Carmen Rivera Pens - Pilot Capless/Namiki Vanishing Point History Page

Pilot Vanishing Point Pen¹History*

The Namiki Vanishing Point retractable fountain pen was launched in Japan during the early 1960s by the Pilot Corporation. Originally called "Capless," it had one of the most complex inner mechanisms ever made. The twist-retractable nib action was a remarkable innovation, making the Capless a truly sensational pen. Its tiny nib was flat and the pen body was made of a new, satin-gold (aluminum) material. Later, an economy Capless model with push button retraction was introduced for students. Besides twist and knock-on (push button) types, the evolution of Pilot's Capless line incorporated a clip-slide variation as well. These styles were made in different color finishes with versions for seniors, juniors and ladies. In 1973 the Capless fountain pen name was changed to the Vanishing Point.

I just listed a number of Vanishing Point fountain pens for sale, as well as other Pilot pens, and will update the Vanishing Point history page very soon.

(In the table below I have put question marks on months that I am still researching and have not been able to confirm. The months and/or years in parentheses are the Japanese release dates that are different than the U.S.)

Year	Launch	Function	Body
1963	November	Twisting	Aluminum
	December	Twisting	Gold Filled
1964	May	Push Button	Stainless Steel & Plastic
	August	Push Button	Gold Plated & Plastic
	October	Push Button	Chrome Plated & Plastic
1965	March	Push Button	Aluminum & Plastic
	June (July)	Push Button	Aluminum & Plastic (Short Body)
	September (November)	Twisting	Aluminum & Plastic
	November (October)	Push Button	Aluminum & Plastic (Short Body)
1966	May (July)	Twisting	Gold Plated & Aluminum
	May (?) Not sure if released in U.S. (July)	Twisting	Gold Plated
1968	May	Sliding Clip	Stainless Steel & Plastic
1971	June	Push Button	Stainless Steel & Plastic
	(June?) Not released in U.S.	Push Button	Stainless Steel & Plastic
1973	December	Push Button	Stainless Steel & Aluminum
1981	December	Push Button	Stainless Steel & Plastic
(1987)	(December?) Possibly released in U.S. June 1990	Push Button	Stainless Steel & Plastic
1990	June (?)	Push Button	Stainless Steel & Plastic
1994	January (Namiki Brand) December 1999 (Namiki Brand Retired)	Push Button	Stainless Steel & Plastic
	October (?)	Push Button	Stainless Steel & Plastic
1998	December (Released only in Japan)	Push Button	Gold Plated & Lacquered Enamel
1999	October (Pilot Vanishing Point reintroduced in U.S.)	Push Button	Gold Plated & Lacquered Enamel
	December (Released only in Japan)	Push Button	Gold Plated & Lacquered Enamel - ("Check" Pattern)
2000	May	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered Enamel
	October (October 2003)	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquer (Black Carbonesque)
	December (Alloy nib, released only in Japan)	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered Enamel
2001	October	Push Button	Rhodium
	October (Namiki) (November 2003-Pilot)	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered Abalone Shell (Raden)
2002	October (October 2003)	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered (Blue Carbonesque)
2003	May (Limited U.S. release of 1,500)	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered Enamel (Mandarin Yellow)
	October	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered Enamel (Chrome)
	October (Limited U.S. release of 1,500) (September 2004)	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered (Red Carbonesque)
2004	September (Released only in Japan)	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered (Green Carbonesque)
2005	March (Released only in Japan)	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered Enamel (Turquoise)
	November (First released in Japan - Summer 2006 release in France)	Push Button	Rhodium & Painted Aluminum (DECIMO)
2006	July 15	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered Enamel (Slate Gray)
	September (Released only in Japan)	Twisting	Rhodium & Lacquered Enamel (FERMO)
	November (Limited U.S. release of 1,235)	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered Enamel (Ice Blue)
2007	June (Limited edition released only in Japan - 400 pens)	Push Button	Chromium & Painted Aluminum (SESENTA Brown Marble)
	June (Limited edition released only in Japan - 100 pens)	Push Button	Chromium & Painted Aluminum (SESENTA Red Marble)
	June (Limited edition released only in Japan - 100 pens)	Push Button	Chromium & Painted Aluminum (SESENTA Blue/Green Marble)
	September (Numbered limited edition - 300 Japan/ 900 U.S. release out of 2007 pens worldwide)	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered Enamel (Orange)
	November	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered Enamel (Gun Metal Gray)
2008	August (Numbered limited edition - 900 U.S. release out of 2008 pens worldwide)	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered Enamel (Purple)
	September	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered Enamel (Yellow)
2009	Spring (Limited edition released only in Japan - 800 pens)	Push Button	Rhodium & Painted Aluminum (DECIMO "sparkly" Red)
	Spring (Limited edition released only in Japan - 800 pens)	Push Button	Rhodium & Painted Aluminum (DECIMO "sparkly" Blue)
	August (Numbered limited edition - 850 U.S. release out of 2009 pens worldwide)	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered Enamel (Vivid Red)
2010	February 12	Push Button	Rhodium & Lacquered Enamel (Brown)

In 1994 Pilot Corporation of America launched its Namiki line of fine writing instruments in the United States. The Vanishing Point, with its unique, innovative technology soon became a top seller. A plastic body in five colors, stainless steel accents and 14K gold nib made Namiki's Vanishing Point a veritable must-have fountain pen.

In October 1999 Pilot launched a break-through version of this awesome fountain pen. The new Vanishing Point bears the brilliant retractable design and ingenious technology, but is reborn in a refined, elegant style with a larger size, durable metal body and attractive gold or rhodium accents.

In December 1999 Pilot retired the Namiki brand name for all new Vanishing Points except for the Raden.

In November 2005 Pilot Japan returned to the narrower barrel design and added new vibrant colors to create the Decimo line, and in September of 2006 they released the Fermo with a twisting barrel end.

An Important Note: Pilot has in the past released different colors of the same model of pen at different times. For example, in January 1994 Pilot first introduced the faceted "Namiki" Vanishing Point in black and stainless steel, and in matte black. Then, in October (?) 1994, they released the same model in green, burgundy and blue. In the above history page I have tried to show when every model/color was released, although I do not show all the released colors. My next project is to figure out exactly what colors were released with each model. The 1965 releases will take a bit of work because they came in a wide range of plastic colors and metal finishes. I would appreciate an e-mail from anyone who knows what colors and finishes were released during this time period.

* I originally used the Namiki Certificate of Retirement (that was released in late 1999 when Pilot announced the retirement of the 1994 "Namiki" Vanishing Point pen) as a starting point of the launch dates and descriptions of the various models of Capless/Vanishing Point pens. I have revised the table as I acquired new information. I have included a revision date at the bottom of this section for those of you who want to keep up with the latest changes to the compendium. Please e-mail me if you have any additions, comments or corrections.

¹Namiki, Pilot Corporation. 1999. Certificate of Retirement, Namiki Vanishing Point (1994-1999)

Click below for Pilot/Namiki Vanishing Point/Capless fountain pen ink filling instructions.

Ink Cartridge
(Large Document - English & Japanese)

Press-Plate (Squeeze) Converter and Twist Converter

Twist Converter with Ink Bottle

Last revision: November 3, 2009

carmen@carmenriverapens.com