Description The Pilot Vanishing Point fountain pen in Black Carbonesque has a unique design – the 18k gold nib retracts! This ensures the pen is ready at the push of a button. The moment you are ready to write, so is the Vanishing Point. Once the writing is done, an ingeniously designed door closes over the retracted nib to prevent the ink from drying out. The Pilot Black Carbonesque Vanishing Point features a black carbonesque design lacquer over a metal body with rhodium-plated trim and a rhodium-plated 18k gold nib. The clip is designed to hold the nib in an upward position when the pen is not in use which prevents the pen from accidentally opening when clipped to a shirt pocket. The Pilot Vanishing Point fountain pen is packaged with a proprietary piston converter, Pilot cartridges and a cartridge cap. Please note that Japanese nib sizes tend to run on the finer side, so your line with will be thinner than with a western nib. Other Pilot Vanishing Point replacement nib units are available, and come in 3 plating options and several nib sizes, and additional Pilot ink cartridges can be purchased as well. We offer Free Shipping on all orders over $59 for US customers, and for orders over $250 for our Canadian customers. Diameter - Body 13.0mm .5" Diameter - Grip Section 11.8mm .46" Length - Body 140.0mm 5.5" Length - Cap Length - Pen Closed 140.0mm 5.5" Length - Pen Posted Weight - Body Only 30.0g 1.0oz Weight - Cap Only Weight - Entire Pen 30.0g 1.0oz For our purposes: Body Diameter is measured at the widest position of the barrel. Grip Section Diameter is measured at the spot where most pen users hold their pen. Body Length is from the end of the barrel to the tip of the nib. Body Weight and Overall Pen Weight includes a converter, if one comes with the pen.