An Ode To A Great Workhorse Pen: The Kaweco Dia2

[TheDutchGuy]

While it's hardly a secret around these parts that I'm smitten with certain Italian and Japanese pens, I'd like some limelight for an unsung hero. I won this pen in Appelboom's Free Fountain Pen Friday giveaway some time ago and it's been growing on me ever since.

 

 

This isn't meant as a full-size review, merely as an ode to an understated, high-quality, workhorse pen. Its art deco design resonates with me - I simply love art deco. It's no-frills blackness also resonates with me. Where other black pens can be boring, somehow this one isn't.

 

 

Materials and build quality are top-notch. Pick this pen up and its quality is immediately apparent. This pen will stand up to intense daily use. Kaweco really hit the nail on the head with its dimensions: not too wide, nor too narrow. Not too short, nor too tall. Not too heavy, nor too light. It's just right and melts into my hand.

 

 

At this point in my fountain pen journey, I really cannot claim that gold nibs are better. My favourite nibs in pens that you can buy in any store today are the steel F nibs that Leonardo uses, followed by the palladium dreamtouch nibs of the Homo Sapiens and gold Sailor nibs. It's not so much the material, it's how well the nib is made. The small steel nibs that Kaweco uses in its Sport, Liliput and Dia pens are cheap. A nib, feed and collar unit is priced under 10 euros. I've got a bunch of nibs lying around: an EF, several F's, an M, a 1.1 stub and a 1.5 stub. With the EF, F and M nibs, the size designations are pretty meaningless. The EF writes like an F, the F's are all over the place and the M writes like an F. All of the nibs are smooth, some are dry-ish (easily solved) and some have a certain amount of drag (not to be confused with feedback and not so easily solved). Long story short, the EF is really good, the 1.1 is a lovely stub, the 1.5 isn't crispy enough and has flow issues, the F's are all over the place and the M is my favourite and found its way into my Dia2. But as said, in terms of writing it's not at all like a typical M.

 

It's a really well-writing pen: quite wet but not excessively so, never skips or hard starts. The cap seals really well so the pen will write straight away after two weeks of no use. The full-size Kaweco converter works like a converter should work and holds a reasonable amount of ink. The nib is very smooth but not without control, a very easy pen for longer sessions.

 

Priced around 100 euros, it's not a cheap for a steel-nibbed pen. I was fortunate to win it, but if I'd paid full-retail then I would have been happy. It's become a real road-dog and I enjoy it more every day.

[Lloyd]

 

^{ode (ōd)}

^►

• ^n.
  ^{A lyric poem of some length, usually of a serious or meditative nature and having an elevated style and formal stanzaic structure.}
• ^n.
  ^{A choric song of classical Greece, often accompanied by a dance and performed at a public festival or as part of a drama.}
• ^n.
  ^{A classical Greek poem modeled on the choric ode and usually having a three-part structure consisting of a strophe, an antistrophe, and an epode.}

 

Hey...I was promised an ode! Get back here and write a lyric poem honoring your beloved Kaweco!

 

 

just kidding...I'm glad you have a pen that you love.

[JakobS]

 

Hey...I was promised an ode! Get back here and write a lyric poem honoring your beloved Kaweco!

 

 

just kidding...I'm glad you have a pen that you love.

 

 

I second this!

 

The Dia 2 is a Kaweco that I have been interested in for a number of years now, but my bias towards a little more interesting filling system at its price point has kept me from getting it. I really do like the appearance of it!

[sansenri]

It's a nice pen, it's real strength is that it's built like a tank.

I love the retro look, the only thing that could be just slightly better is the nib.

The Kaweco II mounts the same nib as the Sport, and it's slightly small for this pen and stiff.

Here next to two other Kaweco (The Elite and the Sport Luxe)

 

[Ron Z]

It's a nice pen, it's real strength is that it's built like a tank.

I love the retro look, the only thing that could be just slightly better is the nib.

The Kaweco II mounts the same nib as the Sport, and it's slightly small for this pen and stiff.

