Customer Reviews

For the price, this pen is TOPS.

I actually picked this up locally from a San Francisco retailer but I thought I'd holler on Jetpens.com customers behalf, that they have a winner here.

Ergonomically, this could have a better grip, but its not a deal breaker nor do I find myself fatigued in its use. It looks much more expensive than its $ price tag suggests. The fit and finish is easily found on pens over twice as much.

Now for the writing - initially I hated this pen. HATED. It was finicky and wouldn't write on cheap paper. Sometimes it wouldn't write AT ALL. It skipped like a 5 yr old girl, etc.

After I PRIMED the pen however, it has been performing like a dream, laying down lines like Tony Montana. Smooth, dancing lines like a ballerina. This thing sings on my Moleskine, can't wait to try it on my Rhodias.

I'll be upgrading my fountain pen inventory soon, maybe a Sailor here, a Pelikan there....but I know right now this one will always be in heavy rotation. I picked up a converter from here, and will write a review after a few week's trial.

This pen is very nice! A little slippery to hold though, so not good for pen tricks, ha. My friend recommended it to me when I wanted to try out fountain pens for the first time. It's definitely beginner-friendly (as long as you're a responsible, sensible user) and ink cartridge installation is a breeze.

The ink itself flows pretty consistently, with very faint scratchiness if you write at extreme angles. Right now I'm using the original ink included in the pen (it comes with 2 cartridges in the body) and it's a nice solid black, though sometimes it comes out watery. But I think that's only because I dropped it once, and something came loose (it made a weird metal jingling noise whenever I shake it or tilt it now). Not to mention the nib became bent off-center so I had to gently use my fingers to maneuver it back into place. (It was surprisingly cooperative.) Before the fall, the ink flow was virtually perfect.

Though...funny thing is, I accidentally dropped it again a few days ago, and the jingling noise disappeared. Hopefully whatever it was fixed itself!

Overall, I'd rate this pen to be reliable, classy, and portable. I also like how it's a lot lighter than it looks, so my hand doesn't get tired when writing it. Treat it well (as in, better than I do) and it'll serve you faithfully.

Pretty good fountain pen for the price - body is a little slender for my tastes but thats really just my fault for not buying the Spirit (next purchase!). The Lapa actually has a FINE nib - almost Japanese FINE. So beware if you're used to European "fine" meaning Japanese "Medium"

I have this pen and love it. It is beautiful and makes an excellent every day writer. It is elegant enough for business and pleasure. I have the converter but have yet to use it. I have been writing with the Ohto ink cartridges and the pen writes every time. I will probably get another one to use with the converter.

I have 2 of these pens and have never had any trouble with them at all. I bought a converter and use Noodler's ink, and they write smoothly and steadily with no skips unless the ink level is very, very low. I can't comment on the ink that comes with the pens, as I didn't try it.

Oh, yes. Want me ANOTHER one of these! I've had one for just a day or so now (including note-taking in a 2-hour college class), and I'm SOLD. I was really just looking for an inexpensive "testbed" FP, really. Just an inexpensive pen that I could use just for test-driving different (bottled) inks. Yeah, I know--convert a four-dollar Platinum Preppy into an "eyedropper" or get a converter ($7-8) for the Preppy to allow it to suck ink. Well, the eyedropper conversion business is cute, but just for "testing," I don't need THAT big a reservoir, for one thing. And getting a converter for a Preppy turns your four-dollar Preppy into an ELEVEN-dollar Preppy, in case you hadn't noticed. That's the OTHER nice thing about the Ohto F-Lapa. It takes the short "international" standard cartridges (and comes WITH two of them), BUT the Ohto converter for it (at this writing) is only A BUCK SIXTY-FIVE. How cool is that?? Actually nice enough to be an "everyday" pen, but WITH A CONVERTER, it's <$20. It writes as well as my Lamy Safaris (= better than ANY Preppy). The F-Lapa is ALUMINUM, too, not plastic. Yes, it is slim, but nothing my fairly large hands couldn't get used to. No, it doesn't have the nice triangular "ergonomic grip" of the Lamy, either. But neither does a Preppy--or a zillion other FPs. How does it WRITE? Mine writes--PERFECTLY. Out of the gate. Er, bag. No priming, prepping, rinsing, nothing. Dump the two cartridges out out, snap on the converter, suck up a load of ink. Bam. Now, to be sure, I'm using Noodler's Black ink and I'm writing on non-cheap (90g Clairefontaine) paper, so YMMV, of course. Zip, zero, nada problems with the Fine nib. Not scratchy (as others have described), not "wet," I didn't have to "rotate" the pen and write upside down or off-angle, or do anything strange for it to write PERFECTLY. Starts up every time on the first stroke of the first character (Noodler's?), no skipping, no grief. Even the ($1.65) Ohto converter fills up nicely (good seal, good suction?), compared to others I've used. Just a sec--yep, it writes fine on deskjet paper and on Office Depot legal pads, too.

