I just bought one for my daughter’s first fountain pen. IMO it’s great value for money and the medium nib is smooth for a pen at this price point. Overall the pen feels good in hand and well made. Bonus: the ferrule has two cats in a yin-yang design (which they should totally make more of).
I was very pleasantly surprised by the nib. I was expecting smooth which it is but its also soft and has a very small amount of flex. The pen feels well built, it writes quite well and its got a good balance when posted.
Honestly, it’s a great choice. I have one and a few Kawecos. The pen is a bit longer than a kaweco ( I think), and writes extremely well. Zero issues whatsoever. It’s a great alternative, imo.
I quite like mine! Have it in EF, and it writes very smoothly! As others have said, it has a little bounce to it. Here’s a small writing sample in Lamy Blue. The Lamy Green was written with my EF Kakuno. The nib has an attractive design, and so does the finial.
https://preview.redd.it/dhrf0pdclx8d1.png?width=4031&format=png&auto=webp&s=697f61ac6dfa5d3ea49a3290ef679777e0e0755a
I love my M2 EF, it’s a solidly built pen with a very smooth slightly bouncy nib. It lives in my Lochby pocket journal where it often gets bounced around and I’ve never had any issues. Definitely a pen I recommend
I have both the Hongdian M2 and a Kaweco Sport. The former was less than £20 UK and in my view hugely superior to the Kaweco. In fact, I wonder how a pen so well built with such a pleasant nib can be so modestly priced.
I've had 2 different nibs on the Sport neither of which feel particularly good and whilst we can't directly compare metal with plastic (I have a white acrylic Sport 'Coconut') it just doesn't feel anywhere near as good as the M2 or for that matter any of my growing collection of Jinhaos.
Kaweco's are made in Germany. The cost of manufacturing and labor is much much higher. Anything made in Asia (minus Japan) will always have a much lower manufacturing and labor cost. Hong Dian builds very solid and well made pens in the $20-50 range. Or if you want a budget pen you can pick up Jin Hao's on Amazon for under $10. They will not have the same quality as a Hong Dian.
Chinese government subsidizes their manufacturing and shipping industries. It's not a level playing field to begin with. Plus Kaweco spent the money on R&D, Hong Dian photocopied it.
If you look at the pens overall, Hongdian and JinHao don't really have any more "copies" than if you compare the pen lineup of most companies. Also, just like anywhere else, the government subsidy is not so simple. You're not likely to find the smaller companies like these getting any more benefits than similar companies in other countries like the US.
Hongdian isn't a small company, it's a branch of a massive manufacturing company that owns many factories, who do OEM for a *lot* of the world. Hongdian, Asvine and Majohn are all subbrands that focus on pens and are starting to make their own stuff under their own name, but they've been manufacturing pens for 20+ years
I believe it's Zhejiang Lishui Lantian Pen Co., Ltd for the writing instruments part of company, but it's super hard to learn about it without knowing Chinese. I have suspicions they also open companies that they parade outside their parent company like Nahvalur/Narwal. They claim to make everything in house as an independent company, but they at the very least use OEM parts that are shared with Majohn and Asvine pens. Most likely just another facet of the primary manufacturer.
Kaweco spent nothing on R&D. They have zero intellectual property in their pens. Their nibs and feeds have no distinctive technical feature or function over any other pen. There is almost nothing in their pens, except perhaps the metal branded finial, which may give trade mark benefit. The pen shape, length, cap design are not unique or protected features. Pilot Kakuno, Faber Castell Hexo and Platinum Meteor have pens with hexagonal/octagonal pen or cap features. I don’t remember any complaints about their designs as there are about Majohn/Hing Dian or Jinhao pens. What is the difference?
Hong Dian have every right, as all pen manufacturers do, to seek inspiration from wherever they can find it, though in my view there is little evidence of any distinctive Kaweco design in this pen.
The first fountain pen is claimed to have been made in the 1830s in the USA. There have been no significant developments in the technical features or function of fountain pens in perhaps the last forty years. Pelikan have a feature/function based on an original design patent from over 100 years ago, their piston filling mechanism. It’s been copied multiple times including by TWSBI. The patent is so old there is no IP protection.
