Pilot Custom 845 Deep Blue: A Urushi Fountain Pen Worth the Hesitation

Introduction

Some pens announce themselves immediately, and others grow on you until you realize you cannot leave the table without them. The Pilot Custom 845 in deep blue falls firmly into the second category. This is a large cartridge-converter fountain pen built on an ebonite body and finished in genuine urushi lacquer, a material usually reserved for Pilot’s higher-end offerings. It was spotted alongside the much larger Custom Urushi at a show table, where the two carried prices of $1,000 and $1,700 respectively, which puts the 845 in rare company even if the street price can land noticeably lower.

Design and Finish

The deep blue urushi finish is the reason this pen exists as a statement piece. Under showroom lighting the blue reads vibrant and almost electric, while in everyday light it settles into a much darker, quieter tone. That split personality is part of the charm: the same pen feels different depending on where you use it.

Look closely under a microscope and you will notice something interesting. Unlike the flat vermilion or the black versions of the 845, where faint brush strokes from the lacquer application are visible in raking light, the deep blue carries a fine sparkle of material suspended within the urushi itself. If you did not know better, you might mistake the finish for plain resin, but the lacquer is genuinely there, and verifying it is half the pleasure of owning an urushi pen.

Hardware is shared across the Custom 845 line: a black finial insert at the end, the traditional Pilot clip, a cap that angles upward and straightens only near the top, and two raised bands carrying the Custom 845 Urushi Pilot Made in Japan marking. The cap twists off with two full rotations.

Size and Comfort

This is a fairly large pen, larger than most people’s daily writers, and it wears that size well. The section flares gently at the lip and angles upward, with a small gold band before the step to the threads. The grip is on the thicker side, which many will enjoy, and the threads sit far enough back that they never interfere no matter where you hold the pen.

The pen can be posted, though doing so adds noticeable back weight. There is also a practical reason to leave the cap off: urushi is a natural material, and unnecessary stress on the finish is best avoided. Unposted, the pen is comfortable, well balanced, and a genuine pleasure to hold for long sessions.

Filling System

The Custom 845 ships with Pilot’s Con-70 converter, one of the higher-capacity converters available, and it accepts Pilot cartridges as well. Note that Pilot uses a proprietary filling system, so third-party cartridges and converters are not on the menu. For anyone planning heavy daily use, the Con-70 covers the bases nicely.

The Number 15 Nib

Under the cap sits Pilot’s number 15 nib, one of the standout features of this pen. It is 18 karat gold, two-toned, and available in fine, medium, broad, and double broad. The example here is a broad, paired with a plastic feed.

Pilot’s larger nibs have a reputation for a reason, and this one lives up to it. It writes with a smoothness that comes close to perfection, with just a hint of feedback even on the broad point. Push slightly and you can coax a touch of line variation out of it. Ink flow runs on the higher side of medium, which suits the broad point and keeps lines saturated without flooding.

Reverse writing is the one weak spot. It is a little scratchy and clearly not what this nib is designed for. For normal, even fast writing, though, it is genuinely spectacular.

Writing Performance

Ink choice matters with any gold nib, and Pilot’s own Iroshizuku Yama-budo, a vibrant purple, is a natural pairing that flatters the deep blue barrel. Callifolio Entrenoble is similar but slightly more saturated, and La Bonne Tache leans further into purple territory. Iroshizuku bottles themselves deserve a mention: easy to fill from, with a classy teardrop-shaped base.

On paper, the combination of the broad number 15 nib and a wet, saturated ink produces lines that look as good as they feel. This is a nib that rewards daily use.

Everyday Ownership

A pen’s real worth shows up in the rotation. In a week where five pens were inked for daily rotation, this one kept coming out of the case every morning while the other four sat untouched. That is about the strongest endorsement a pen can earn from its owner.

Things to Consider Before Buying

This is a pen with a comma-worthy list price at many retailers, and while show prices can come in well below that, it remains a significant purchase. The urushi finish demands a little care, particularly if you are in the habit of posting caps. Reverse writing is mediocre, and the proprietary filling system locks you into Pilot consumables. None of these are dealbreakers, but they are worth knowing before committing.

Buying Advice

If you have been curious about urushi but hesitated at the price of Pilot’s flagship Custom Urushi, the Custom 845 offers genuine urushi on ebonite with a superb number 15 nib at a meaningfully lower price point. Buying at a pen show gives you the chance to handle it first and, often, to negotiate a better price than retail. The deep blue is the newest colorway and pairs beautifully with the existing black and vermilion versions if you are building a set.

Conclusion

The Pilot Custom 845 in deep blue is a pen that earns its place through finish, nib, and daily charm rather than gimmicks. It looks different in every light, writes close to flawlessly, and has a way of crowding out everything else in the rotation. For anyone ready to step into urushi territory, it is an easy recommendation.