I love this pen!! i bought one for my grandson and he loves it so much!!

The primary thing to remember about this pen is that it's pretty and it's cheap. So anything else (good writing quality, etc.) is sort of a bonus. To that end, I haven't really had problems with mine skipping a lot; good ink makes a difference, also the tines needed to be spread just a bit. What I do take issue with, however, is how after about three weeks of use, the gold band around the middle has been tarnished. You might think a pen manufacturer would expect that area to be frequently touched... It's an ugly gray now, and though I'm still attached to my pen, I only wish that it had been better made. Could that be a problem with my pen individually? Other reviewers should give feedback.

Well worth the price...

I purchased two Spirits—one in the silver trim and one in the gold—with the intent of sending one to my friend in London. When I received them, I noticed that the nib was not aligned with the feed on the silver-trimmed Spirit. So I sent the gold trimmed pen to the UK , hoping it would be okay.

I had ink flow problems in the one I kept, which improved when I managed to align the nib and feed. However, having run three kinds of ink through it, there are still some minor problems with the ink flow, with the pen skipping on the down stroke.

My friend in England, though, says the pen works fine. In a letter, he wrote:

“This is my first test of the Ohto Spirit. It already feels great—easily the best pen I have tried so far. Am using the cartridge (I had sent him a converter too). It ‘fired up’ right out of the box. Writes perfectly…I really like the ‘feel’ of the pen, substantial but not to large or heavy. It has that elusive ‘heft’ you have talked about.”

I have to agree with the feel of the pen. Nib problems aside, I enjoy writing with this pen. If it didn’t look and feel so good I probably wouldn’t have been so determined to get the nib alignment right.

The only reason that I decided to give this pen two stars is because of the pen itself. The pen upon receiving wrote very well and very finely. I was actually thinking of ordering another. Later less than a month after purchase a big issue came about. When one was to remove the cap from the pen the entire nib, feed, cartridge, etc. came out. When removing the cap you were only left with the "writing part" and the barrel.
Yet the thing that disturbed me the most was the return policy of JetPens. "Items must be in brand new condition, unopened and have their original barcode sticker, original packaging, etc (if applicable) to qualify for a refund." The idea of returning something with all of it's original packaging is insane! How is one to even use the pen without writing with it???!!! Ink also cannot have been ever run through the pen! Due to this insane return policy I do not see ordering many other things from Jet Pens in the future!

GREAT pen for the price: nice feel, fine nib, nice looking, BUT it LEAKS into the cap! After a couple of months of daily use (it was nice enough, and affordable, so become the pen I carried with me every day) my hand is now stained with ink every time I use it. Too bad, I'll now have to prematurely retire it!

This is an awesome pen for the price, and one that I find myself reaching for very frequently because it writes so smoothly. Perfect ink flow every time, no skipping, no scratching. The look may not have the fit and finish of something ten times the price, but from a distance it's very elegant and the overall weight and balance are pleasing. I only deduct one star because the fine nib is in fact pretty broad.

I got mine in the mail today!! Hurriedly went and put ink to the converter and stuck it on the pen. At first, i was VERY dissapointed. The pen was writing horribly. It was very scartchy and skipped 80% of the time. I gave up after trying to getting it to write properly. I put it aside with the pen capped and nib down. After about 20 mins i tried it again and voila! It wrote like a dream with no skipping. I put on j herbin cafe des iles ink and i love it! This pen is my first non disposable fountain pen, ive been using platinum preppy and pilot petit 1 for half a year and i thought this pen would be worth a try, and it is! For only 16 dollars, this pen offers a lot. Sleek design and nicely etched nib and an aluminum barrel! Usually u can only get plastic barrelled f-pens with this amount of money! I highly recommend this awesome pen to fountain pen beginners :)

I just got his pen a few days ago and I am not very happy with it. The pen is very smooth and looks great and also feels great but it writes really thick. I don't think I was shipped the wrong pen as it is the FF-10F that I received. It is supposed to be a fine nib variant but this is not fine. It writes thicker than even my medium waterman (Japanese pens on the contrary are supposed to be thinner in a given category than european pens). Since my writing is relatively small I can not really use this pen much.

