The Kaweco Special series was a line that intrigued me for a very long time. The sleek black barrels, faceted shape; they just looked cool. Different than most things on the market I guess which had an appeal to it.
I was given the opportunity to receive this pen directly from Kaweco to try out, so thank you for sending it my way.
The Special fountain pen has a long skinny barrel a bit larger than your average wood cased pencil. It takes the small Kaweco nib that many of us love in our AL Sports or Classic Sports, but I can echo what most people say about them though, any larger than a medium nib and the writing quality seems to go down. For me, the fine is the sweet spot and I made sure to switch it into the Special before giving it a review. I ended up using the purple/violet ink that Kaweco sent me some samples of also and surprisingly enjoy the color. The lines are nice and dark and it shades pretty good. No crazy multi-colored action going on, but it looks great on the page.
I initially thought the grip of this pen to be made of plastic, but it is actually made of brass. The tactile feel and finish make it appear to be of a thick, textured plastic, but it is metal. I received some clarity on this from the source and as well I removed the nib unit which did reveal a bit of brass shining through the black coating.
The phenomenal AL Sport runs about $75 and the Liliput (Well Appointed Desk) at about $55.
The only major concern is with the grip as it is extremely tiny. REALLY tiny. So tiny in fact that I don't actually use it while writing because it is so uncomfortable. If you compare it from the point of the threads to the start of the nib against the AL Sport and Liliput, it is the shortest of them all. I end up gripping the pen right above the threads which works, but I'd prefer a bit longer section.
I do enjoy the black finish on the barrel with the white contrasting letters. This is a very cool look that I think they've pulled off well. It's difficult to make your branding so apparent, but work, particularly in pens.
The cap posts on the end of the pen with a little finagling as there isn't a "sleeve" section to direct the threads. You have to find the matching point for them to line up and screw on correctly. Kind of a chore, but worth it. I find that writing without the cap posted is a bit too short and light for my tastes, but posting adds a good balance to the pen.
The barrel is octagonal like the AL Sport cap and looks great. When you close the pen the lines don't sync up very well and there is an o-ring in between the cap and barrel which squishes a bit so you can adjust to make the facets line up. Perhaps I am spoiled by my rOtring 600, but if they don't line up it is just weird and makes the pen look odd.
The Special series does not come with an integrated clip, but there is one available similar to that used in the AL or Classic Sport series.
The AL Sport and Liliput a bit more manageable because they are meant to be small pocket pens, but the Special is so long that it doesn't really qualify to fit into this category. The option of the clip does allow for some additional transportability and I am going to pick one up to give it a go.
Design wise, the Special is very sleek and technical looking and has an appeal all its own. I'd love to hear thoughts from others that own the pen if you're open to share in the comments.
Do you like or dislike the pen?