Customer Reviews

According the Sailor website, this pen is made in Japan. The body is made of light plastic so I'm a bit worried about how long it's going to last knowing how often I drop things. With the ink cartridge inside, the pen feels marginally more substantial, but not by much. Although this is a “cheap” fountain pen, I appreciate the fact that the cap is screw-on - it only takes two flicks of the wrist to secure the cap in place. This means I can take it with me when I travel and not worry about ink leaking everywhere. In comparison to the LAMY Safari, the Sailor definitely feels inferior - perhaps this has something to do with the weight.

The nib (Fine) is definitely wet. If you look closely at the writing sample you’ll see that the nib creates a gradient of ink depending on how long you’ve been pressing it. Also, after only a day of use, there are ink spots or droplets on the nib. The only other complaint I have is that the pen tends to skip at the beginning of capital letters like “I” or “H”, most likely because I’m pressing too hard or because the nib is at a right angle (?). The upside to the nib being wet is, of course, I can leave the pen uncapped for a minute or so without any effect on the flow.

If you have $20 to spend on a fun, cheerful pen, just get it. It will brighten up your pen collection. Since it's that time of year, I also suggest giving this as a stocking-stuffer - your writing aficionado recipient will be quite pleased. After using the pen for a few days, I can tell I'm definitely going to be reaching for it quite often.

What a impressive pen. When I first received it I was a little concerned because it felt a little cheap. That is, comparing it to the feel of a Safari it didn't feel as well constructed. But then again there is $8-$10 difference. Then I put the blue/black cartridge in and took it for a test drive. All of my concern was ripped away. This fountain pen is awesome. I guess I forgot that sailor (the king of fountain pen nibs) was behind the product. I think it is every bit as good of a writer as any one of the 8 safari's I own. I keep comparing those two pens because I think they fit the same market. I usually don't like to write with the cap posted but I found that fro me was the better way to go with this pen. It is a little light without it. But posted the pen is very well balanced. If you are looking for a fountain pen that won't break your heart if you loose it, have kids you want to introduce the fountain pen world to, are an adult and want to get into writing with fountain pens, or just looking to add another unique pen to your collection this is a wonderful choice. I haven't tried to fill the barrel with bottle ink yet but I believe that is the only solution unless you want to use the cartridges they designed for this pen. I am not anticipating it will cause a problem. Even sticking with the cartridges wouldn't be a deal breaker. They have a few fun colors and the blue/black the pen comes with is great and I also used the reddish/brown (purchased separately) and really enjoy both of the colors.

Wow - hard to believe this inexpensive pen writes almost identically to my $200+ Sailor Pro Gear. Great value - I may have to collect the entire set!

When I got this pen, I thought "fine," meant it would write like the HighAce Neo. I was wrong.

Here is a list of nibs Sailor puts in their pens:
Sailor Clear Candy: F-2
Sailor HighAce Neo: F-4
Sailor Desk Pen (extra fine): F-9 (EF) [You could probably ink a love-letter on a single piece of oatmeal with this.]

While I was surprised by the thicker nib, it is still what I would consider a "fine," point and it writes quite nicely. If you have a Lamy Safari, as I do, it would sit at about F-1 in the Sailor scale (you definitely get a slightly thicker and wetter line with the Safari). For me, the finer is the better - so the Clear Candy is now my carry-everywhere general pen; something I have been hesitant about using the Sailor HighAce Neo for due to its smaller size and thinner plastic shell.

Some other pluses:
*The fat body makes for comfortable long-term writing and note-taking and the non-notched barrel is nice.
*Clear! The HighAce Neo could have always used a window... but forget the puny little window, now you can get an entirely clear pen! It would be nice, however, if they started making these pens with the F-4 nib or even the F-9; if they did, I'd never write with anything else ever again.

The pen lays down a fine, consistent line. The line width is comparable to an EF-nib Lamy and with the included Sailor black cartridge shows little shading.

If you've ever used the Sailor Ink-Bar, you'll enjoy this pen. The same smoothness and no-frills design, but larger and stiffer in the hand than the diminutive, flexible Ink-Bar.

The cap is screw-on, which is satisfying and helps the pen seem more expensive than it is, but lessens its convenience as a carry-around pen. Another strike against it, as least in terms of portability, is that a bit stray ink finds its way onto the inside of the cap - more so than most fountain pens I've used. This ink is visible through the clear cap, slightly lessening the pen's attractiveness

This pen is best for long sessions of writing, as it is comfortable and consistent. Look elsewhere for a carry-around pen.

So cute and great to use!

I happen to love fountain pens that: are brightly colored; have sleek lines; uncomplicated design; and are inexpensive enough to feel like I'm not wasting money on "just a pen" (I have a fairly limited income). The Sailor Clear Candy series really fits my tastes well - I love the design element of the star and button on the cap, and of course this particular pen is a fantastic shade of flamingo pink.

The nib writes very nicely, I find, even on cheap paper. I don't have any trouble with it, at least, and the included ink cartridge started working as soon as I plugged it in without any problems. The nib is fine, but not quite as fine as my favorite .38mm Pilot G-2 (for when I just don't feel like bothering with a fp), though I'd say it is more fine than the .50mm G-2. But that could be differences in how hard I have to press with the gel pen vs. the easier writing of the fountain pen.

I love how lightweight the pen is thanks to being made from plastic. It looks good, too, in this metallic pink. I plan to get another Clear Candy pen in a different color, so we'll see how the plastic looks for a non-metallic. I wouldn't even call this "metallic", but I suppose it does resemble aluminium or something a bit. But for some reason, because of the weight, I keep forgetting that the cap screws on. I'm always trying to pull it off to no avail, then belatedly remembering to twist it.

