Kato 2000

Kato Kiyoshi, the thinking head behind Kato Seisakushô pens, died in January of 2010. This company was Kato’s last endeavor after a life of turning pens here and there, in Europe and in the Middle East. His legacy passed onto Mr. Onishi, a former worker in Kato Seisakushô company.

Kato Seisakushô's model 2000.

Onishi and Kato share a taste for anonymity and for celluloid. The lack of external markings and the irregular distributions of these pens –both Onishi’s and Kato’s— pose a number of problems on the side of the buyer. And that is what happened to me when I saw the pen I am presenting today: How many Kato’s pens remain unsold? How do we distinguish them from those made by Onishi? Is there, in fact, any real difference between them?

Today’s pen –I was assured by knowledgeable sources— belongs to the last series produced by Kato Kiyoshi and, therefore, dates back from 2009. In fact, the size and the shape match the records of the model 2000 of Kato’s pens.

This model 2000 is a cartridge-converter pen, and it implements a 14 k gold nib. As in the case of the model 800F, already described on these Chronicles, the nib inscription is very non-descriptive: “SUPERIOR / 14 K / LIFETIME / GRATIFY / JAPAN”. However, the size and dimensions of this nib are the same as those of the big size nibs made by Sailor, which is not surprising by now. But contrary to the usual Sailor policy, these nibs implemented by Mr. Kato are not engraved with any dating code.

Nibs and feeds of the Kato's model 2000 (left) and of a big size Sailor nib (right).

Two Kato Seisakushô's models: 800F and 2000. Note the differences in the nib size.

The celluloid of this pen deserves some additional note. Traditional celluloid was a family of compounds of cellulose nitrate and camphor (plus dyes and some other agents). Modern celluloids were developed later and substituted the former in some applications, film stock to name just one, due to the instability and flammability of the old compound. However, some high end pens, particularly by Italian makers, still use some variations of the classical formulation. And this seems to be the case of this Kato Seisakushô’s pen: it has a very distinctive camphor smell, very noticeable inside the cap and inside the barrel.

These are the dimensions of this pen:

Length closed: 144 mm
Length open: 125 mm
Length posted: 163 mm
Diameter: 15 mm
Weight: 23.0 g (with converter, dry)

(Note on Oct 2017: I had included a reference to a video published on YouTube by user VirtuThe3rdTV where both Mr. Kato and Mr. Onishi could be seen making pens on the lathe. The whole channel by VirtuThe3rdTV has been eliminated and the videos are not available).


My thanks to Mr. Sunami.

Parker 51 demi, vacumatic – Private Reserve DC Supershow Blue

Bruno Taut
Madrid, December 13rd, 2015
etiquetas: Kato Seisakushô, Onishi Seisakushô, Sailor

Onishi's

Nibmeister Kato Kiyoshi died in January of 2010. His former apprentice Onishi took over his legacy, or his remaining stock, to continue producing fountain pen made of celluloid. As was the case of Kato Seisakusho’s, Onishi Seisakusho’s pens are not labeled with any brand name, which easily triggers the confusion—is this a Kato’s or a Onishi’s pen? Or none of the above? Only recently, by 2012, Onishi started to make pens with new colors instead of using the old inherited stock.

An Onishi Seisakusho pen in tortoise celluloid.

The Onishi pen on display today is a cartridge-converter one made of tortoise celluloid. The nib, as was the case on cheaper Kato Seisakusho’s, is a Schmidt unit made of steel.

The Schmidt nib, made of stainless steel.

Inside, a boring and efficient converter (international).

These are its dimensions:

• Length closed: 140 mm
• Length open: 122 mm
• Length posted: 160 mm
• Diameter: 13 mm
• Weight (inked): 24.2 g

The clip remind that often used by Pilot, but it was also implemented on some Kato Seisakusho's pens.

My thanks to Mr. Kikukawa.

Pilot V (Super 200), falcon nib – Pilot Blue-black

Bruno Taut
Yokohama, February 27st, 2014
etiquetas: Kato Seisakushô, Onishi Seisakushô, Schmidt