I agree. I like the way that these pens are made- brass bushing for the barrel threads instead of plastic to metal, solid resin cap and barrel, strong clip, classic design. The cap seals the nib nicely, so it can sit for quite a while without the nib drying out. ...and I agree that the nib is the weak point.

[Karmachanic]

 

 

Hmmmm. Black flat tops! Makes me fell all warm and fuzzy inside.

[almoore]

I have one and I love the design I just wish the nib had been a #6.

 

Al

[The Good Captain]

I use my Dia 2 as my Baystate Blue dedicated instrument and it's never let me down in absolutely ages. Great combination.

[acolythe]

Mine has the gold nib. It's head and shoulders above the Kaweco steel nib. Wet smooth juicy

[TheDutchGuy]

Mine has the gold nib. It's head and shoulders above the Kaweco steel nib.

You're not alone in this. I've heard this many times. So at some point I went to my local brick & mortar store and tried a gold EF and a gold F and both disappointed me. The EF wrote a needle-thin line (quite literally), was dry-ish and didn't feel pleasant. The F had severe baby's bottom. I really wanted to spend money on these nibs, but in all honesty I liked my steel ones better.

[Timotheus]

The pen as such is excellent; but my experience with the nib(s) is similar to that of TheDutchGuy.

 

I bought the pen with the (EF) gold nib, which cost me more than the pen itself. But I couldn't get it writing the way I liked it, so I sent it to a nibmeister, who adjusted it. But the result still didn't convince me. Then I bought the simple (EF) standard steel nib, which I like a whole lot better. To be honest, it's still not exactly what I want (I find it a bit scratchy; I have other inexpensive (EF / F) steel nibs which give a much more fluent and satisfying writing experience); but the gold nib certainly wasn't worth its money; in my case at least.

Edited February 23, 2019 by Timotheus

[TheDutchGuy]

I have one and I love the design I just wish the nib had been a #6.

A #6 won't fit, however... the nibs used in the TWSBI Eco and Go _do_ fit. I've put the stub into my Dia2 pen once, it worked flawlessly and it fit inside the cap. Whether or not you can accept how it looks, that's another matter. I couldn't.

[ygv]

Kaweco make great pens.

[1nkulus]

The Dia2 is a nice pen, unfortunately my experience with the gold nibs was not great either. Settled for the steel BB and 1.1i nibs.

[YPwalt]

Another DIA fan....I just took that plunge after nearly a year of...pondering...and haven't regretted it.

A bit smaller than my usual preference, (I've tended to gravitate toward pens along the lines of Conklin All-Americans, Laban Mentos, et. al.) but the weight helps, It's a great writer (have a broad) and seems to share the Sports' affinity for easy starts - even after "sitting a spell".

[TheDutchGuy]

Took two pens with me today: a Preppy and my Dia2. It went on a bus, a train, a plane, a bus and finally another bus. A total of 9 hours of travel, in my shirt pocket. I've been scribbling notes with it in all of these transport modes. With an almost full cartridge of Kaweco Midnight Blue, the pen didn't leak on the plane. The steel nib can be safely used on bumpy rides. Over the coming days the Dia2 will see lots of use on park benches, in restaurants and assorted other places. For once I did not bring my trusty AL Sport, fearing that an overzealous airport security guy might take it from me. So the Dia2 went instead. I didn't want to bring a bottle of ink, so the converter (which is usually filled with Iroshizuku Shin-Kai) was temporarily replaced with Midnight Blue cartridges. The pen is noticeably drier with this ink, as expected, but still writes very well indeed. It's a really nice pen.

[WLSpec]

Nice review!

[Tiggercat]

I have one and I love the design I just wish the nib had been a #6.

 

Al

 

This is a Dia2 with what I believe is a 250 nib, which is a #6. It writes beautifully.

 

[ParkerDuofold]

Hi TD,

 

This pen has been on my list for a while... I think it just moved up a couple spaces.

 

 

- Anthony

[Safari_Camo]

I have the same pen, same nib filled with J. Herbin - Lierre Sauvage for my notes and is one of my favorites, love it!.