Unsharpen

Pens and Pencils | Reviews and Data

Pentel Tradio Fountain Pen

Pentel Tradio Fountain Pen

The Pentel Tradio is a fountain pen that completes the set of Tradio pens which includes a rollerball and “Pulaman” which Pentel calls a fountain pen but is actually more of a felt-tipped marker. The Tradio fountain pen uses a short, steel nib and a large plastic feed. It’s a good looking pen but it’s entirely plastic.

The Tradio is a fine fountain pen but at $15 it finds itself in a highly competitive price category and alongside great fountain pens like the Pilot Metropolitan and Lamy Safari. Like all the other pens in this class, outside of Chinese fountain pens, it’s a cartridge converter with a snap-on cap and a steel nib.

Pentel’s steel nib is rather interesting. It’s short and stocky with an unusual look to it. The nib has a clear sweet spot and writes well in that spot but struggles otherwise. The Medium is quite wet, more like a Japanese broad and puts down a thick stream of ink. Pentel’s ink is vibrantly colors, but rather slow to dry.

One major perk of this pen — likely a result of Pentel not being a major fountain pen brand — is that the Tradio FP uses a standard international cartridge. It will accept both international short and long cartridges from any manufacturer.

Pentel Tradio Fountain Pen Information

Street Price Check Price
Manufacturer Pentel
Pen Type Fountain Pen | Cartridge/Converter
Rating
Barrel Color Yellow, Red, Light Blue, Light Green, Black, White
Barrel Material Plastic
Body Diameter (mm)14.0 mm
Grip Color Black
Grip Material Plastic
Grip Diameter (mm)10.6 mm
Country of Origin Japan
MSRP $15
Still Sold Yes
Similar To
Refills
Capped? Retractable?Capped - Snap On
Clip?Plastic
Length Capped / Retracted (cm)14.2
Length Posted (cm)15.8 cm
Length Uncapped (cm)12.9 cm
Weight (g)14 grams
RefillableYes
Ink Color ShippedBlue
Nib MaterialSteel
Nib ColorSilver
Nib SizesMedium Nib