Narwhal Voyage Pride 2023 Review: A Sparkling Limited Edition Piston Filler

Introduction

The Narwhal Voyage Pride 2023 is a limited edition fountain pen created in collaboration with the It Gets Better Project, with a portion of the proceeds from each unit donated to support its mission of empowering and connecting LGBTQ youth around the globe. Only 223 units exist worldwide, a number chosen to signify the year 2023, and the pen is priced at $169, a nod to the 1969 Stonewall riots.

Limited edition pens with a charitable angle come and go, but this one has a few things that make it genuinely worth a closer look: a custom resin that is one of the most requested custom colors from a well-known pen material maker, Narwhal’s in-house stainless steel nib, and a solid piston filling system. Here is how it all comes together.

First Impressions and Design

The Voyage Pride arrives in a custom box branded with Narwhal on one side and the It Gets Better Project on the other. The pen is built from a diamond cast resin, with rose gold trim that suits the pastel color scheme nicely. The cap top carries a metal piece engraved with the individual edition number, transitioning into a rounded half-circle clip that is not overly stiff and works well with materials of varying thicknesses.

The cap is straight until the end, where a stamped band carries the company name and a fun ocean motif. Interesting detail: the band and the nib still use Narwhal’s older company spelling, suggesting the brand is still working through its stock of pre-rebrand parts. It still looks sharp, and the older logo has a charm of its own.

The barrel is straight with a band marking the start of the piston knob and a rounded end. There is a medium-size step down from cap to barrel, where you find the ink window. One of the main differences between the Voyage and Narwhal’s similar Nautilus model is here: the Voyage has a single traditional ink window, while the Nautilus uses three porthole-style windows. The window on the Voyage is a good size, not overly large but big enough to easily keep track of your ink level.

The Unicorn Poop Resin

The material on this pen is a diamond cast resin called unicorn poop, created by Tim McKenzie of McKenzie Penworks, based in North Carolina. It has become one of his most requested custom colors, and it is easy to see why.

The palette is a muted blend of blue, purple, yellow, and pink. It is vibrant without being too in your face, and the subtle blending between the colors gives the pen a soft, almost dreamy look. The name is not just for show either: the sparkle you can see in the resin comes from real diamonds, which catch the light with a subtle chatoyance rather than a loud glitter effect.

The overall effect is a pen that photographs beautifully and looks even better in person, especially in the kind of indirect daylight that brings out the shimmer.

Nib and Writing Performance

Twist the cap off in just under two rotations and you are greeted with Narwhal’s in-house number six stainless steel nib, available in fine, medium, broad, or stub. This example is the fine.

Fine nibs are a hard sell for anyone who dislikes scratchiness or heavy feedback, and the review unit’s fine nib was found tolerable in that sense, which is a good sign for a fine point. Line variation is minimal, as expected, and ink flow runs on the lower side, which suits a fine nib but means you should not expect wet, saturated lines.

Reverse writing works well, producing an extra-fine line. The plastic feed keeps up during fast writing without hesitation. Across samples with different inks, including Narwhal’s own Rover lineup Galaxy and Jade, the nib performed consistently. If you prefer smoother, wetter writing, the medium or broad options may be the safer bet.

Size, Feel, and Everyday Use

The Voyage Pride is a piston filler, and the mechanism is smooth and sturdy, with no flimsiness anywhere in the pen. It is a genuinely well-built pen in the hand.

One deliberate design choice worth noting: the cap is not designed to post. The barrel is long enough to write with unposted, and unlike some pens where the cap half-posts and leaves you guessing, here it is immediately clear it will not fit on the back. Some writers will appreciate that honesty.

In size comparisons, the pen sits comfortably alongside popular writers like the TWSBI Diamond 580, the Platinum 3776, and the Lamy AL-star, feeling similar in scale to those everyday pens. With a $169 price tag and a run of only 223 units, this is a pen that is likely to sell out quickly. If the design and the cause appeal to you, acting sooner rather than later is the practical move.

Conclusion

The Narwhal Voyage Pride 2023 combines a genuinely beautiful custom resin, reliable nib performance, and a solid piston filling mechanism, all wrapped in a limited edition with a meaningful charitable mission. It is not a perfect nib experience in fine form, with lower flow and modest line variation, but it is a well-made, distinctive pen that is unlikely to stay in stock for long.