Review: Cony LINE Friends Sailor Pro Gear Slim

A fountain pen themed after a bunny? Count me in!

This is the Cony variant from the LINE FRIENDS and Sailor collaboration. It's North American exclusive. From the packaging to the fun face on the cap, this pen is nearly guaranteed to cheer you up. All this for the exorbitant price of $312.

This pen is essentially any other Sailor Pro Gear Slim but with different colors and a few changes. With this Cony variant, you're undoubtedly paying a hefty premium for the special edition status. It features a translucent cap, a milky-white barrel that allows for color passthrough, and gold-plated trims. But arguably the most special aspect of this pen is the charming nib with Cony's face on it.

The pen is presented in pretty standard Sailor packaging, except for a special pink converter and an exclusive sleeve with LINE FRIENDS branding. The box itself feels premium and reminiscent of a luxury good. No problems here, but it's pretty uninteresting.

The most eye-catching part of the packaging is the outer sleeve. It features Cony printed all over both the inside and outside. The design is adorable and something I want to keep pristine because of how special it feels.

The transparent cap is one of the most striking features of this pen. It allows for a more complex look and makes the pen feel more creative. The light pink is easy to see through and pairs nicely with the rest of the pen. It's easy to see the inner workings of the capping mechanism.

However, the see-through element of the cap comes with an unexpected downside. As a perfectionist, I get annoyed when the orientation of the cap doesn't perfectly line up with the nib. In other words, when the clip isn't directly over the nib like the photo above. Sometimes the nib doesn't line up with the clip, but it depends on how you cap it. This is far from a deal-breaker, but something a little bit annoying.

Underneath the cap lies my favorite part of the pen: the nib. It's a gorgeous 14k gold nib with an adorable outline of Cony the Bunny on it. Is it worth paying potentially hundreds of dollars more for a special edition pen with a face on it? That's for you to decide. All I know is that the Pilot Kakuno pens with their smiley face nibs aren't too far behind in cuteness while costing less than $10.

Nevertheless, the nib is simple and fun. I enjoy using it and find the upcharge justifiable. I'm just hoping that this doesn't lead to more terrible financial decisions...

The pen's milky barrel allows for brighter colors to pass through, making it easy to see the pink from the converter and the color of the ink. This is a pretty cool hidden feature and the diffusion is subtle enough to make it easy to overlook. If you want to see this effect, the photos at the top of this article show the pen fully assembled.

The second trace of LINE branding is found on the cap of the pen. Instead of a traditional Pro Gear Slim anchor logo on the top of the cap, you get Cony's adorable face. It's a nice touch of branding that keeps the overall design subtle and I find that it fits perfectly with the other elements of the pen.

The rest of the cap is made from pretty standard Pro Gear Slim elements. The white gold trimmings add flavor and make the pen appear to sparkle. Unfortunately, the photos can't quite capture the shine of the pen, but it's beautiful in person.

Compared to a standard Pro Gear, the Pro Gear Slim features a less pure 14k gold nib (compared to 21k), with no option for a two-toned design. However, besides this difference, the size difference isn't too drastic. The only notable difference in writing experience is that the grip section of the Slim is noticeably smaller than the regular model (hence the Slim part of the name).

Cony's Sailor Pro Gear Slim is alluring, but it comes at a premium. Besides the differences in appearance, it's practically the same as any other Pro Gear Slim, but for potentially hundreds of dollars more.

Does this pen come at a good value? Of course not. Is this pen really fun to use? Yes. Is it worth $312? That's for you to decide.