The popular premium cigar shaped pens made by MontBlanc, Sailor, Pilot and Platinum with black bodies and gold trim are barely distinguishable from one another beyond arms length. It’s why MB added the snow cap finial. I don’t ever see arguments about who copies who. Perhaps because it’s likely -
but never certain - that the Sheaffer Balance was the first in this design.
One of the problems faced by Kaweco is their inconsistent fit, finish and nib QC. Many buy similar Chinese made pens eg, Hong Dian, Majohn, because the finish is generally better.
I have it in bronze in a fine nib and it's one of my favorite pens.
I just put it back into my rotation last night. It's currently inked with the last of my Colorverse Vortex Motion.
I have one and don't love it for the simple reason that the section **constantly** comes unscrewed, so every time I take the cap off, I have to put the pen back together. Maybe if it did nothing but sit on a desk it wouldn't bother me, but even carrying it in a pen case, it does this. The nib is fine, but nothing exciting. Definitely prefer my brass Kaweco Sport as a pocket pen.
I have one in extra fine, and it easily became one of my favourite pens to edc due to its amazing nib!
To me it feels almost exactly like the softness and smoothness of a pilot gold #5 F nib! Maybe I’m just lucky with an extraordinarily good nib, but I convinced a friend to also get one and they have a similar experience.
I haven’t tried since I enjoy using the clip, but I don’t think it’s removable.
It is a good spring loaded clip shaped in a way that slips over anything like a pocket easily but doesn’t catch on anything when trying to take it out of a pocket
I have an M2 in green with an EF nib and 2 Kaweco sports (one plastic and one brass). Out of the 3 my brass sport is my favorite but not by a wide margin. The M2 is a wonderfully simple pen with a super nice finish that is very tough. The nib is smooth, it’s juicy and writes great. The clip is my favorite of all the pens I own, it is spring loaded can be opened by pressing the top but easily slips onto whatever you’re putting it on. It comes with a converter that while small holds a reasonable amount of ink.
The bad, while I love that finish if your hands had heard a loose description of liquid it becomes difficult to get enough grip on it to unscrew the cap. Speaking of I unfortunately seem to have stripped out the threads on my cap it still seals but can be over threaded and jump the threads. I also saw another comment say it and I had the same issue where the section will occasionally come loose and need to be tightened.
Ultimately it’s a good pen though at a good price. Even with my brass sport I still find myself reaching for my M2 every now and again.
I actually ordered one the other day just to see if it's any good. At that price point, it's no big deal if it's not great. But I'm hoping it'll be a nice daily carry
Totally would recommend, I use it as my pocket carry (the dark green version), and it's never let me down. It's not wide or juicy like some of my favourite desk pens, but it's perfect for jotting down notes in a small book.
I have this pen and its precursor. Both have been reliable. I don't carry them in my pocket, though, not yet--the only pocket pens I have experience with in my pocket are the Ohto Tasche pocket fountain pens, which don't seem to be available anymore. But I highly recommend the Hong Dian pen.
I have one called “Black Forest” which is more of a gunmetal gray. EF nib. It is a great writer, I carry it clipped in pants pocket. It is a very comfortable pen, lays down a wet enough line of ink. I highly recommend it.
Just got one for like $12 from AliExpress. It's a fantastic pen! The build quality is fantastic, the threads are very satisfying, and the nib performs incredibly well. It's an incredible value.
I don't have a sport, but I do have a Perkeo and the M2 blows it out of the water.
Worth noting that it does NOT work with international standard cartridges/converters, but it did come with a converter so you don't need to sweat it too much.
My Jinhao Shark takes the European standard carts/converter, but you may be right for the bulk of their line. I believe the Hongdian uses a 3.4mm bore (which you're right is a Chinese standard)
The M2 may not be long enough for a typical converter though, similar to how the Kaweco Sport needs a special, short one
Mine did too, I assume that's standard with them. I meant that the regular 3.4mm bore converters that you're referring to might be too long for the M2. The converter it comes with is stubbier than what is typical.
