WatermanCarène Black Sea Fountain Pen | High-Gloss Black with Palladium Plated Trim | Fine Nib with Blue Ink Cartridge | Gift Box

The Carène is a bit of a sleeper. Waterman as a brand seems thoroughly uninterested in the hobbyist fountain pen scene, so it has little social media presence, but it does have excellent old world customer service run by actual people rather than algorithms or bots. Their aftermarket nib service is superlative! And this pen is a beauty.But you must be OK with hard nibs. Completely inflexible but it writes very smoothly, with a distinctive Waterman feel, and is not at all fussy or delicate. Metal cap and body construction with great balance and weight and looks sharp. Makes a nice gift, as well as a daily writer. Worth considering among other more popular hard gold nib pens like the Platinum 3776 or Sailor Pro Gear. My personal preference is actually for softer nibs and yet I like the Carène enough to have two!A few cons:--Plastic grip section scuffs from repeated cap on-off (the marks are noticeable enough to bother me).--Ink seems to dry out quickly if not in regular use, compared to other slide-snap caps.--Doesn't matter in the black colorway, but placing the same black grip on everything regardless of pen body color/finish makes some colorways look a bit cheap to my eyes.--Cost. I was lucky enough to snag at deep discount here on Amazon, so it isn't always at/near retail, but you may have to wait and hunt.

Unwittingly, I'd become a Lamy and Pilot snob. The Lamy 2000 and Dialog CC, Pilot's E95s, Custom 72, 823, and 743 -- what more did I need? Then I saw a review favorably comparing the Waterman Carène and Lamy 2000 and realized that what I liked aesthetically about a posted Pilot E95s with its partly-hooded nib is echoed in the unique look of the Carène's partly hooded nib. But how would I like it as an everyday writer? Oh, I do, I do. With a converter filled with Waterman's Serenity Blue ink, the Carène's fine nib is a joy to use. i like it as much as any of my Lamy's or Pilots while it's not so glassy as some of that lot. Other than the niggling aesthetic flaw of the nib and finial not "automatically" lining up and a slimmer than I prefer grip section, I appreciate everything else about the pen. It is a classic. My hand has not tired writing page after page of cursive with it.

The media could not be loaded. Handsome pen. Weighs about 33g feels like quality while using it. My favorite fountain pen. The clip is nicely hinged and has a flare lip that enables it to easily be seated in my pocket.

This Waterman fountain pen is the perfect size and weight for me. I love the fine point nib that writes super smooth, without skips or smudges. Definitely an upgrade from other more pricey fountain pens that I own. Very happy with this purchase.

I've been using this pen now for a couple of months. While I have several Watermans, this one has become my absolute favorite. It's a smooth writer, regardless of which ink I'm using (and I enjoy switching frequently). The nib doesn't have quite the flexibility of many other nibs, but it's just enough to produce nicely drawn letters.Aesthetically, I've never seen one like it. The nib is embedded in the pen body providing a unique design that's sure to be an attention getter. Unlike many of my other fountain pens, this one doesn't waste much ink and I can't think of a single occasion when I even had the tell tale fountain pen stain on my writing fingers while using this pen. The balance is extraordinary and such a pleasure to write with. I sincerely couldn't be happier with my purchase.

This one is a classic. Gorgeous looks, writes well (wet writer), and a return to waterman for me.My first pen was a Phileas. I didn’t keep it. But it was an impulse buy at a local store. It did however introduce me to fountain pens.Fast forward 10 years. Having tried some other watermans and been unimpressed, I decided to get the carene simply for looks and adding to the collection.Whereas the other watermans were 3 of 5 stars at best, the carene is gorgeous and writes extremely well. Super smooth nib.I would pair this with a wet ink like J Herblin Perle Noire for best results. I also like it Waterman inks too.

This pen is the real thing. It writes incredibly well and is a wonder to behold. But as other reviews have noted, these seem to be B-stock items with imperfections. I could not get my pen to align (tailpiece to nib) and my converter was incredibly tight to the point that it was difficult to use. These may be small issues, but when you pay for a luxury pen, you don't want it with glaring imperfections.