All posts by Scribble

Visconti Homo Sapiens x2

Meta-review, ,

A little bit of history Our species are not the first terrestrial hominids to make art, and therefore conceivably not the first to use a device like a pen for making marks. But we are, in all probability, the first on this planet to invent copperplate, so it’s perhaps not too bold for Visconti to name a pen design after us. Sed – ecce! – inter homi sapientes, de gustibus non est disputandum. We therefore did our best not to argue too much. Quite a mountain of history, actually Back in the 1970s, steady-state Luddites fought against two intellectual movements and lost twice, first to the constant expansion of the universe and then, down here on Earth, to plate tectonics. But our story starts about half a million years ago when the slow-motion collision of the African and Eurasian plates caused the growth and repeated eruptions of a stratovolcano known to successive civilisations as Etna. It’s held a place in myth and legend ever since, including as the prison of the monstrous Typhon, and as the source of much of Sicily’s soil has been ruled over by Greeks, Carthaginians, Romans, the offspring of King Rollo (no, really) and, for a brief but toothsome interval, a revolutionary squashed-fly biscuit. Etna also chucks out plenty of lava, of course, and Visconti gamely set out to make something of it. How it looks  The classic Homo Sapiens look is a black basaltic tube with a few metal rings and the signature Visconti bowed clip. If it’s under-stated in its usual dress it can be a lot more exotic as a special edition, and we were lucky enough to get our hands on a curious ‘special’ indeed, the Evolution – which looks like a Klingon tool for signing instantly broken peace treaties. How it feels  Sizeable, fairly hefty but not ridiculously heavy, for most of our reviewers. Most is not all, mind; at least one of our panel put the pen on the scales and declared it too weighty to live with. The clever bayonet closure (NB, not present on the Evolution) makes for a comfortable grip, though, and the weight is well-distributed. Visconti makes bold claims about the barrel material being hydroscopic, so that it still has a grip in sweaty hands, and although this is perhaps better tested in the summer it does seem to work quite well in practice. How it fills  This is a vacuum-filler, and it sucks in a voluminous gulp of scribbling juice without much effort on the user’s part. There’s no way to use cartridges, of course, but if you’re in the market for a pen this pricey a bottle of decent ink is unlikely to exceed the budget. Crucially, how it writes…  Now here hangs a tale. Originally, the Homo Sapiens employed palladium nibs which proved notoriously difficult to tune (and harder still to keep in trim). Our duo exemplifies recent alternatives; a usually well-behaved and slightly bouncy gold nib or, for the Evolution, a tubular steel nib which is firm but smooth. A pleasure on either count, although they are very different beasts. The gold nib on our test pen afforded some hard starts to a couple of reviewers, but not to the degree that made writing impossible – and as it flowed adequately for others ink choice may be a critical factor there. Another vital Homo Sapiens tip, which we wish Visconti would tell people directly, is to undo the blind cap a couple of turns before staring to write; this seems to reduce the risk of drying-up considerably.

Pen! What is it good for?  In standard trim it’s probably sober enough for the office – although some of the special editions might frighten the horses! The new gold nibs are lovely to write with, though, so this is also ideal for writing a diary or personal correspondence. It’s for keeps either way, though. VFM  These are very good pens, no doubt, but compared to other premium Italian offerings the value proposition is sometimes perhaps a little dicey. The Evolution tipped over into four figures, and that’s hard to justify for a steel-nibbed pen, however artistically assembled. Choose with care. The only way is ethics  These are made in Italy and (unless someone gets a really harsh cut of the fee) no-one’s being under-remunerated at this price. If you can afford one, enjoy it with a clear conscience!If this isn’t quite your cup of tea, but almost…  There are new special editions of the Homo Sapiens out most years. Bide your time, save up, and pounce as soon as you see one you like. Or, if you want a posh pen from a different part of Italy, Scribo and Pineider may have a competing claim upon your attention. Our overall recommendation  Try one in the hand, if you can – but if you love it, that’s your pocket money spent for a while!