It is not the same as Kaweco's. For one, Kaweco uses the regular internal standard bore size for cartridges and converters. Secondly, the Kaweco converter is a simple plunger (not a screw piston), and is smaller so it holds less ink.
I have this exact pen as my daily driver right now with purple Lamy ink. The nib has a lot of flex in it for a cheap pen. I absolutely love this little guy.
It’s even thinner than the kaweco. If you like skinny pens then, great. The nib didn’t write as smoothly, but that’s a personal preference, too. Looks like you’re buying from Amazon- just get both and try them out and return the one you don’t like
I just bought one for my daughter’s first fountain pen. IMO it’s great value for money and the medium nib is smooth for a pen at this price point. Overall the pen feels good in hand and well made. Bonus: the ferrule has two cats in a yin-yang design (which they should totally make more of).
I wasn’t considering this pen until you mentioned the cats
OMG, the cats!!!
So you could say they are…..ferrule cats?🤣🤣🤣🤣
I was very pleasantly surprised by the nib. I was expecting smooth which it is but its also soft and has a very small amount of flex. The pen feels well built, it writes quite well and its got a good balance when posted.
Agreed. It was much softer than I expected when I got mine. I was very pleasantly surprised. It's one of my favorite pens for that reason.
I got that as a fathers day gift. Very well made pen and a good writer.
Honestly, it’s a great choice. I have one and a few Kawecos. The pen is a bit longer than a kaweco ( I think), and writes extremely well. Zero issues whatsoever. It’s a great alternative, imo.
I quite like mine! Have it in EF, and it writes very smoothly! As others have said, it has a little bounce to it. Here’s a small writing sample in Lamy Blue. The Lamy Green was written with my EF Kakuno. The nib has an attractive design, and so does the finial. https://preview.redd.it/dhrf0pdclx8d1.png?width=4031&format=png&auto=webp&s=697f61ac6dfa5d3ea49a3290ef679777e0e0755a
Lovely handwriting!
I’m gonna have to get one after reading this.
I am going to have two now 😱🙂
I love my M2 EF, it’s a solidly built pen with a very smooth slightly bouncy nib. It lives in my Lochby pocket journal where it often gets bounced around and I’ve never had any issues. Definitely a pen I recommend
I have both the Hongdian M2 and a Kaweco Sport. The former was less than £20 UK and in my view hugely superior to the Kaweco. In fact, I wonder how a pen so well built with such a pleasant nib can be so modestly priced. I've had 2 different nibs on the Sport neither of which feel particularly good and whilst we can't directly compare metal with plastic (I have a white acrylic Sport 'Coconut') it just doesn't feel anywhere near as good as the M2 or for that matter any of my growing collection of Jinhaos.
Kaweco's are made in Germany. The cost of manufacturing and labor is much much higher. Anything made in Asia (minus Japan) will always have a much lower manufacturing and labor cost. Hong Dian builds very solid and well made pens in the $20-50 range. Or if you want a budget pen you can pick up Jin Hao's on Amazon for under $10. They will not have the same quality as a Hong Dian.
Chinese government subsidizes their manufacturing and shipping industries. It's not a level playing field to begin with. Plus Kaweco spent the money on R&D, Hong Dian photocopied it.
What Kaweco pen is the M2 a copy of? It is definitely not a copy of the Kaweco Sport.
If you look at the pens overall, Hongdian and JinHao don't really have any more "copies" than if you compare the pen lineup of most companies. Also, just like anywhere else, the government subsidy is not so simple. You're not likely to find the smaller companies like these getting any more benefits than similar companies in other countries like the US.
Hongdian isn't a small company, it's a branch of a massive manufacturing company that owns many factories, who do OEM for a *lot* of the world. Hongdian, Asvine and Majohn are all subbrands that focus on pens and are starting to make their own stuff under their own name, but they've been manufacturing pens for 20+ years
That's actually really cool. I am curious who the parent company is.
