The Edit — Craft
Pilot Parallel Pen Set: A Calligraphy Starter Profile
Pilot's set gives a beginner 4 broad-edge pens, 1.5 to 6 mm, with no dipping and no nib to set up. Owners call it good value and easy to use. The ink flow is the complaint, too little for some and too much for others.
This guide is research-led: we have not handled these units ourselves. If you buy through our links we may earn a commission — it never changes a pick. How we choose
No pen on this page was used or tested. This is an evidence profile of the Pilot Parallel Pen Set, reading its published specification against what owners consistently report, with 3 alternatives ranked as How we choose describes.
Best for Modern brush lettering
Watch for Not a broad-edge pen
Best for Italic, gothic and uncial
Watch for Ink flow varies
Best for A guided gift
Watch for Markers, not a broad edge
Best for A boxed traditional set
Watch for Ink that stops flowing
The Pilot set covers 4 nib widths without a dip pen
The set holds 4 pens with nib widths of 1.5, 2.4, 3.8 and 6.0 mm, each marked by a coloured cap. Each nib is 2 flat plates rather than a split dip nib, and each pen runs on water-based ink cartridges.
That is the practical appeal for a beginner. There is no ink bottle to knock over and no nib to clean or set in a holder.
Pilot Parallel Calligraphy Pen Set, 1.5, 2.4, 3.8 and 6 mm
4 broad-edge cartridge pens from 1.5 to 6 mm, with colours that blend when 2 nibs touch.
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| Nib widths | 1.5, 2.4, 3.8, 6.0 mm |
|---|---|
| Nib | Parallel plates, not a dip nib |
| Ink | Water-based cartridges |
Owners call it good value, easy to use and versatile, and several use it for art as well as lettering. One notes it works on a range of papers.
Ink flow is where reports divide: some owners describe a steady flow, some report trouble with it, and others find the pens put down more ink than they want.
Buy it if
- Italic, gothic and uncial practice
- No dipping, no nib to prepare
Don't buy it if
- Pointed-pen scripts such as copperplate
Broad-edge pens suit italic, gothic and uncial
A broad-edge pen makes thick and thin strokes from the angle of the nib, not from pressure. That makes it the tool for traditional hands such as italic, gothic, uncial and Roman capitals.
It is the wrong tool for copperplate or Spencerian script, which need a pointed, flexible nib. Calligraphy nib sizes and paper weight explains the 2 nib families and the paper each one needs.
Pilot’s pens blend 2 colours when the nibs touch
Pilot describes touching the nibs of 2 pens loaded with different colours to produce gradated lettering. The set includes bonus ink cartridges. For a beginner, blending is a reason to keep practising rather than a reason to buy.
A single Pilot Parallel 3.8 mm pen is also sold on its own, and rates 4.6 across 5,923 ratings. It is a way to try the system with 1 width before committing to all 4.
Tombow’s brush pens suit modern lettering
Tombow’s Fudenosuke 2-pack rates higher, 4.7 against the Pilot set’s 4.6, but it answers a different question. It is a brush pen for modern hand lettering, where pressure turns a hairline into a thick downstroke.
The pack holds a soft and a hard tip with black pigment ink. For the hard-tip pen, Tombow USA recommends smooth paper such as HP Premium32 laser paper, tracing paper, marker paper or vellum.
Tombow Fudenosuke Brush Pen, 2-Pack, Soft and Hard Tip
A soft and a hard brush tip with black pigment ink, where pressure sets the stroke width.
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| Tips | 1 soft, 1 hard brush |
|---|---|
| Ink | Water-based pigment, black |
| Style | Brush lettering |
Owners call these excellent for beginners, especially for lettering and bullet journals, and praise the smooth writing. The soft tip is the one owners single out for its smooth flow.
The ink draws mixed comments on its colour and depth.
Buy it if
- Modern lettering and bullet journals
- A beginner who wants 2 pens, not a kit
Don't buy it if
- Italic or gothic scripts with a broad edge
June & Lucy’s kit teaches as well as writes
June & Lucy’s kit pairs a hardcover workbook, bound with a gold spiral, with 6 marker pens in 4 sizes from extra-fine to brush. Owners single out the numbered strokes and the number of practice pages.
It is a lettering kit rather than a broad-edge set, so it teaches a modern style. It suits a gift for someone starting from zero better than the Pilot set does.
June & Lucy Calligraphy Kit for Beginners with Workbook
A hardcover workbook with numbered strokes and 6 marker pens in 4 sizes.
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| Book | Hardcover, gold spiral |
|---|---|
| Pens | 6 markers, 4 sizes |
| Guarantee | 30-day money back |
Owners praise the decorated hard cover and a workbook that explains each step. Several call it worth the price, and one describes it keeping them busy over the summer.
The listing states a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Buy it if
- A gift for someone starting from zero
- Learning from numbered strokes
Don't buy it if
- Traditional broad-edge scripts
Mont Marte’s set has the most pieces and the most ink complaints
Mont Marte’s 32-piece set includes 4 refillable pens, 5 nibs, 20 ink cartridges, an ink pump and 2 booklets. It names Roman, round hand, italic, gothic and uncial among the styles it covers.
Owners like it as a Christmas gift and say it suits beginners and experienced letterers alike. The recurring complaint is ink that stops flowing mid-stroke, which is the fault most likely to put a beginner off.
Mont Marte Calligraphy Set, 32 Piece
4 refillable pens, 5 nibs, 20 cartridges and 2 booklets, where ink flow is the recurring complaint.
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| Pens | 4 refillable, 5 nibs |
|---|---|
| Ink | 20 cartridges, pump |
| Guides | Intro and exercise booklets |
The most complete box here, with 2 booklets to learn from. Quality draws mixed comments, and owners disagree on how easy it is to use.
Ink that will not flow properly is the complaint that recurs. The Pilot set covers the same broad-edge styles with fewer parts.
Buy it if
- A boxed gift with everything included
- Trying several traditional hands
Don't buy it if
- Anyone who will be put off by skipping ink
For more ideas in the same gift category, the best beginner craft kits covers kits beyond calligraphy.