Where to get hold of one  Your fountain pen emporium of choice; Visconti is widely stocked. This meta-review references:

Thanks to  Manuscript, who as welling making great calligraphy kit themselves are also Visconti’s UK distributor – and sent these pens our way to put to the test.

Kaweco Perkeo new flavours

Meta-review, ,

A little bit of history  We’ve reviewed the Perkeo before, so the basics have already been covered. To recap briefly; this is a Kaweco’s entry-level offering for those who find the budget version of the Sport a little too diminutive. The model has served well enough in the market for 2021 to bring some interesting new colours and a three-nib calligraphy set to the market.

How it looks  Like a Sport cap with a full-sized barrel on the back, essentially. ‘Nout wrong with that! But the new colour-schemes really add something, especially the splendid ‘breezy teal’ and the icily cool demonstrator version with its unusual clear feed.

How it feels  Light and comfortable, with the three-sided grip section gently guiding pen posture.How it fills  There’s space for a brace of small international cartridges in the barrel, or a full-sized converter, which really looks the business in the demonstrator version.

Crucially, how it writes…  These take Kaweco’s rebranded Bock 060, a small #5 nib with plenty of options. The standard M and F nibs write well (and rather better than when the Perkeo was first released, we think), and the range of italic nibs in the calligraphy set impressed our favourite calligrapher, so no complaints there.

Pen! What is it good for?  The Perkeo is essentially aimed at the entry-level market, and fits there very well, but plenty of grown-up, seasoned fountain pen fans seem to rather like it too.

VFM  Generally retailing at £12 to £15 at the time of writing, this isn’t dirt-cheap but certainly isn’t highly-priced either.

The only way is ethics  Kaweco manufactures primarily in Germany so we have no concerns around labour conditions. Some of the packaging is plastic, but it’s not excessive.

If this isn’t quite your cup of tea, but almost…  If you like the Kaweco look but want something pocket-sized, of course there’s the trusty Sport – while if you want an entry-level German fountain pen but can’t find a Perkeo, the Pelikano occupies similar territory.

Our overall recommendation  If you’re penabling a member of the family who’ll prefer to pick up something which looks cool, you could do a lot worse than the pulchritudinous Perkeo.

Where to get hold of one  Almost any fountain pen retailer you choose; these aren’t hard to find at all.

This meta-review references:

Thanks to  Kaweco for providing samples for this meta-review

Pineider Arco Blue Bee

Meta-review, ,

A little bit of history  Florence is not as well-known as Bologna for pen production, at least on these shores, but Pineider have been in the game for a century or two. The venerable Florentine brand has, since 1774, supplied popes, princes and heads of state with paper and envelopes for correspondence, as well as the luxury leather cases to carry such materials. Earlier this century the brand went through some torrid times under a new owner, which did not really understand the stationery and related products market, and it nearly closed completely. However, in 2017 new investment and leadership from the Rovagnati family saved the business and sparked new life into Pineider. They have other, perhaps slightly more modestly-styled fountain pens too, but their UK distributor was keen to go straight for the dandy of the bunch – and as you can see, they delivered in full.

How it looks  OK, you’d have to squint pretty hard to mistake it for an actual bee, but you can see what they mean. The layers of gold and blue resin look organic in origin, and they’re polished to perfection. You may, quite reasonably, spend a day or two staring at the Arco Bee while it does its big glinting iridescence shtick before even attempting to write with it!  The 10mm cap also bears the company logo and the legend: “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog”.