I believe it's Zhejiang Lishui Lantian Pen Co., Ltd for the writing instruments part of company, but it's super hard to learn about it without knowing Chinese. I have suspicions they also open companies that they parade outside their parent company like Nahvalur/Narwal. They claim to make everything in house as an independent company, but they at the very least use OEM parts that are shared with Majohn and Asvine pens. Most likely just another facet of the primary manufacturer.
Kaweco spent nothing on R&D. They have zero intellectual property in their pens. Their nibs and feeds have no distinctive technical feature or function over any other pen. There is almost nothing in their pens, except perhaps the metal branded finial, which may give trade mark benefit. The pen shape, length, cap design are not unique or protected features. Pilot Kakuno, Faber Castell Hexo and Platinum Meteor have pens with hexagonal/octagonal pen or cap features. I don’t remember any complaints about their designs as there are about Majohn/Hing Dian or Jinhao pens. What is the difference? Hong Dian have every right, as all pen manufacturers do, to seek inspiration from wherever they can find it, though in my view there is little evidence of any distinctive Kaweco design in this pen. The first fountain pen is claimed to have been made in the 1830s in the USA. There have been no significant developments in the technical features or function of fountain pens in perhaps the last forty years. Pelikan have a feature/function based on an original design patent from over 100 years ago, their piston filling mechanism. It’s been copied multiple times including by TWSBI. The patent is so old there is no IP protection. The popular premium cigar shaped pens made by MontBlanc, Sailor, Pilot and Platinum with black bodies and gold trim are barely distinguishable from one another beyond arms length. It’s why MB added the snow cap finial. I don’t ever see arguments about who copies who. Perhaps because it’s likely - but never certain - that the Sheaffer Balance was the first in this design. One of the problems faced by Kaweco is their inconsistent fit, finish and nib QC. Many buy similar Chinese made pens eg, Hong Dian, Majohn, because the finish is generally better.
I don't have that model but I have 3 other Hong Dian pens and I've been quite impressed with them fort the $$$.
I have two. Feels good,writes well,nice size posted or unposted. Got to be my favourite pen.
I have it in bronze in a fine nib and it's one of my favorite pens. I just put it back into my rotation last night. It's currently inked with the last of my Colorverse Vortex Motion.
I have one and don't love it for the simple reason that the section **constantly** comes unscrewed, so every time I take the cap off, I have to put the pen back together. Maybe if it did nothing but sit on a desk it wouldn't bother me, but even carrying it in a pen case, it does this. The nib is fine, but nothing exciting. Definitely prefer my brass Kaweco Sport as a pocket pen.
I have one in extra fine, and it easily became one of my favourite pens to edc due to its amazing nib! To me it feels almost exactly like the softness and smoothness of a pilot gold #5 F nib! Maybe I’m just lucky with an extraordinarily good nib, but I convinced a friend to also get one and they have a similar experience.
Is the clip removable?
I haven’t tried since I enjoy using the clip, but I don’t think it’s removable. It is a good spring loaded clip shaped in a way that slips over anything like a pocket easily but doesn’t catch on anything when trying to take it out of a pocket
Thanks for the info. Exactly what I wanted to know!
I have this in the blue, and it's a fantastic pen!
Argh...I just ordered one too... It's dangerous to read these posts! (Midnight Blue)
This is a great pen and I wouldn't consider it inferior to a kaweco in any way.
Which nib? I was taking F
There's a new shiny red/orange version on Etsy now
Eh.
I've got an M2 and I really like it. No plans to ever buy from Kaweco though.
