Kaweco Piston Sport AL Starter Set Bordeaux

Kaweco have been making writing instruments since 1883, and the Piston Sport is their pocket-sized Sport with a piston filler built in. This one is the AL Bordeaux, released for the holidays: an anodised aluminium body in a deep red, finished with gold-coloured details.

The aluminium is tough and feels soft, almost velvety, in the hand, and the weight is balanced so it stays comfortable over a long writing session. It measures 10.5 cm closed and 13 cm with the cap posted, so it lives in a pocket and still writes full size.

Instead of cartridges, a smooth piston mechanism draws ink straight from the bottle, and a clear ink window shows you how much is left. That opens up the whole world of bottled ink, since plenty of colours never come in cartridges.

This is the Starter Set, so it comes ready to use with a 32 ml bottle of Kaweco Royal Blue ink, packed in Kaweco's classic round tin. The gold-plated steel nib is a 190 unit that screws out, so you can swap the size later.

Available here in Extra Fine, Fine and Medium.