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Sailor Pro Gear Fountain Pen Review
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keyboard_arrow_downdufffader
25
Feb 17, 2018
The two Sailors I have wrote very nicely out of the box. It is smooth but not overly so, you can still feel a little feedback, which is how I like my pens. I have not bought any Sailors from nibs.com yet, and I wonder if their tuning makes it too smooth.
You're right about Sailor making great pens. The only thing I don't like about them are the converters. The twist mechanism sometimes gets too tight, or the collar that attaches it to the converter barrel sometimes unscrews especially when I need to stick the pen deeper into the ink bottle and my fingers are holding the collar. For me, the best converter is Pilot's Con-70. That big window lets me see easily how much ink is left, and pump action to suck in the ink is easy to use. Good thing Sailor's nibs are second to none.
You're right about Sailor making great pens. The only thing I don't like about them are the converters. The twist mechanism sometimes gets too tight, or the collar that attaches it to the converter barrel sometimes unscrews especially when I need to stick the pen deeper into the ink bottle and my fingers are holding the collar. For me, the best converter is Pilot's Con-70. That big window lets me see easily how much ink is left, and pump action to suck in the ink is easy to use. Good thing Sailor's nibs are second to none.
HeyMatthew
105
Oct 31, 2017
I own the Sailor Millecoloré in Blue and it's one of my very favorite pens. My thoughts mimic yours almost exactly (which is not surprising as I think you and I have similar thoughts on pens quite often). I really love that Ivory color! I think I may need to pick up another Pro Gear at some point... Maybe something a little less flashy than my multi-blue and gold Mille. :)
Great writeup Bob!
Great writeup Bob!
MyPenNeedsInk
8
Nov 1, 2017
HeyMatthewThanks Matthew always a pleasure to hear from you. The Ivory is prettier in person than I could do it justice is pictures.
debi20
10
Oct 31, 2017
Great review! I bet that nib done by John Mottishaw writes beautifully. I have some of his nibs and they're awesome. My first experience with Sailor was the bright pink ProGear demonstrator, M point. The nib is from the factory, and it writes consistently well. Sailor nibs are typically very firm but write beautifully. I was so happy with this pen that I have pre-ordered the Peacock 1911 (sold exclusively by Anderson Pens). It's a gorgeous teal demonstrator and they only made about 100 of them. Looking forward to getting that one in December. You have piqued my desire to have this pen in hand sooner rather than later!
debi20
10
Mar 5, 2018
Just ran across this page, and thought I'd give you an update: I got my Peacock Sailor 1911s and it was worth the 8-month wait! I got a broad nib, and it writes like a fat M, and it writes beautifully! Has a really sweet feedback, too, that makes me just want to keep on writing and writing. I liked it so much, that I went back and bought another 1911s in the Clear Demonstrator. On that one, it didn't write quite as nicely out of the box, but I rubbed it very cautiously on some Micro Mesh and am pleased to say that I got it writing almost just like the Peacock. I've learned through experience (mostly bad results, fortunately on cheap pens) what not to do with Micro Mesh. So I'm happy that I finally had good results with it.
MyPenNeedsInk
8
Mar 5, 2018
debi20Thanks Debi for the update, so glad you're enjoying two new Sailors. I have some 12,000 grit micromesh and have used it with not much success. I didn't cause any damage but couldn't tell any difference so maybe I was just chicken to be too aggressive.
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- Type: Fountain Pen
- Nib: 21K gold medium
- Length Capped: 5”
- Length Uncapped: 4 ½”
- Length Posted: 5 7/8”
- Weight: 25.4 grams
- Filling System: Converter (Included)
- Street Price: $250 US
Construction Fit & Finish: The Pro Gear feels substantial as a plastic composite pen. The overall size is not large but the balance they struck with diameter and weight give it a good feel in hand. I find no flaws or machining marks in the finish, all gaps are tight and the threads are super smooth requiring only 2 full turns to remove the cap. A+Overall Appearance: Sailor has a solid looker with this attractive design using the overlapping cap style. The cap is a larger diameter than the pen body and the threading of the cap allows it to come down over the top of the body of the pen. A common design well executed here. The Rhodium trim rings, clip and nib are a nice contrast to the black pen ends and even the Sailor logo on the cap is in matching finish. The engraving on the nib is classic Sailor and gives the pen an overall rich look. The ivory color of my pen was difficult for me to photograph well but in person it’s beautiful. So much so that I hesitate leaving it on my desk unattended, it grabs attention.
Ergonomics: You can write with the Pro Gear posted or unposted. I prefer unposted and at 4 ½” in length it still works with my larger hands. It extends comfortably above the web of my index thumb grip. For my friend Ru over in Ireland, here’s a comparison to another popular and similar size pen, the Cross Century II.
When writing you can feel the section threads but they are not sharp and the grip section is a good proportional size for the rest of the pen from an aesthetics standpoint and from an ergonomic grip respect.
Clip: The clip is well sprung and the ramps are good, nothing real ornate or special but does its job unobtrusively and is a nice complement to the pen’s overall look.
Filling System: The Pro Gear comes with a press fit converter and my example worked great with a smooth piston mechanism. Not much more to ask for here.
Nib: The nib is a medium 21K Rhodium trim. My pen came from John Mottishaw at nibs.com so I can’t speak to out of the box factory performance of the nib. Sailor has a great reputation and I would not hesitate buying any Sailor from any reputable supplier. My medium was on the Japanese small side of medium, no surprise there, and it was a joy to write with, no hard starts, skips or dry ups. The size was a good proportion to the rest of the pen and the ornamentation was nicely done.
Conclusion: Sailor’s impressive reputation for fit, finish and nib performance has been confirmed with me. I owned a 1911 model for a little while but it didn’t get much use and I’m not sure why. I’m wishing now I would have kept it as I have grown close to this Pro Gear. I reach for it often in my current daily carry and I highly suspect you would pleased with one as well.
Thanks Massdrop for all your do for the writing community. You can read more of my pen and stationery ramblings over at mypenneedsink.com
Remember: Write something nice…