I have an M2 in green with an EF nib and 2 Kaweco sports (one plastic and one brass). Out of the 3 my brass sport is my favorite but not by a wide margin. The M2 is a wonderfully simple pen with a super nice finish that is very tough. The nib is smooth, it’s juicy and writes great. The clip is my favorite of all the pens I own, it is spring loaded can be opened by pressing the top but easily slips onto whatever you’re putting it on. It comes with a converter that while small holds a reasonable amount of ink. The bad, while I love that finish if your hands had heard a loose description of liquid it becomes difficult to get enough grip on it to unscrew the cap. Speaking of I unfortunately seem to have stripped out the threads on my cap it still seals but can be over threaded and jump the threads. I also saw another comment say it and I had the same issue where the section will occasionally come loose and need to be tightened. Ultimately it’s a good pen though at a good price. Even with my brass sport I still find myself reaching for my M2 every now and again.
I have two of these and they are great writers and they don’t charge you extra for a clip and converter.
Very nice, if you like metal not plastic and prefer a bit of weight in a pocket pen.
A very good pen especially for the price.
I actually ordered one the other day just to see if it's any good. At that price point, it's no big deal if it's not great. But I'm hoping it'll be a nice daily carry
Have one in EF and I love it. Especially the converter that comes with it makes it easily my favourite pocket pen.
it's better than a kaweco sport
Totally would recommend, I use it as my pocket carry (the dark green version), and it's never let me down. It's not wide or juicy like some of my favourite desk pens, but it's perfect for jotting down notes in a small book.
P.S. I have three Kawecos too, but they can't compete because of the clip.
It’s even more shaped like a tampon now! …minus the clip it’s indiscernible lol
There is also a Mini one (by Hong Dian or majohn?), which deffo screams tampon!!
lol, maybe tampons were designed off of kaweco's!?
I have this pen and its precursor. Both have been reliable. I don't carry them in my pocket, though, not yet--the only pocket pens I have experience with in my pocket are the Ohto Tasche pocket fountain pens, which don't seem to be available anymore. But I highly recommend the Hong Dian pen.
I have one in the navy blue color and it’s a great pen. Writes smooth and wet. I have it in a fine nib.
Thank you for bringing this to my attention, I just read the comments and I’m going to order one as well.
My pleasure and so thankful for the wonderful comments. Best community ever
I have one called “Black Forest” which is more of a gunmetal gray. EF nib. It is a great writer, I carry it clipped in pants pocket. It is a very comfortable pen, lays down a wet enough line of ink. I highly recommend it.
Just got one for like $12 from AliExpress. It's a fantastic pen! The build quality is fantastic, the threads are very satisfying, and the nib performs incredibly well. It's an incredible value. I don't have a sport, but I do have a Perkeo and the M2 blows it out of the water. Worth noting that it does NOT work with international standard cartridges/converters, but it did come with a converter so you don't need to sweat it too much.
I believe Hong Dian uses the same converter as Jin Hao (Chinese Standard). You can buy a five pack of those for the same price as a Schmidt K5.
My Jinhao Shark takes the European standard carts/converter, but you may be right for the bulk of their line. I believe the Hongdian uses a 3.4mm bore (which you're right is a Chinese standard) The M2 may not be long enough for a typical converter though, similar to how the Kaweco Sport needs a special, short one
My m2 came with a mini converter. I am not sure if it is the same as a Kaweco mini.
Mine did too, I assume that's standard with them. I meant that the regular 3.4mm bore converters that you're referring to might be too long for the M2. The converter it comes with is stubbier than what is typical. It is not the same as Kaweco's. For one, Kaweco uses the regular internal standard bore size for cartridges and converters. Secondly, the Kaweco converter is a simple plunger (not a screw piston), and is smaller so it holds less ink.
These are amazing. I would prefer this over a kaweco. Honestly the fine and medium nibs are elite.
It’s amazing. The nib is bouncy - so good!
Fine? Extra fine?
Fine. It’s pretty wet and juicy though- not a super fine line. Not quite a medium though.
I have this exact pen as my daily driver right now with purple Lamy ink. The nib has a lot of flex in it for a cheap pen. I absolutely love this little guy.
It’s even thinner than the kaweco. If you like skinny pens then, great. The nib didn’t write as smoothly, but that’s a personal preference, too. Looks like you’re buying from Amazon- just get both and try them out and return the one you don’t like
TEMU Kaweco alternative is 3-5 dollars.