CROSS Bailey Black Lacquer Medium Nib Fountain Pen incl. Premium Gift Box – Refillable Catridge Pen

I purchased the red and chrome one and it does look great. The ink flow though is terrible. I tried it with the cartridge that came with it and also with a converter and Montblanc ink which I know is quality. If you force ink into the nib it writes smoothly for a page or so then dries up and becomes unusable. The Waterman Expert I bought recently is really great and if you want something stunning, go for the Waterman Carene in Amber with a fine nib. The Carene medium nib is a little broad. The Carene is a masterpiece and writes better than my Montblanc 146.Dave.................Further to this review Amazon sent me a replacement pen and the new pen is also terrible with ink flow constantly stopping but ink leaks out everywhere. This is with a cartridge or the proper converter. I will be sending both pens back and sticking to my Waterman's and Montblanc.Dave.

The Cross Bailey fountain pens are fairly average, with medium stainless steel nibs that are best described as "above adequate". Where this off-shoot of that range shines though, quite literally, is in the lacquered finish.The lacquer on the red and blue pens is simply gorgeous. They each have a deeply hued outer layer which somehow seems to provide a translucent depth to a silvery under-layer, creating the impression of depth. They catch the light well and the silver-coloured ornamentation sits well with the colours.I have specifically bought the red and blue editions to use with red and blue inks, using the Cross converters which are sold separately. They are a fine addition to the collection at the price point Cross sells them at, and I would recommend them to any enthusiast looking to expand at low cost.

The pen is really good and writes beautifully. Many people have commented that the cap falls off when posted and I too had this problem. However, after a few weeks of use, carrying in my pocket and also washing the cap out with hot dilute washing up liquid and rinsing thoroughly in hot water, the cap stays firmly in place. I think there must be some manufacturing lubricant left on the surfaces and once this is removed, either by wear or washing, the cap will stay on.

It's specified on this pen's description that it comes with 2 cartridges. It doesn't, nor does it come with a converter. So I received the pen, but can't use it... Seems like a decent pen otherwise and very comfortable to hold.Update: it doesn't work with standard cartridges, you need the cross slim ones although it was stated in the answered questions that it does take standard ones.This has been the most frustrating experience of any product I've ordered on amazon

A gorgeous pen. Feels lovely to hold, if a bit lighter than expected. The cap was somewhat difficult to remove at first, I was actually worried I was doing to break it. But that is probably better than it falling off all the time.However, I can't really review past that.Despite the Specs saying "Includes 2 Black Fountain Pen Cartridges (#8921, other colours are available), that are as neat and easy-to-use as a ballpoint or a rollerball refill" there are in fact no ink cartridges included. So until I can get my hands on some, I can't comment on the writing quality.

This arrived today, and looks great, but it does not write properly, the ink flow jams all the time. It arrived in a box that had a space for two pens, as if it had been meant for a gift set. The pen is £20 cheaper on Amazon than in John Lewis, however, it doesn't work and it I am not sure if it is a genuine Cross Pen! I will contact Cross tomorrow for advice, and then will report what they say to Amazon

I have wanted a decent fountain pen for a while now, as I do a fair bit of writing at work.Cross has a very good reputation for manufacturing quality pens, and I wasn't dissapointed.This pen is all I expected, easy to fit cartridges, easy to fit an ink converter (available separately) and, ultimately, easy to write with.No pressure on nib required and it glides across the page.The only issue that I have, is the lid does not sit on the pen end when writing, which is where I like to keep it.For this reason only, I have deducted 1 star.

I ordered this pen with some trepidation and I was not wrong, I was suprised how small the pen was, the pen looks very nice with gold trim and feels nice in the hand, for aesthetics I would give it 5/5. The cap is quite difficult to get off and when posted the cap works loose, the pen writes smoothly like a gel pen, but my biggest gripe with this pen was it writes with a huge thick furry line, however it does write a little bit better on good quality paper 100g + I was told by Cross that there is no fine nib for this model, could not be bothered to send back, mine will be on EB shortly. There is nothing like going to a proper pen shop and trying out a pen for yourself.