The Morita Original Sailor Pro Gear Slim
- By Adam
- In fountain pens
- With 8 Comments
- Tagged with exclusive fountain pen Morita Professional Gear Sailor
- On 28 Feb | '2014
I recently made a pilgrimage to the Morita Pen Shop in Osaka, Japan and picked up one of Mr. Morita’s exclusive pens. This Sailor Professional Gear Slim is in a unique color taken from the roof of the Salzburg Cathedral, where Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was baptized and later performed. The color is a soft, robin’s egg blue that I really enjoy.
It was my first time visiting Osaka, but the Morita Pen Shop was quite easy to find. The shop itself is a bit small, but it still has a hefty selection of beautiful pens and inks adorning the walls. Mr. Morita himself doesn’t speak much English, but he is incredibly helpful and will let you test out any pen you are interested in trying.
The prices are generally lower than shops you’ll find in western fountain pen stores, and even competitive with online shops from around the world.
Other than the color, the rest of the pen is identical to the standard Pro Gear Slim. I purchased the 14k gold nib with rhodium plating in MF and it is beautifully smooth, though not as smooth as the larger 21k gold nib on my Sailor 1911. Initially I was afraid that the Professional Gear Slim would be too small for my liking as I tend to prefer larger pens, but when I was pleasantly surprised with how well the pen feels when it is posted. Without posting, the pen feels too light and off-balance, but when posted it feels perfect. The grip section isn’t too narrow and the acrylic body provides a modestly comfortable writing experience.
I inked it up with Sailor Kobe Sannomiya Pensée which I picked up from a Nagasawa Pen Shop during my day trip to Kobe. I like the way it looks with the pen. Inkflow was great. The feed keeps up and the nib is very smooth with just a tiny bit of feedback on the paper. It is definitely a smooth writer, though not as smooth as my Sailor 1911L with 21k nib, but it holds its own.
The shop also carries a regular Professional Gear in the same color fitted with a 21k gold nib with rhodium plating. If you are ever in Osaka and have some time to stop by, I highly recommend checking out Mr. Morita’s pen shop!
Overall, it’s a lovely pen that I’m happy to have part of my collection.
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April 14, 2014 at 12:55 pm |
I like Sailor MF nib, even though I have steel one in my Sailot Profit Junior demonstrator. What is the length of the Pro gear slim without cap?
April 15, 2014 at 8:00 am |
Uncapped, the Pro Gear Slim is approx. 110mm in length.
May 26, 2014 at 11:48 pm |
Adam I am looking to buy a sailor fountain pen on amazon that is advertised with the wording prof gear middle point what does middle point mean can you give me some advice before ordering as the pen was selling for £122 witch was a price I could afford. Thanks joe
May 27, 2014 at 8:01 am |
I’m guessing that they mean medium nib, as in the pen nib produces a line of “medium” thickness. Just make sure the seller you’re buying from on Amazon is reputable. And enjoy the Pro Gear if you decide to purchase it. It’s a beautiful pen!
February 10, 2017 at 12:19 pm |
Looking at the Sailor I believe it would be one I would lkie to own. A new friend of mine is an avid collector and myself, a new explorer of fountain pens. Is there any way of getting one of these blue Sailors? I am in the US and was told I might have luck at The Morita Pen Shop.
If you have any information about the pen I would like to hear from you. I would like to purchase one.
Thank you
February 11, 2017 at 11:59 pm |
Since I visited the store in person, I can’t say exactly what the best way to acquire the pen from overseas would be. However, I have heard that you can purchase directly from The Morita Pen Shop if you can get someone to translate for you and are comfortable with wiring money to Japan. Otherwise, you might try to use a package forwarding service like White Rabbit. In any case, I wish you the best of luck! It’s a beautiful pen and well worth the trouble, in my opinion.
February 15, 2017 at 3:36 am |
Thank you Adam (Inklode). I will call the shop and see if it possible through them to have an order shipped. White Rabbit sounds also like a nice service. I will look that up. I’ will be happy if I can get one. I am not sure what it cost USD but it is over 10,000 Yen.
September 5, 2018 at 8:13 am |
Sorry to open up this topic again, but I just wanted to add that I believe you can now get this pen online at eBay. I was lucky enough to get a mini version of this pen on eBay. Since I specialize in collecting minis, and this is one of my favorite colors, I was very happy to get it. I got a B nib and it writes beautifully smooth with just the hint of a very pleasurable feedback. I couldn’t be happier with a pen! Sailors rock.