Is there a better online company than Goulet Pens? Their service is simply amazing. No, it’s unbelievable. I ordered a $15 pen from them. This is what I got in the mail today.
The Pilot Metropolitan came in the typical (as in nice) Pilot box. They also sent me a business card, a bookmark, and a lollipop. A lollipop… can you believe it? And Alex wrote a nice note, in impeccable handwriting, and he used Noodlers 54th Massachusetts ink, the new bulletproof ink that Nathan Tardiff has brewed up. All this and I only bought a $15 pen. Thanks Goulet Pens. You are the online seller to which all others are compared.
Comparison between Lamy Al-Star (top), Pilot Metropolitan, and Pilot Prera (bottom)
So, with lollipop in mouth, I opened up my Pilot Metropolitan. It came with a Pilot CON-20 “squeeze” converter and a cartridge. I’m not a fan of these rubber converters and didn’t have a CON-50 on hand but I did have some empty cartridges so I filled one with Noodler’s Lexington Gray, my favorite sketching ink, and the pen was ready to go.
Everyone is talking about these pens, saying they’re a lot of bang for the buck. My go to sketching pen is a Pilot Prera (F) because I love its fine line and great features. Sometimes, though, I need a slightly thicker line in some sketches and I thought the Metropolitan might serve that purpose as it is a Pilot medium nib which is similar to a Lamy fine nib. I was right.
Posted it’s just slightly longer than my posted Pilot Prera.
The pen balances well even when posted and it’s comfortable in my hand. Before now, I’ve used Lamy Safaris when I needed a thicker line. They’re fine but they’re sufficiently different from the Prera in balance and size that I don’t like switching between them. The Metropolitan makes this switch much easier.
In my opinion, this pen lives up to all the laudatory things that have been said about it. It looks good and it’s smooth, at least on Rhodia notepad paper and my Stillman & Birn sketchbooks. I don’t know how Pilot can produce such quality for $15 but I’m sure glad they did. I drew this little sketch in a Stillman & Birn Alpha sketchbook (4×6) to let you see how the Metropolitan pen lines look in a simple sketch.
Nice surprise first this morning with my cup of coffee reading about this new pen!! Looks like another order gonna be made here real soon! Thank you for the write-up. And great sketch!!
It’s hard to go too far wrong over a $15 pen but this one is definitely a winner. It’s not as fine as I typically like but for many it’s as fine as they’d ever use. And it sure is well-made. I’ll probably add the CON-50 to mine and that will make it a $20 pen but still pretty cheap.
Cheers — Larry
Thanks for the info, Larry. Its always interesting to have reports on other pens and stores. As you say, Goulets is a great online store. They also have an extremely interesting website full of useful tips. My only hesitation in purchasing from them is the delivery charges. I guess its not their fault; its the way the US postal system works. In my experience, a $15 pen would cost around $9 in delivery. True, there’s no tax, but it makes you hesitate or consider a larger order.
All the best for the new year.
Your view that a $15 pen costing $9 to ship causes you to hesitate to consider a larger order is interesting. My view, for several decades of ordering from the US, is exactly the opposite. I rarely order just one thing because of the shipping costs. But the thing is, if you add a bottle of Noodler’s ink ($12.50) to that $15 pen, you’ll still only pay $9 to ship it, and the shipping costs are thus smaller relative to the purchase price.
That aside, maybe you have great local sources for stuff. I don’t. I can buy that bottle of Noodler’s ink, as long as I’m willing to pay $17 for it and willing to wait for it to be special ordered for me. I can buy the $15 pen as long as I’m willing to pay $30 for it. So, that bottle of ink and pen, even with $9 shipping, starts looking pretty darn good to me (grin). But truth is, most of the time, the stuff I want is simply not available to me unless I’m willing to order from one of the pen companies.
Cheers — Larry
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Agree completely about Goulet Pens service! They’re terrific!
FYI…Alex is a she, not a he, and unfortunately, she’s left the company.
Thanks, Stan. I had heard that Alex had left the company. Didn’t know that he was a she (grin).
Cheers — Larry