Namiki vs Pilot

[Pippin60]

I know that Namiki is owned by Pilot. I have a few Namiki's VP's and a Falcon. My question is what is the difference in the pens? I know that pilot sells VP's as well as the Bamboo model which I love under the Pilot name amongst others I'm sure. I've compared them and the pens seem exactly the same. Is the quality of the material different? It seems the nibs are the same. Is it just the name? :hmm1:

[Edgar Allan Bo]

From what I (think to) know the Namiki brand ist used for premium products of Pilot Pens... something like Toyota / Lexus, but maybe I'm wrong!

Edited September 7, 2008 by sk2yshine

[Pippin60]

...

[Splicer]

It's just the same, it's not even one owns the other, it's two brands, same company. The only reason we ever hear the name "Namiki" is because Americans associate "Pilot" with office supplies, so they put the name "Namiki" on the few high-end products that make it to Pilot USA.

[graceaj]

Also it seems to be a regional thing. Namiki Vanishing Points in America are no different from the Pilot Capless in Asia.

[thibaulthalpern]

Also it seems to be a regional thing. Namiki Vanishing Points in America are no different from the Pilot Capless in Asia.

 

I'm a newbie to all of this but from what I could tell in browsing the forum and various pen sites, Namiki really seems to be primarily (only) a U.S. thing. It's called Pilot in the rest of the world. Maybe Pilot sounds too mundane and Namiki sounds more "exotic" to the non-Japanese ear and so making that equivalency of exotic = expensive = unique etc...? Maybe?

[bobocat]

Namiki is the family name of the founder (Ryosuki Namiki) of Pilot. It was originally used as the company's name when it was founded. Pilot is the brand name later introduced for its products. The company eventually changed the company name to Pilot as well. However, the name Namiki was kept and is still used as a brand name for its high end maki-e pens. These pens have been widely regarded as the most beautiful fountain pens since Namiki started making maki-e fountain pens for Alfred Dunhill of London in late 1920s.

 

Namiki nowadays is an independent department within the Pilot group. Although there is resources sharing between Pilot and Namiki, there are certain level of competition between them as well.

 

Namiki is not a Brand only exists in America. Its products also available in Japan and Europe. However, it is true the in the US, there are some overlap between the product lines of Namiki and Pilot. Nevertheless, it is very clear that Namiki is a more exclusive brand.

Edited September 7, 2008 by bobocat

[Splicer]

Namiki is the family name of the founder (Ryosuki Namiki) of Pilot. It was originally used as the company's name when it was founded. Pilot is the brand name later introduced for its products. The company eventually changed the company name to Pilot as well. However, the name Namiki was kept and is still used as a brand name for its high end maki-e pens. These pens have been widely regarded as the most beautiful fountain pens since Namiki started making maki-e fountain pens for Alfred Dunhill of London in late 1920s.

 

Namiki nowadays is an independent department within the Pilot group. Although there is resources sharing between Pilot and Namiki, there are certain level of competition between them as well.

 

Namiki is not a Brand only exists in America. Its products also available in Japan and Europe. However, it is true the in the US, there are some overlap between the product lines of Namiki and Pilot. Nevertheless, it is very clear that Namiki is a more exclusive brand.

 

I'm curious what level of competition there is... I'm not aware of any country where the same pen is available under both brands. Pilot USA sells Namiki Bamboos but no Pilot Bamboos. I suppose in Japan there could be competition between Namiki Maki-e and Pilot Maki-e pens but I have yet to see a non-Maki-e pen sold outside America with the Namiki name.

 

Also not just some but all Namiki pens are made at the Pilot Hiratsuka factory. The Japanese Namiki website is part of pilot.co.jp but Namiki.com lists the Trumbull CT (Pilot USA) address as its only address.

 

I'm not saying that there isn't some internal competition between departments, but it's pretty clear that only in the US are we treated to the fictional illusion that Namiki is some totally separate company.

[MYU]

It's just the same, it's not even one owns the other, it's two brands, same company. The only reason we ever hear the name "Namiki" is because Americans associate "Pilot" with office supplies, so they put the name "Namiki" on the few high-end products that make it to Pilot USA.

I concur. Pilot has built up a huge office supply association in the USA. Namiki disassociates that and brings in more of an exclusive brand perception. Now certainly there are some market segmentation differences, as I've heard of steel nibs on VP's sold in Japan (we only get the gold ones in our market segment). But I can't imagine a Pilot Bamboo and Namiki Bamboo feel or write any differently. In essence, for the most part the only true difference is the name.

 

Do keep in mind that a Pilot pen purchased from the Japanese market (sold under "Pilot" when it is sold as "Namiki" in the USA), will not have the same warranty representation. Although some people have gotten lucky to get pens serviced in the USA, it's not guaranteed--you'd have to send your pen back to Japan, which is a more costly affair.

[Pippin60]

Well something to ponder. The reason I asked is because I saw a Pilot Bamboo for sale at 20$ less than a Namiki bamboo which was at another vendor, but according to the description they were the same including the nib. The Pilot Bamboo I saw was at Pen Gallery. I like a large pen and know that the Bamboo fits the description. It does seem that Pilot carries the lower end more office products line but perhaps the higher end pens are shared and sold under both brands.

[Splicer]

It does seem that Pilot carries the lower end more office products line but perhaps the higher end pens are shared and sold under both brands.

 

The only difference I know of between a Pilot Bamboo and a Namiki Bamboo is the clip. There also seem to have been more colors available sold as Pilot---I don't recall ever seeing any Namiki Bamboos other than Black and Rhodium.

