A few weeks ago, I ordered this Special Edition Kaweco Sport Mocha Fountain Pen from Fontoplumo, which has become my go-to shop for Kawecos. Frank has great prices, very reasonable shipping rates, and personal touches that keep me coming back, despite the fact that he’s in the Netherlands while I’m in the US. When I caught wind of this Mocha edition, I talked myself out of it. For awhile. I’m trying to not fall into the “I must have every color” mindset (though my Lamy Safari/AL-Star collection would tell you that I’m pretty much full of s#&t in this regard).
I caved and ordered this version of the Kaweco Sport because it looks an awful lot like my favorite iced coffee. Or caramel. That is to say, it looks delicious. It’s a dessert pen, without the guilt or calories. Sold!
Along with the pen, I also ordered the Retro Sport Gold Clip AND the new “squeezable” converter, Kaweco’s latest effort to provide a converter option for their line of pocket pens.
I syringe filled the tiny converter with a squirt of Akkerman #5, Shocking Blue, popped it into the pen as you would a cartridge, and started scribbling. The gold-tone medium nib wrote immediately, very smoothly, and nicely wet. Though I know that you can eyedropper the Kaweco Sport model, we all know how well that works for me, so having this new converter option kind of made my day.
Right around this time, Jeff Abbott published his review of the same converter, and came away with a very different experience and opinion than I did. He calls the item a “dud,” and outlines his reasons in a well-written post. He had trouble achieving a full fill. I never tried to fill the converter by dipping it into ink and squeezing it. As I said, I went the “syringe fill” route and didn’t have any trouble at all, whereas, Jeff did. He also noticed that his pens with squeeze converters installed seemed to leak ink onto their nibs while they were being carried. I haven’t found that to be the case. I don’t baby my pens, so I’m not sure why that’s happening for Jeff and not for me. He also states that this converter is a pain to clean. I haven’t cleaned mine out yet, so I can’t really voice an opinion on this aspect. I do, though, plan to just flush it with a syringe so I don’t think it’ll be too much trouble.
Granted, this latest iteration of the mini Kaweco converter doesn’t hold much ink, but I’ve been using mine to write plenty of notes, and this review, and still haven’t had to refill. For me, it’s been a convenient way to use my favorite inks in this tasty looking Mocha Kaweco Sport. (Whenever I use this pen, I WANT COFFEE.)
I’m not saying that I’m right and Jeff’s wrong. Not at all. I just wanted to present another viewpoint. For me, the Kaweco Sport Squeezable Converter, is well worth the couple of dollars it costs.
Now we need a tie-breaker. Anyone?
There are no affiliate links in this post. I purchased the pen and accessories with my own money.
From the Pen Cup 
Argh…I put one in my cart, then it said out of stock. Must have missed the last one by a second.
If you fill the converter using a syringe, what are the advantages to using a cartridge? Thanks
It’s basically the same as filling an empty cartridge, but I never seem to have one on hand when I want one. I also feel like it fits a little more securely than a used cartridge.
Great review! Thank you. The squeeze converter, however, is not the latest one. It is rather the old model. The new one is the mini-piston concerter they have – which is supposed to at least eliminated the issues of not getting a full fill (when not using a syringe)…
Thanks again for an entertaining and brilliant post!
//Michael (Scrively.org)
I use the squeeze converter and I’ve never had a problem with it! It doesn’t fill instantaneously, like a piston converter, I agree. However with a little extra time I can get a full fill and it has never leaked on me. I kind of compare it to aerometric fillers, since that’s exactly what it is. To get a full fill on my Parker 51 I have to invert it, tap it a few times to get the ink to flow to the bottom of the converter, and then I right it so I can squeeze out the air bubble and get a full fill. It’s the same conceptually: I do the same thing with the Kaweco. I’ve noticed that the sac does stain but it doesn’t leech color, as far as I know, and it doesn’t bother me all that much.
Pingback: Sunday Notes and Links – September 18, 2016 | Fountain Pen Quest
Pingback: Wiser Web Wednesday – Pete Denison
I was interested to read about your squeeze converter experience. I have three Kaweco sports and had pondered over these converters for the joy of the retro experience. It hadn’t occurred to me to syringe fill…for that you might as well use an old cartridge. Kaweco do make tiny plunger converters which are cute but don’t hold a huge amount!