Customer Reviews

This is great pen for those who use a fountain pen for everyday writing and note-taking. It is smooth, not too light and the ink fares well on a variety of papers. At this price, it is hard to imagine a better everyday pen.

I journal with this pen and what I like about it most is the shade of the blue black ink ( a beautiful medium blue,really) and the expressive variations in the width of the line. It is exactly what I like to see in script written with a fountain pen. Very pleasing. The light weight of the pen is easy on my hands. I can wright for a long time with this pen. The ink flow is perfect for fast writing too. It is perfect. I will be trying other ink colors.

I like it... but if you shake it it spews ink. and sometimes it doesn't write

yaaay! it works like the most awesomest pen i have ever used!! i love everything about it!

Can't get any better than this

After purchasing the Platinum “Preppy” fountain pen, I also bought the Sailor Ink Pen.

Ink flow of the Sailor Ink Pen is good. The problem lies with the very smooth flowing Sailor ink instead (as with other very smooth flowing ink like Aurora). The ink tends to spread into thicker line and also exhibits tendency to bleed through some types of writing paper.

Richard F. Binder wrote in his website that "Inks that flow too well often tend to feather or bleed, especially on cheap papers, and this sort of excessive flow lowers an ink’s score."
Source : http://www.richardspens.com/?page=main.htm

Now I get to see what Richard F. Binder meant by his words above. Ink that flows well is good enough, it does not need to be very smooth flowing.

Since the Sailor (and Aurora) ink needs certain sort of good quality paper, this restricts my application of this ink as I cannot always dictate the quality of paper accessible to me.

The nib is without pellet at the tip. This makes the Sailor Ink Pen “scratchy” on the paper.

The above problems do not happen to the Platinum “Preppy” fountain pen.

The Platinum ink is more water-resistant than Sailor ink and the Platinum ink does not bleed through paper as much as the Sailor ink.

The nib of the Platinum “Preppy” is pelleted to give a smooth writing experience.

An additional spring-loaded cone is inside the pen-cap of the Platinum “Preppy” to provide additional seal to the nib-section. This slows down evaporation of the ink. Intelligent design for even a cheap pen ! No such thought is put into the pen-cap of the Sailor Ink Pen.

Verdict : Platinum “Preppy” and Platinum ink are superior than Sailor Ink Pen and Sailor ink.

The Platinum Preppy is, without a doubt, the best inexpensive fountain pen for the money. Its nib is superior to the Pilot Varsity/Vpen nib. Also, forget about using an eye-dropper! Attach the excellent Platinum piston converter and fill the pen from a bottle. Granted, the converter costs more than the fountain pen, but it's an investment in convenience for using a wide variety of bottled inks and for cleaning (flushing the nib & feed with cool, tap water).
Another "plus" regarding the Preppy, the nib & feed can be easily removed from the barrel for additional, thorough cleaning (hold the nib with thumb on metal top and forefinger on feed, hold the barrel with the other hand and gently twist back and forth--almost like unscrewing something, while pulling the nib & rod-like feed out. The finned collector will remain in the barrel ).
Please note that the Pilot Varsity (medium nib) and Pilot Vpen (basically the same pen but with fine nib for Japanese market) hold more ink because the entire barrel is filled like an old-fashioned eye-dropper filler, but it is not very easy to remove the nib & feed because the pens weren't designed to be reusable. One must be careful not to damage the nib when it is pulled out. It is relatively difficult to do because of the gasket. I have used special pen repair pliers ($25) to do this successfully, but it's not worth the effort since the Platinum Preppy is a much better alternative and reusability is part of its design.

It's ok... Varsity is better

Dollar for dollar, the Platinum Preppy is the best fountain pen value out there. It makes a great daily writer you can use anywhere. It would make a good first fountain pen for anyone, young or not so young. If it is lost, broken or stolen, you can easily replace it without breaking the bank, or your heart.

The pen itself is about the size and weight of a Pelikan Future. The cap and barrel are made of clear plastic. The plastic derby and clip are colored to indicate the color ink which comes with the pen. The nib, which bears some resemblance to a Lamy Safari nib, only smaller, is coated with a material colored to indicate the color ink. There is an inner cap which is pressed over the nib by a spring, thereby preventing the pen from drying out.

It is a disposable pen which is easily reusable. It disassembles just like any other fountain pen which uses a cartridge / converter refill system. It uses Platinum cartridges as well as the Platinum converter found on this website. I purchased a converter and can attest that it fits, but I haven't used it as of yet. The cartridges are so sturdy that I have been using a syringe to refill the one I received with the pen with ink from a bottle. The end which you plug into the pen is sealed with a little metal ball. Once you plug it in, it rolls around in the cartridge, breaking up the surface tension of the ink (much like the spring in the short Parker converter), promoting smooth ink flow. If I'm careful, the cartridge could last for a year or two. Maybe longer.

The first Preppy I purchased had a 0.3 nib. Initially, the nib was a bit scratchy. (Not unusual for even fine nibbed pens which cost much much more.) But before I had finished the first cartridge, it was writing smoothly. I liked it so much, I bought three others in different colors. Two have the 0.3 nibs and the third has the 0.5 nib. They all wrote smoothly from the first stroke.

When you install the cartridge, hold the section with the nib pointing down. I believe the ink in these cartridges is under pressure as almost instantly you'll see some ink appear in the feed. It probably won't be enough to start writing. If not, just shake it up and down a few times. You'll hear the metal ball rattle and more ink should flow into the feed. Try writing. It should flow evenly. No blotches or dry spots.