 

If you're really concerned about the names Pilot versus Namiki, remember that the Pilot Knight is a Namiki pen.

 

http://www.pilotpen.us/products/fountainpens/ <--no mention of Knight

http://www.namiki.com/collections/pilotKnight.php

[roger3]

Well something to ponder. The reason I asked is because I saw a Pilot Bamboo for sale at 20$ less than a Namiki bamboo which was at another vendor, but according to the description they were the same including the nib. The Pilot Bamboo I saw was at Pen Gallery. I like a large pen and know that the Bamboo fits the description. It does seem that Pilot carries the lower end more office products line but perhaps the higher end pens are shared and sold under both brands.

I have both Pilot Bamboo and Namiki Bamboo. As noted Pilot offers pen in burgundy, navy, and black resins and color of clip on the Pilot is rose colored; pens have identical filling systems and nibs, IMHO, feel identical. Pens do not appear to have any other physical differences; as regards warranties I'll leave that info to other more informed FPNers

hope this helps

 

[graceaj]

Well something to ponder. The reason I asked is because I saw a Pilot Bamboo for sale at 20$ less than a Namiki bamboo which was at another vendor, but according to the description they were the same including the nib. The Pilot Bamboo I saw was at Pen Gallery. I like a large pen and know that the Bamboo fits the description. It does seem that Pilot carries the lower end more office products line but perhaps the higher end pens are shared and sold under both brands.

 

That might have something to do with Pen Gallery being in Malaysia.

[simonrob]

If you want to get an idea of the range of Pilot fountain pens not sold in the US, go here

 

http://ujuku.jpn.ph/KAIMONO/penframe.htm

 

and click on "Pilot".

 

Simon

 

 

[gyasko]

In Japan, there is only Pilot. The Namiki brand is for export.

[Splicer]

In Japan, there is only Pilot. The Namiki brand is for export.

 

That's what the guy at Mai Do told me, but

 

http://www.pilot.co.jp/namiki/index.html

 

and

 

http://www.pilot.co.jp/products/pen/makie/index.html

 

are not the same pens. The Yukari and Yukari Royale collections aren't found anywhere else on the pilot.co.jp website, so I have to assume that these collections are sold in Japan with "Namiki" on the clip. Either that or they aren't sold in Japan at all, and I find that quite difficult to believe.

[bobocat]

I bought a couple of Namik Yukari FPs, at its concession in TAKASHIMAYA department store Nihombashi, in Tokyo. So I am sure that there are Namiki pens in Japan and it is not a brand for export only. I can also confirm that Yukari and Yukari Royale collections are available in Japan. As mentioned above, Namiki in Japan sells Maki-e pens only.

 

To clarify my words regarding the overlaps in my previous post: What I mean is that Pilot does have some non-Maki-e models exporting to the US Market under the Namiki brand, such as Bamboo -- it belongs to the Pilot line in Japan.

 

As a result, Namiki has a wider product line in the US market. This is where the overlaps started. A Namiki Bamboo FP is relatively hard to find in Japan. However, Pilot Bamboo pens are much earlier to be seen / found in the US (thanks for internet?). That is why people start to ask the questions about the difference bwtween Pilot and Namiki.

 

About the competition between the two brands…Yes, it is an internal competition between the employees of two departments.

 

I have heard that some pen shops can offer both Namiki and Pilot version for some models with the price for the Namiki version a little bit higher.

 

In Japan, at least nowadays, the two brands have relatively more clear distinction as the Namiki brand is used on high-end Maki-e fountain pens only. However, I have seen some earlier high-end Maki-e, i.e. Size 50, carrying Pilot trademark on its clip and nib.

Edited September 9, 2008 by bobocat

[gyasko]

I really don't like makie pens so i don't pay much attention to them. I do think i remember Namiki being the brand for the expensive makie stuff.

[davetrout]

I have always been a fan of the Namiki VP pens, and I have several. When I ordered my last one, the name had changed to the Pilot VP. But the difference was more than the name! The pen had changed too. The Pilot barrel is fatter than the Namikis, and it is too large for my liking. Also, the nib and the converter/cartridge does not fit well and the nib tends to hesitate a little before retracting as if it were held by friction before sliding back into the barrel.

davetrout.

[KBeezie]

It's sort of like, if Pelikan were to have a completely different brand for their higher end fountain pens, if they feared too many people would associate the name Pelikan with just school supplies. Same difference with Namiki, if "Pilot" is known in the US just for office supplies, they created a different brand to distinguish their 'fine writing' selection of pens in the US.

 

I have always been a fan of the Namiki VP pens, and I have several. When I ordered my last one, the name had changed to the Pilot VP. But the difference was more than the name! The pen had changed too. The Pilot barrel is fatter than the Namikis, and it is too large for my liking. Also, the nib and the converter/cartridge does not fit well and the nib tends to hesitate a little before retracting as if it were held by friction before sliding back into the barrel.

davetrout.

Far as fatter/narrower, are you talking about the same series of capless, or even the same era? There were design changes over the years regardless of the branding, and there are different sizes depending on the series (ie: Decimo, Fermo) which were not compatible with each other's nib units. I did once have two Pilot branded Vanishing points, a black carbonesque with a 18K Medium unit, and a blue carbonesque with a 14K nib unit, and putting the 18K into the blue one was too tight for the opening in the front, despite being seemingly the same pen body. But both were Pilot Branded. And currently I have a Pilot branded black Carbonesque, but has a 14K Namiki branded 18K M Nib unit that seems to be a perfect match for it.

 

So just like the Namiki-to-Pilot Falcon transition, I would not expect there to be any major changes between the two as it's transitional of the branding and not a difference in quality/design.