HONG DIAN M2 Black Forest Mini Fountain Pen, Medium Soft Golden Nib & Sleek Shape Brass Short Pocket Travel Pen (Glossy Brass)

The HongDian M2 Black Forest Mini is a masterclass in compact engineering, proving that incredible performance can come in a small package. The standout feature is undoubtedly the exceptional build quality; its all-metal construction feels remarkably sturdy and premium, offering a weighted balance that defies its pocket-sized dimensions. Despite its portability, the writing experience is top-tier, featuring a nib that glides effortlessly across the page with reliable consistency. The sleek, tactical design of the Black Forest series translates beautifully to this mini format, making it both a rugged everyday carry tool and a sophisticated piece of stationery that fits comfortably in any pocket or planner loop.

Items were as described and arrived when expected. The pen itself is compact and well made. The nib on mine was super smooth right out of the box. Really a pleasure to write with. This Hongdian M2's natural comparison product is to the Kaweco pen. Similar design, but 2/3 the price, and includes a converter, which the Kaweco charges an extra $15 for (What the Heck, Kaweco?). Great travel pen, weighs practically nothing, reasonably priced and works the way it is supposed to. What's not to like? This does not feel like a budget pen. It is a serious little writer that is well designed and punches above its weight class in terms of its feel on the page. Well done, Hongdian! I have bought several more.

Sometimes it can be easy to dismiss what one might initially think of as another Chinese company pumping out a mass produced product. Because of the quantity of these sorts of companies one can assume their quality is lessened, and sometimes that is the case. But not here. Hongdian does an INCREDIBLE job with their products! I’ve been using fountain pens since 2003 and used Schaefer, Parker, Montefiore, etc. and these Hongdian’s are BY FAR the most functional, sleek, smooth-writting, and well crafted pens I’ve seen. All the fit and finish are spot on. The nibs are deburred and well rounded for the smoothest writing experience you can have (gel pens don’t compare). They are sleek and easy to carry with you and use on a day to day basis. You can just feel they’re solid, not cheaply made, with excellent attention to detail. Their refill system is simple and affordable. I love these pens , and the price point is mind blowing. If you’re planning on buying one, then BUY TWO. They are THAT good!

This pen is the latest Hong Dian I've purchased, and just as excellent writer out of the package as the others. At the first cartridge it writes very nicely, with no scratchiness or delayed starting. It has the EF nib which is not quite as fine as a Japanese EF, but seems as fine or slightly more so than a typical European nib. Machining quality is excellent. Based on weight it is brass, and not brass color aluminum. It is somewhat hefty compared to a similar pen like the Kaweco Sport AL. The cap is threaded and holds securely, but is easy to unscrew. It is well balanced and comfortable to write with. The only quibble I have is with the clip. It is machined instead of stamped, with a separate spring. The clip shape is good and very smooth, but the spring is weak, especially relative to the weight. It came with a converter, but I loaded it with a Hong Dian cartridge. I've had good experience with the Hong Dian cartiridges in blue and black. They contribute to making the pens reliable, and so far with no leaking issues. Overall it is going to be a daily workhorse.

This is really a 4.5 or even 4.75 star review, so I figured it deserves the rounding up. That said, 5-stars is a perfect product to me, and this pen isn't perfect. Not too far off, though! The build quality is impressive overall and the nibs are unbelievably smooth. There's a bit of a tradeoff in that the EF is not especially fine, and in my experience, there's not a huge variance between EF, F, and Ms, but they're great nibs nonetheless. Mine have all worked very well out of the box with no additional tuning required. That alone is impressive, and they really write like a dream. I have yet to have a bad one, knock on wood. The converter capacity is reasonable for a pen of this size, although the fude (bent) nib is ink hungry. The other styles aren't especially so. With the cap posted, the pen is a comfortable size. It has a satisfying, spring-loaded clip. I have a few complaints, but they are minor and can all be fixed by the user, which is why the pen still gets high marks. First, it's very easy for the body to unscrew while unscrewing the cap. This quickly becomes frustrating. The o-ring is not quite thick enough, so replace it with one that is 8x5x1.5mm. Problem solved--I have not had a single accidental unscrewing since making the switch. Also, I personally find that when posting the cap, it's easy for the clip to dig into the side of my hand unless I align the clip with the nib. Then there's no digging. This is the smallest of annoyances, and frankly aligning the clip and nib looks sharp, anyway. Those are about the only less-than-stellar things I have to say about this small and mighty pen. Some neutral observations: the section is the same anodized aluminum as the rest of the pen. Some people may not love this material for a grip. It does not bother me, although I also do not tend to use this pen for very long writing sessions. Because it's aluminum, it can be scratched, but to me this is just kind of par for the course for the material. A lot of people will find the pen too small to use for anything but the briefest of notes without posting the cap, but many pocket pens are designed to be posted. It is a bonus (for multiple reasons) that the same nibs fit the Forest Series, M2s, and possibly some other Hong Dian pens. Given what is going on in the world, I don't know how much longer this pen will be $20, but that's what it costs as I write this, and it is EASILY worth that price.