So I would suggest that if you are looking for a fine nib pen this is not for you. Otherwise the en writes really smooth and nice...

Inexpensive fountain pen that has more quality than reflected in the price. Pen has a solid feel to it and fits my hand without having to post the cap. I started mine off with a dose of Noodlers Highland Heather and it seems to like the ink now that it is worked in a bit. Would recommend as a starter or for those prone to losing pens.

Received mine today. Writes nicely. I'm still getting used to the very fine nib. I've used mostly medium nibs so I'm not sure if the slight scratchiness I feel is just to be expected with a nib the fine. Good ink flow, works well with a converter. A rather light weight pen but expected at the price. I think I'm going to like it just fine. Really can't beat it at the price.

Great fountain pen for the price. I fill it with Waterman Absolute Brown ink ans it writes wonderfull.Good deal!.The fine nib is smooth.

It writes lovely, but it is a pain to clean. This was my 4th fountian pen, so I'm not perfect. Still, I found that it was a royal pain to clean. Very hard to the ink regulator and nib off. But, it looks great! I would recommend it.

Was a bit leery when I received the pen as it had astrip of dried glue stuck to it & the metal part of the nib was out of line with the black plastic part of the feed underneath. However, it was easy to straighten & hasn't drifted out of alignment yet. It also writes beautifully and smoothly with the included black cartridge. Not the finest of the fine nibs -- by Japanese-manufactured standards -- but doesn't bleed where others do. Looks & performs like a pen costing at least double. Yet to try it with the Ohto adapter...

This is a perfect example of not having to spend a basket of money for a sharp looking pen that writes quite well!

I really love the sleek design of this pen, and it writes wet so you don't have to put much pressure on it, although when it runs out of ink you need to be rather patient. I find holding it upside down for 30 seconds or so works to keep the ink flowing (but that too might depend on the brand of ink). This pen works really well with its Ohto Converter and hasn't had a problem with bleeding or leaking. Overall a really great pen.

This is my first non-disposable fountain pen. I have been using this pen all semester to take notes and I love it. It writes fine and smooth, although can be a bit of a pain when it starts to run out of ink, but I don't think that could be considered a flaw, really. It's slick looking, the cap is nice, and the clip on the end is actually functional. Best $15 I've spent in a while.

I like finer lines and this one is about as thin as a fountain pen gets. Works fine with the OHTO converter and takes international cartridges; I've used both and it works fine. Can be a little scratchy when it's close to running out of ink but nothing extremely irritating.

I own the silver version of this pen and it writes surprinsingly well although it is certainly a very basic fountain pen. For fifteen bucks, it does the job and the cap and barrel's fit and finish are good.
Please note that on many OHTO fountain pens, the steel "iridium point Germany" nib is actually made in China and quality control isn't the best. Just because it says "Germany" does not mean that it is "Made in Germany." This fact has been documented by the famous pen repair and nib expert Richard Binder in a recent issue of Stylus magazine. Also, no one uses pure iridium anymore. It is way too rare and expensive. It must come from outer space (meteors/asteroids) and, if you do have an iridium tip on a vintage fountain pen--even an iridium-alloy--you are writing with stardust. Cool!
I wish the Chinese would just put "made in China" and be done with it. For goodness sake, China was the birthplace of paper and numerous other great inventions and ideas. I have deep respect for the Chinese man-on-the-street (the government has point-of-departure issues), and they have every right to be proud of their heritage. Unfortunately, a few bad products have gotten scores of others to be branded as cheap and inferior. Granted, although the OHTO nibs are sometimes poorly adjusted because of quality control issues, many Chinese manufactured nibs and fountain pens work well (the famous Hero, for example).
remeber to journal. It's good for you. Thanks JetPens!

Writes beautifully without skipping. Even if I put it down for a few minutes it starts writing again immediately without having to force it to work, a problem I experienced with the Ohto fine. The quality and feel doesn't stand up to the ohto fine, but I'll take performance over looks any day.