Pilot Kakuno Fountain Pen - Translucent Blue
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.
It features an appealing smiley face with a moustache + tie on the steel nib, when oriented upward, ensuring perfect nib orientation. This translucent blue resin fountain pen 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
- Blue
- Demonstrator
Whether or not the barrel of the pen is translucent, allowing you to see the ink and filling mechanism inside.
- Yes
- 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
- Fine, 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
I have white Kakuno with yellow cap that looks good, but this blue translucent one is beautiful and more functional, since I can see the ink level. The fine nib is very nice. It has a little bit more feedback than the medium nib Kakuno, but this is to be expected. I decided to use the CON-40 converter with this pen and discovered what many experienced users already know - it doesn't work well. So, I gave up and just refilled old kon-peki cartridge. I have a few inexpensive pens: Lamy Safari, Platinum Preppy, Zebra Fuente (disposable), Muji Polycarbonate, entry level Faber-Castell and three Pilot Kakunos. The Pilots have to smoothest nibs and represent the best value in my opinion.
I've always loved every Pilot pen I bought, but this one needed aggressive brass flossing to open the tines enough to let ink flow. It is great NOW, but I'm used to Pilots not needing any help. For that reason I gave it four stars, even though now that it's been worked on a bit, it's a 5 star pen, especially for the price.
I bought this pen recently and discovered how much I enjoy it as a go-to, everyday pen. It arrived with decent turn-around time, well-packaged, with a delivery notice. Nice pen. Highly recommended as both an entry-level fountain pen and one for all others in the hobby.
Although this is one of the least expensive pens I own (and the cost of the CON-70 converter for it was almost as much as the cost of the pen itself!), this is actually one of my favorite pens to write with! The body of the pen feels inexpensive by not cheap and is just the right size for my hands, and the nib, complete with its mustache and necktie (for the Translucent Blue model) on the face of it, is not only cute but also one of my very favorite nibs in terms of its responsiveness while writing, and I actually prefer writing with this to writing with any of my gold-nibbed pens. This is definitely a pen I would buy again (and given that the specific pen I'm reviewing now is the 4th Pilot Kakuno I've purchased for myself, and I've also purchased a number of them for friends, as well, including both friends new to the fountain pen world and those with other pens in their collections, I most likely WILL buy more in the future)! P.S. And given how much I like this pen, I was happy to see that the Pilot Kakuno is the pen that the K-drama 'Romance is a Bonus Book' showed the author at the heart of one of the drama's mysteries using as his daily writer as he wrote out his novels, long-hand!
Pilot Kakuno Fine nib always performs better than expected. This is my second one and it is just as smooth as my first one which I've had for a couple of years (Fine nib as well) . The pen doesn't dry out if not used for a while. It's buttery smooth for left hand writing. It's hard to find smooth nibs if you're left-handed, like me, even specialty nibs. This nib does the job perfectly. On top of that, the pen is extra lightweight, for those who count all the ounces while traveling or hiking. The cartridge is pretty good size and can be refilled if you don't have a converter.Overall, great pen for beginners and pros, alike!
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.