17% of 446 verified Pilot Metropolitanowners don't recommend it — based on real owner comments from Reddit, enthusiast forums, and YouTube.
For balance: 70% recommend it. This page collects the complaints so you know what you're signing up for — read the full owner report for both sides. How we score
“One of the things that bugs me about my Metro is how it always wants to throw itself onto the floor. The damn thing is determined to destroy itself.”— @evilcritter on YouTube
“I can't get past the big step down from the body to the grip. I've tried to like the pen, but it's just uncomfortable to hold.”— @IreneFaivre on YouTube
“This was my first fountain pen and it almost turned me away completely.”— @AbundantlyBlessed573 on YouTube
“Sadly that section/barrel step down makes the Metro one of the most uncomfortable pens in my collection. The only way it would work for me is if I completely changed my grip.”— @davidanderson3425 on YouTube
“You know what never wrote well for me? The Pilot Metropolitan.”— Flourpot_FountainPs on Reddit
“The Metro used to be a cheap pen with a lot of weight added on the rear for those who want it to feel higher quality, and that was fine, but the result was a hodgepodge of a basic thin section, a large and heavy body, and an annoyingly huge step between. It posted poorly too. At the prices it goes for now, it just feels too kludgy and underdeveloped to seriously consider.”— @iainMacAdam-2119 on YouTube
“The Plaisir is the pen I bought to replace my almost decade old Pilot Metropolitan that I wasn't really enjoying”— soulonfirexx on Reddit
“I hate how opening the cap causes ink to be ejected into the cap. I hate how the cap doesn’t post, and I hate how I always try to post it and the get my hands in an inky mess because of the wet ink inside the cap.”— @snoweymonkey on YouTube
“I dislike both of these pens, the Safari because of the obnoxious grip, and the Pilot Metropolitan because of the huge step between the barrel and section.”— sneckmonster on Reddit
“My first two fountain pens (after I abandoned them in my youth like everyone else) were a Lamy Safari and a Pilot Metropolitan. I still use the Lamy, with its gorgeous stub nib. I haven't used the Metropolitan in 10 years.”— @BerndtNorten on YouTube
“I bought the Metro as my first pen, but I couldn’t stand how uncomfortable it is to write with, which is a shame, because it’s such a lovely pen to hold, uncap and cap.”— @chi-towncalifornia5916 on YouTube
“I had a Pilot Metropolitan that cracked in the section and started leaking ink onto my fingers. Searching on this sub, I found that it was common enough that some others had posted about it.”— Redbudsnroses on Reddit
Not complaints — practical notes from owners that didn't affect the score.
“i think the pilot metropolitan or the Prera are awesome entry level fountain pens that punch above their weight. But the solid steel nib is a bit scratchy and gives a lot of feedback.”— Stumbling_Corgi on Reddit
“I squeezed a drop of ink out of the pen, didn't allow it to drip off the nib, but let the feed to absorb the ink. This trick paid off and the pen is writing good now.”— anonymous on Fountain Pen Network
“got tired of the weight and narrow grip, and swapped the nib and feed into the Prera”— anonymous on Fountain Pen Network
“My Metropolitan wrote kinda dryish on copy paper, I thought mine was defective.”— anonymous on Fountain Pen Network
“nothing some paper towels didnt fix and i've had no issues while writing”— cmdr_reilith on Reddit
“don't have a metropolitan but the Lamy is so easy to clean”— Fabulous-Location775 on Reddit