In this video I’m unboxing the Pilot Custom 74 Lavender Fog and giving you my very first impressions as I get it out of the box, look over all the details, and ink it up for the first time. This is a US-exclusive colorway, and the star of the show is that opaque lavender barrel—soft, cozy, and honestly just really pretty in person. I also do closeups of the trim and the rhodium-plated 14k gold nib so you can see the finish and how everything looks together. I walk through what’s included (yes, it comes with the CON-70 converter), then I do a first fill and a quick swatch with Van Dieman’s Professional Ink in Stone. After that, I do my initial writing test so you can see how it lays down ink right away and get a feel for the nib on paper. If you’ve been eyeing the Custom 74 but you weren’t sure about this special edition, this is a really straightforward look at the pen’s design, what you get in the box, and what it’s like in that very first inking session.