Overall, I adore this pen and it's my new favorite. I only wish that there were an orange one, as I have just decided that I absolutely NEED a richly orange pen for my small collection, and the Clear Candy would be perfect.

This is a precise writing instrument hiding in a teenage girl's pen body. I've purchased a lot of affordable fountain pens, including the Ohto F-Spirit, Pilot Plaisir and Kaweco Sport, and the Sailor Clear Candy is not only one of the smoothest, most consistent writing, but it offers a true fine nib that allows you to write small or on thin paper without bleedthrough. Not sure if I actually see any metallic in the metallic pink body, but it's a cute color nonetheless and I like the extra large Sailor icon on the cap.

This pen provides a quality nib for the price. However, it may not be as solidly constructed as others in its price range. I was initially intrigued with the Clear Candy when I saw that they made a clear-body version, hoping I could convert it to an eyedropper. Unfortunately, the barrel is not airtight. While it is possible to seal it, I’m just not sure I want to go through the trouble and possibly ruin the pen.

The pen came with a Sailor cartridge and inked up quickly, though a little ink seeped out of the feed. I am impressed with Sailor ink. With it, the Clear Candy lays down a consistently even and dark line. Only time will tell about the construction of the pen. It doesn’t look like it will take much abuse. For a more durable pen that is an equally good writer, I recommend the Rotring Surf or perhaps Sailor’s other entry-level pen, the HighAce Neo.

Opposite experience to the other review. I prefer a wetter line which this nib did not lay down for me, using two different inks one being Waterman South Sea Blue which is rather wet in my medium Lamy Safari. The nib though steel is flexible enought to adjust on your own, but I think I messed mine up (ugh - totally my bad). I'm not impressed, but if I have the funds to spare I would try it again because of the low price. I might have just got a dud.

This is a lightweight pen with a very fine nib. I am used to more of a medium nib so writing with this pen takes some getting used to for me. However, the ink flows smoothly and there is no problem with skipping or anything like that. I love how this pen comes in many fun colors as well. Sometimes only having a selection of black or blue pen bodies can get old. The Clear Candy pen is a very nice addition to my collection. If you are into "cheap" fountain pens, you need this.

This pen is aesthetically appealing. Very nice to look at. Love the color and the star on the cap. It's somewhat light in weight...I prefer heavier pens but given the reasonable cost, I won't complain. In terms of writing, it's okay. It's a fine tip/nib which I love, however it seems to skip often. Not so much that it's rendered useless, but enough to become annoying after awhile. All in all, I don't regret buying it and will definitely use it here and there. Just not as often as I would have liked as the skipping will make me put it down after awhile.

After not writing for 15 seconds, ink takes about a half stroke delay before it starts flowing onto the paper again, so I have to go correct what I wrote. It has this problem with both the cartridge and the converter. This is the major problem with this pen for me.

(Disclaimer: This was my first fountain pen, so I wouldn't rule out some kind of early misuse.)

I'm pretty much a newbie to fountain pens, but I'm very happy with this pen. It writes with a very nice, fine, consistent line and the ink is very black. I was afraid the clear plastic would get scratched up and ruin the pen's looks after a while, but I've had it banging around in my pencilcase for several months and it still looks fine.

This is an awesome pen. The nib is definitely very fine, which is good, but it is also a bit scratchy when printing letters. This is not a problem though. The ink is really black, and I love the colors on the pen body. The screw on lid took some getting used to, but this is a great addition to my pen case.

It took between three and four minutes for ink to start flowing form the nib. It flows approximately a letter's worth of ink and then stops flowing. During the few seconds that ink is coming from the pen, it's difficult and scratchy to use. I tried several different kinds of paper with no success. The ink will not flow properly.

I would not recommend this pen to anyone. I don't know if it's the nib or the ink cartridge, but it's horrible. I realize it's an inexpensive fountain pen, but the Platinum Preppy pen (which is significantly cheaper) writes smoothly. I thought that the more expensive sailor pen (which has good reviews) would be better. Instead, it is a miserable pen to write with. I plan on checking what jetpens return policy is if I can't get it to work right soon.

I used to own a sailor manhattaner's and loved it until I lost it while abroad, so I bought the clear candy as a replacement for it since it seemed to be of a similar style.
I have to say though, the clear candy didn't really live up to my expectations. On the whole, the pen seems very sturdy and well constructed; however, it writes very scratchy and, unless I'm super careful with it, any movement seems to cause ink to leak out from the nib - I've barely written with it at all and already almost all the ink in the cartridge is gone.

Great pen for the money ... Nice fine line with a bit of expressiveness ... The converter works well, too, but doesn't hold a lot of ink. The Sailor Nano Black carts are good with the fine nib.

Writes nicely...the shell is a beautiful color...I think the converter may be leaking a little.

I'm in love with this pen. It writes beautifully, better than far more expensive fountain pens I own. Great value for the money!

Just got this in the mail and it's a wonderful pen for writing in small spaces or working with numbers and graphs. The color of the body is gorgeous.

Because I'm not used to the screw cap, I find myself leaving it off between notes and that dries up the ink. Just make sure you at least have the cap over the nib when you're not using this.

The main reason why I'm not giving this pen 5 stars is that you have to press the ink cartridge in yourself. The Lamy Safari has a less messy design where you can just twist the body to punch in the cartridge.

Not worth purchasing.
The ink is inconsistent and does not flow well. It has on and off days. I would not recommend purchasing it.