Platinum Plaisir Fountain Pen Review
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I have a serious regret about my fountain pen journey: I waited much too long to try the Platinum Plaisir. I made a video review on YouTube, which you can watch below, but I'll give you the most important details in this post.
The Basics
Here's the deal:
The Platinum Plaisir is an elegant, metal-bodied fountain pen that's perfect for beginners (it's probably my top recommendation for new fountain pen users now). It's a fantastic all-around pen, even aside from the shockingly low price (low $20s).
The Best Parts
Standout features are Platinum's amazing base-model steel nib (shared with the Preppy and the Prefounte) and the amazing slip-and-seal cap, which is what makes Platinum pens so incredibly resistant to drying out. The Plaisir's section width is perfect - long and smooth, with nothing that digs into your fingertips, so it works for a lot of different grips.
Weight
The pen is light in the hand, and well-balanced whether you're writing posted (with the pen cap on the back of the pen) or unposted. Light is good! It's much friendlier on your hands, and less likely to lead to fatigue during longer writing sessions; taking 10 pages of notes during a class or writing a 3-page letter to a friend doesn't sound like that much, but can be really fatiguing with a heavy pen.
Why it's great for beginners
There's a unique reason why I think this is an incredible pen for fountain pen beginners: the slip and seal cap keeps the pen from drying out, even when you don't write for months at a time. I've talked to so many people who started with a Lamy Safari or similar "starter" fountain pen, only to stop using it when it dried out a few weeks later, before they had built up a regular habit of writing that kept the pen wet. The Plaisir (or really any of the Platinum fountain pens) is the perfect pen if you're trying to build up the habit of writing. Even if you haven't written for a few months, this thing will "just write" when you uncap it.
It's also cheap enough to try if you're not 100% sure that you'll stick with the fountain pen hobby, and durable enough to carry around as an EDC (everyday carry) pen. Plus it just looks fancy! You'll definitely get comments if you pull this out to sign a check for a nice dinner.