After using my first pen fairly regularly for about four months, I can say I really like it. The paint on the nib has worn off a little, but it continues to write well.

If Platinum makes a pen this good for $3, I'll have to save my pennies for one of their fine writing pens.

I just bought this pen and am waiting for it to come in the mail. It usually takes about 1-2 days to get to me and I've ordered many times from jetpens. I read an article saying you can refill platinum preppy fountain pens with regular bottled inks by just adding an o-ring to the threads of the barrel. I am currently in love with the j. herbin and pilot iroshizuku bottled inks and am waiting on my glass pens and the platinum preppy pens to test them out. I am definitely looking forward to receiving these pens in the mail. I only wish bottled inks were cheaper... $22.50 for a bottle of iroshizuku is really taxing my wallet. overall, great buy though!

Good pen for this price. But don't use standard Platinum ink cartridges with it.
I tried Preppys with standard Platinum ink, then with brush cartridges (...products_id/1973) and with carbon ink cartridges (...products_id/3462).
In my opinion it is good pen only with two last. Smooth, non dries without cap for 10-15 minutes. And price (for carbon ink) is the same. Brush ink darker and smoother. It is the best one for Preppy pen.

I love this pen and I wasn't really expecting much from what amounts to be a disposable fountain pen. Its write very smoothly, even more so than the Lamy All Star that I purchased with it. I definitely recommend this pen.

It might just be the pen I got, but for long bits of writing, the nib would start to dry out, and I'd have to wait a bit for the ink to catch up. I love the colored nib and pen design and size, but the cap was too tight for the pen? It was difficult to pull off, and one evening, the plastic on the end of the cap cracked when I tried to put the cap back on, so it doesn't have that SNAP lock anymore. Fortunately, there's a separate plastic spring-mounted cover in the tip of the cap that keeps the nib covered and moist, so the cracked cap is just an annoyance instead of a problem. Still, I like my preppy fountain pen, and I'd like to get a few other colors next time I buy pens/refills here.

i hate this pen way to much ink comes out when u write

how does the pen work? i got the pen and the refill separate but i dont know how to put it together.

Please restock!

Bought the pen because it was the only one that was 1. $3 and 2. had no negative reviews.
It came with a 2.25" ink cartridge it ran out after about 50 full pages of notes in 3 days for me because your hands never ever get tired... i don't know why...
never bleeds, never leaked, it gets dry if you leave it out uncapped for like a minute, but i'm guessing the drying issue is universal to fountain pens. I learned to just tap the table once before starting to write again and the dryness can be avoided.
Love the fine point; I can't imagine getting a european brand pen, and finding out that their "fine point" is really a "medium point" thickness... For this pen, it says 0.3mm, but realistically, it is about 0.5mm on paper, which is PERFECT.

Absolutely flawless.
Better than any pencil and pen I have ever used. (Dr.Grip, and alpha grip combined)
The fact that I have to change the cartridge frequently motivates me because it tells me that I'm doing a lot of work (unlike other ball point pens where the ink never, ever, ever runs out...)

Contemplating on whether to get a converter.
I absolutely love this pen, I am scared to get any other pens =\.

I converted all my Preppys to dropper fill just as jetpens suggests. I love these pens. Never once have they given me any trouble. No leaks. I've taken them on airplanes to China and they were fantastic. I have four filled with Noodlers ink: black 05, blue 03, whaler's brown 05, black 03.

It writes like a dream but the barrel and cap are made from weak, brittle plastic. I've been very careful with mine and both the top of the body and the bottom of the cap have developed cracks. This is my second Preppy, which I got to replace the first one that had the same issue.

I know it's only a $3 pen, but I still expect it to not fall apart after a few months of easy desktop use, especially after buying the $8 converter. It's a shame too, because the fine nib writes like a dream, much smoother than many of my "real" fountain pens.

The Platinum Preppys are the best pen for $3 you will ever buy*. If you have ever wanted to try out a fountain pen, the Preppy is a great way to do it. At that price you cant get hurt much if you don't like it.

jeff stiefer

* For a full-sized cheap pen. I actually prefer the Pilot Petit (sold here at jetpens) but its a small pen and my not be good for big hands

For $3.30 I ordered these along with another pen. Just for kicks I thought I'd give it a run. I was totally impressed. the ink flow was silky smooth, almost like writing with a felt tip. The lines are broad for a Japanese pen. I plan to order a couple more to hold colored inks.

Best $3 pen of any kind I own.

I completely disagree with the comment below. This is the most amazing fountain pen. One I put in the cartridge, the ink flowed easily and freely. The ink is beautiful and vibrant. I bought a refill and now I\'m back to buy more because of how frequently I use this pen. I took it with me to a convention along with another bag of pens. This pen fascinated me so much I ended up blowing through 2 cartridges. This is a must buy. At the $, this pen is a great price and quality.

A nice economical FP, writes very well with a smooth flow. If you don\'t write with it for a few days it does tends to dry at the nib but a second of scribbling brings it right back. Definitely recommended for a reliable everyday FP and as a great starting pen. For the $ this is a fine work horse. The purple is a very rich color, more on the violet side but still easy on the eyes.

The barrel cracked along the seam within days of receiving one of these pens...Very poor quality plastic...but when these pens do not crack they are great, they have a very nice nib and are easily converted for barrel fill to use with Noodler's Inks...It would be great if the company that makes these would put more effort into the quality of the plastic especially at the seam.

Love this pen. I got the medium point and the fine point (both black ink) and I love the way they write. The converter really lets you use any ink you like so these pens are the perfect fountain pens for newbies, but also great for students or those that want a pen to use for quick notes, etc.