PILOT"CUSTOM 743 / Black" (nib : Soft Fine)

One of the best writing experiences right out of the box. Well worth the money.

What can I say? The pilot custom 743 has a nicer balance than the 823 in my opinion, especially if you post your pens. This might be because it does not have the vac filler system, rather a modest cartridge converter system. That may not be as swanky as the 823’s vac system, but is lighter and easier to clean out. I actually prefer it to the custom 823 mainly because I can write longer with it. It has great built quality and the same wonderful #15 nib as in the 823. You also get more nib options with this pen. It doesn’t attract as much attention as the 823 because of its injection mounded plastic construction.

I have the 743 with an FA nib, as I like a lot of bounce out of my Nibs. In reality, the nib has a fair amount of flex, on par with some vintage semi-flex Nibs (think Pelikan 100). However, the feed can not keep up with flexed writing for calligraphy. If that is your intent, you'll want to get an aftermarket ebonite feed for it. For what I wanted, though, is something that is soft enough to show natural pressure variation when writing due to a lot of bounce. It fills that role perfectly. This pen reminds me a lot of my Mont Blanc 146 with Calligraphy nib, but the Pilot is honestly a tad smoother. Sure, the Mont Blanc looks and feels a lot nicer, but the pilot is 1/4th the price and honestly writes as good (if not better). It's perfect for what I wanted, and could not be happier. I may end up getting a second with an aftermarket feed for sketching.The larger nib in the 743 I find superior to the 912 nib. They use different alloys, and the 743 as a more reseliant gold alloy and is a little harder to spring. But due to the size, the flex isn't really compromised. In my opinion, the 743 is a far superior option than the 912 in looks, pen size, and nib size.

While I am not a 'flexy' writer (I'm ... a semi legible writer just wanting to add character to the semi-legibility: value added!) I've wanted a 743 with FA for a while. The 743 is an extremely comfortable pen for long writing sessions - beautifully balanced, with just the right amount of heft. But - it is not available through U.S. retailers. I'll acknowledge that I was wary, purchasing this pen through Amazon ... But I was equally fatigued at the prospect at ordering from reputable sellers in Japan (because when things happen to go awry, it can be very time intensive and fiddly). The 'Pilot Store' looked like a legitimate Pilot Store ... so I clicked 'checkout'. From what I can see - all is good. On arrival, the plastic Pilot box was a bit wonky (top off the hinges), but the nib is as hoped. Moreover - I am not seeing the railroading others complain of (on the other hand, I may lack the skill required to get to the point where railroading can happen). All in all - very pleased. Looks legit, and is a pleasure to use.

CUSTOM 743 has it going on… the photo is trash but the best it could be given the lighting. The gold glows brightly while the body shines icy black in contrast. The review…First, the pen arrived early. Second, it is a gorgeously phenomenal writing pen. It writes with such a razor fine line that I can write on any regular paper, no bleed or feathering. PERIOD. It works amazingly well with Iroshizuku take-sumi. The lines are very dark and very very thin. The precision you get is awesome. Your letterforms and ligatures are very crisp and very clean. Thirdly, it is a beautiful pen. Fourth, it is a beautiful pen. It feels good in the hand - posted or not. Finally, that nib, that nib, that nib, OMG! I can’t stop writing; PO is the way to go. I will definitely get another one! Thank you Pilot!

The nib is a nice controllable semi flex or hard flex. I don't push it very far. It's easy to control and keep consistent line variation. They make no secret of it, but all the attention was put into the nib. If you have nice pens the rest of the pen will look and feel cheap... but it's functional and light. I did imidiately switch the feed to a 2 slot ebinite feed. It now has zero railroading or skipping. I have large hands. The width of the pen is tolerable but does get tiring after a while being a little on the small side. Not anywhere near as bad as the regular pilot falcon. I wish they offered this nib on the custom 912 so it would be a more comfortable long writer for longer periods of time. Overall with this 160ish amazon price it's worth it for the nib if you get the compatible aftermarket ebonite feed as well for around 30 bucks. Just Google it. They make it specifically for this pen.

Lots of bounce, super smooth, fantastic pen. I the cartridge converter is hard to clean so I refill cartridges with a syringe. Amazing pen at this price. Right up there with my Blue Pelikan M800 fine.

It's a very good and smooth pen, but the Medium nib is too big for me since I will have to use it everyday to write very small stuff. I hope to get one with an FM nib.

avec une plume en or aujourd'hui introuvable : souple, douce et qui ne manque jamais. Le stylo est bien étanche et ne sèche pas. La finition est impeccable. C'est mon stylo préféré ! Mais il n'est pas donné ...

The pen body is the most ergonomic of all Pilots I own. It has the nicest fit and finish.Many people have troubles with the FA nib, so I had immediate remorse after ordering it and tried to cancel. Fate deigned that I was to have it anyway, and my request didn't go through. I'm glad, because it has become my favourite pen among my 10 premium pens. It writes EF with no pressure, F with just a little, and of course has dramatic flex. I haven't had the hard-starting issues many people claim. I can only offer a few guesses to help people who might be interested in this pen still.1. Don't use the con-70. I have used con-70 to success with PO nib, and to dramatic failure with Stub, I didn't even bother using it for the FA. Just use a con-50.2. Don't draw those silly loops to demo the flex. You will probably go too fast, too hard, and get railroading and miss-align the tines.3. Just write in your normal style, and press a little on the down strokes. You will get plenty of contrast in the line weight. Normal writing is much less demanding than those loops FP users like to make, and will be much gentler on the FA nibs very delicate tines.One of the reasons this has become my favourite pen is that it writes EF but is incredibly smooth, just just for EF but it is absolutely smooth. Even if I didn't care about flex, that alone would make it rank up with my favourites, including the PO nib (which is also very smooth, but is more like a technical pen in its consistency).This pen has a very bad reputation, but none of the issues about ink flow, hard starting or railroading have befallen me. I write fairly small, and I'm very pleased with the effect I can get. It is much, much softer than the Falcon/Elabo Pilot makes, which although a remarkably light pen, I find the Elabo really hurts my fingers if I use the flex too much. I have no such problem from the FA.

Stunning pen, but dear costing as well. Takes some time to get used to the FA nib, but with practice I am impressed with what I can do. Highly recommended.

The pen is not so different by a Pilot Custom 742, but FA nibs are completely different upon their length: the shorter #10 on the 742 has an F-FM starting size and is a real super-flexible nib, very delicate, to use with a feather hand; this #15 is longer, starts EF and is a bit harder to flex, definitely better for those who don’t have experience. It’s more like a soft nib, but with a great snapback which closes steadily to EF the point. It is also definitely better handling the ink feeding, I have found no railroading problem.For calligraphic use, #15 can do Copperplate but is a Spencerian masterpiece, viceversa for the #10.Both nibs are wonderful, as in Pilot style.#15 can be mounted on both Custom 823 and Custom 845 Urushi (I have it now on my 823 for huge ink capacity).

Genuine and new, received in good condition according to estimated time frame; enjoying good writing experience. Thanks so much.