, to determine what works best for you without spending a lot of $$ on different pens/nibs/ink. I wish I could have ordered a 'starter pack' of 3-4 pens/nibs and returned what didn't work for me.
If the chunky barrel and colourful cap is a match, then this cant be beat. The pull-off cap is ideal for short notes frequently taken between longer pauses. It is a good choice if writing in public, or any situation where olding could occur from showing a traditional expensive pen look! So it could be a teachers favourite. If your kid says that's cool, its easy to just say 'keep it' and get another. Kakunao's inflexible smiley face steel nib is good enough. However, if desiring more stylish cursive results and line thickness variation with nib pressure, simply swap in the nib or nib-block assembly from either a Metropolitan or a Prera (all interchangeable across this range of Pilot). This Kakuno with Metro nib is becoming hard to put down. The Metro of course is a bit more expensive, has a tighter grip feel, some weightiness, and that more traditional pen look. A cheap rival to the Kakuno with smiley nib is the Jinhao 51A 'hoodie'. It gives a cursive result quite similar to the metro-prera nib, and has colour barrel options.
FAQs about Fountain Pens
How do I fill a fountain pen with ink?
It depends on the pen's filling mechanism, which you can find in the Technical Specs section above.
Here's a quick definition of the most common filling mechanisms:
- Cartridge - A small, disposable, sealed plastic reservoir that holds fountain pen ink. These come pre-filled with ink, and typically you just push to insert them into place and you'll be ready to write! Check out our quick guide here.
- Converter - A detachable and refillable ink reservoir that allows you to use bottled ink in a cartridge-accepting pen. Typically you will install the converter into the grip section, dip the nib/feed into the ink, and twist or pull the converter knob to draw ink into the converter. Here's a video for how to fill a cartridge/converter pen using a LAMY pen as an example.
- Eyedropper - A pen that utilizes the entire barrel as a reservoir for ink. Ink is directly filled into the barrel, allowing for a high ink capacity. Here's a video on how to do it!
- Piston - A type of filling system that uses a retracting plunger inside a sealed tube to draw ink into a pen. They are typically either twist or push-operated. These pens cannot accept cartridges or a converter, and only fill from bottled ink.
- Vacuum - A push-style piston that uses pressure to fill the large pen body with ink. They seal the ink chamber when closed, making it ideal for flying without risk of leaking. Check out our video on how to use a vac filler here.
Check out more info on these filling mechanisms including a video on how to fill each one on our blog.
How do I clean a fountain pen?
It depends on the filling mechanism, but it mostly comes down to flushing it out with water, and sometimes a little bit of Pen Flush if the ink is really stuck.
It's a bit easier to show than to tell, so we've put together a few quick videos showing you the process:
How often do I need to clean my fountain pen?
We recommend a good cleaning every 2 weeks, and any time you change ink colors.
Water will usually do the trick, but we recommend you use our Goulet Pen Flush if the ink has been left in the pen for a while and could have dried up, or when you’re switching ink colors.
My pen won’t write! What do I do?
First things first... make sure you have ink in the pen! Be sure that the ink cartridge or converter is seated properly in the pen, and that you aren't out of ink.
We always recommend you give your pen a good cleaning first, using our Goulet Pen Flush, or a drop of dish soap in some water. New pens often have some machining oil residue left in the feed, so a good cleaning often does the trick first.
If that still doesn't work, try priming the feed. This consists of either dipping your pen nib and feed in ink, or forcing ink from the converter down into the feed.
If it’s still not working after that, please reach out to us so we can help!
What's your return policy?
You can submit a return request within 30 days of your order date. You can read all our Return Policies here.
To initiate a return, please submit a request at the Return Portal. Our Customer Care team might reach out to you for more information.
Please note we are unable to accept a return of any Namiki or Sailor Bespoke fountain pen for any reason once it has been used with ink. Please thoroughly inspect and dry test the pen before use.