Editing Pilot Vanishing Point (section)

=== Development and introduction ===

Pilot began developing a capless fountain pen in 1960. The project sought to
combine the writing characteristics of a fountain pen with the speed and
convenience increasingly associated with ballpoint pens. A central technical
problem was preventing the exposed nib and feed from drying when the pen was
not in use.<ref name="pilot-development" />

The first Capless was released in 1963. It used a rotating mechanism: turning
the rear portion of the barrel opened the shutter and extended the nib. Pilot
describes it as the world's first fountain pen without a conventional
cap.<ref name="pilot-history" /><ref name="pilot-100">{{cite web
 |url=https://www.pilot.co.jp/100th/story/capless.html
 |title=Fountain pen “Capless”
 |publisher=Pilot Corporation
 |language=Japanese
 |access-date=29 October 2026
}}</ref>

In 1964 Pilot introduced the first push-button Capless. This version could be
operated with one hand and established the basic arrangement used by most
later models: pressing the button extends the nib through the shutter, while
pressing it again retracts the nib and closes the opening.<ref
name="pilot-history" />

The Capless received an award at an international gift fair in Paris in April
1964. In 1966, Pilot received an Ōkōchi Memorial Technology Prize for the
invention and practical development of the Capless.<ref name="pilot-100" />