Aside from the dented tin, the pen itself is fine. It is a bit larger than I imagined - I expected it to be more of a Kaweco sport size (The actual dimensions of the two are very close, but this pen just seems to have a bigger presence). The Hongian writes beautifully in EF (slightly broader line than a Japanese EF). I like the weight, and love the spring clip. Very attractive pen. Glad I purchased this over a much more expensive brass Kaweco. I probably won't bother saving for the bronze Kaweco, either. I really like this M2.

So this is a surprisingly nice pen at the price point. It is incredibly well machined and anodized aluminum! I have worked with extremely specific metal tolerances before and I know this is good machining, likely automated. I typically buy American made tools, raised by those that believe in American machining. I was taught that there are good and bad products that come from the USA, and China. Depending on the material, quality and price, I have bought some well made Chinese tools and items. This pen being one of them. I read some reviews where people swore Hongdian was as good as couple hundred dollar pens… decided to try it out. What’s important is this is an original designed Chinese item, not a knock off. I really knew it was quality when I opened it up, the converter is sturdy and also uses what I assume is aluminum. Absolutely no burs in the threading, threading is smooth with a well place o-ring. I was looking for something quite specific, portable, threaded, fountain, metal, fits in my journals pen loop. I did not really see any American or non Asian equivalents for this, I saw one and it was questionable and cost quite a bit more. I had been searching for a fountain pen that fit the pen holder in my Journal. Previously using a fisher bullet (terrible pen). This pen is a great compact size and it did fit with some slight stretching of the leather, nothing crazy. The threading of the cap and the clip were big deals for me. The threads are great security for escaping a mess! It’s also nice I can keep the pen holstered and unscrew it if I want to use it non posted, This pen can used BOTH ways! The clip is also metal, hopefully aluminum like the rest of it, but it’s spring loaded and you can’t see the spring! I can foresee possible paint chipping on the clip, but it’s seems pretty quality made. The EF nib is pretty smooth on mine, if you get one you don’t like I’m guessing the nib is where the quality issue would come from. Mine writes nicely wet with good flow, I can get a thinner line or feedback if I want. I like the versatility. I do like feedback to a point. It did feel slightly scratchy at first, but I believe the ink wasn’t flowing well due to me filling the converter. After filling from the nib it’s been perfect. Last but not least, I was not sure about the finial… seeing pictures I wasn’t a fan BUT It’s 2 cats as a yin-yang. It actually looks good and gives the pen character, it doesn’t look cheap and is a nice touch. It grew on me for sure. For 20$ I don’t see how you can go wrong with this pen at all. As prior service military I take care of my things and buy quality/heavy duty made things. I expect this pen could last for life if not lost!!! Also I wanted the black, it took a lot longer, funny how things work, I went for my Army green, it’s actually a beautifully anodized color, pictures don’t do it justice. Just buy the pen!!!

I work in the medical field, so my pens live a rough life — clipped to my lanyard, tossed in my scrubs pocket, or riding around in my bag between notes. I used this Hongdian M2 Mini every day for a few months, and there’s a lot I genuinely liked about it. The size and weight are perfect for constant writing. It feels sturdy in the hand, and the nib is excellent — smooth, reliable, and tough. I dropped it nib-first a couple times during busy shifts, and it kept writing like nothing happened. Where it disappointed me was durability. It’s advertised as brass, but after about four months of regular use, the finish started looking more like brass-coating than solid brass. The scratches got pretty intense pretty fast, even accounting for the daily grind of clinical work. I also had an issue with the ink cartridge occasionally coming loose inside the capped pen, which meant ink on the inside of the body (and on my hands) more than once. Not ideal when you’re trying to stay clean during a shift. The spring-loaded pocket clip is great in theory, but the tiny hinge pin kept sliding out. I’ve had to push it back in several times, and at this point I’m assuming it’s going to fall out for good. Bottom line: Fantastic nib, great feel, and a solid pen for getting into fountain pens. But if you need something that can take daily wear in a medical or active job, the body and hardware don’t hold up as long as expected. It served me well while it lasted, but I’ll be upgrading to something more durable next.