How it feels  You will want to try writing with it, though, as soon as you see that nib. More on that in a moment. Out of the box, the pen looks and feels good in the hand; comfortable and ergonomic with no threads to irritate or distract the fingers. Measurement and comparison-wise the “Arco” Blue Bee has the classic medium-sized fountain pen dimensions: its length of 142mm and width of 12.7 mm and mm in the hand, so it measures up to pen reviewers’ typical Lamy Safari or Al-Star yardstick. It is quite a light pen: 32g in total, 16g uncapped. So in the hand this is a surprisingly light pen: robust, but not too hefty to wield lightly. ‘Just as well…

How it fills  There’s a proper, fully-fledged piston here – no cut-price captured converter nonsense. Pineider do it properly, and even throw a usable travelling inkwell into the package. The zoetrope ink window works, too. This really is intended for use, not just ornament. One of our reviewers wrote an eight-page letter (on A5 90 gsm vellum) without making much, if any, impression on the ink capacity and found it a pleasure to write with the pen for sustained periods.

Crucially, how it writes…  Like nothing else, honestly. This is the softest nib many of us can remember encountering! Perhaps because the tip on our test pen started at M, the line variation was actually quite modest, so this might not be a flex nib in the standard sense, but it’s certainly the very opposite of stiff. It’s for writing steadily with, while enjoying your evening off with some Slow Food, perhaps even in a Slow City. You get the picture; Italians know how to live, and it extends to stationery.

Some of our reviewers found that the nib appeared to perform better with less wet inks, and one detected some elements of ‘baby’s bottom’ and a sweet spot in the nib. With wetter inks the nib gushed. The pen’s documentation advises a lighter touch with the nib and its medium nib certainly did not need much pressure to leave a luxuriously wet line on standard Rhodia and Clairefontaine papers. Most loved the nib. A number of us used a drier indigo ink (Taccia Hokusai Koiai Blue) and it delivered a consistently wet flow. Those that played to the nib’s strengths found it wrote wet and smooth, and that it merited investing time to get familiar with.

Pen! What is it good for?  It would just be cruel to inflict an office environment on this fontoplumistic starlet. Take it your boudoir, your scriptorium in a secluded castle, to the best al fresco ristorante table you can find – but not, purlease, to work. *Shudders*

VFM  Oh golly, this isn’t cheap. Retailing at £680, few of us felt we could justify the price easily. But then again, two of the reviewers now own one, so…

The only way is ethics  This is made by proper artisans, and it shows. We have no qualms.

If this isn’t quite your cup of tea, but almost…  The Full Metal Jacket, one of Pineider’s slightly more affordable pens, is based upon essentially the same design – albeit with less gaudy materials.

Our overall recommendation  If it floats your boat and you can afford it, go for it. Unlike some bling, this also serves a genuine functional purpose; it’s lovely to write with.

Where to get hold of one  Bespoke fountain pen emporia of your acquaintance. It’s a limited edition, so Boolean logic is your friend!

This meta-review references:

Thanks to Pineider’s wholesaler in the UK for lending us this remarkable pen.

Shibui.North Kibo metal/urushi fountain pen

Meta-review, , , ,

A little bit of history  The history of urushi pen-making is probably beyond a quick piece on United Inkdom – but Mick has had a go at covering it in his review below! Our focus is perhaps more on the remarkable person trying to bring that tradition to new life on Tyneside. Ruth has studied in Japan and can read the manuals in the original, but she is determined to make something in her own style – and the results are truly extraordinary.

How it looks  The Kibo resembles… nothing else on earth. It’s a big hunk of hand-turned metal with urushi finishing which looks like it grew there over decades on another planet. Picking it up for a closer inspection is irresistibly tempting.

How it feels  The copper prototype we tested feels darned heavy, no doubt about it. If you like very substantial pens, this is splendid news. If that sounds a little intimidating, opt for aluminium – which looks just as remarkable. The urushi-derived finish also has a pleasantly tactile quality and lends a bit of extra grip, too.

How it fills  There’s room for a long international cartridge or a standard converter there, which should suit most needs.

Crucially, how it writes…  The Kibo takes a Bock #6, so how it writes is up to you! We popped a red lacquered steel unit on for this test, but if you prefer something less garish, the options are extensive. The weight of the pen is actually just right for writing.

Pen! What is it good for?  Signing weighty contracts, writing journals on robust paper (don’t use Tomoe!) – or, in extremis, defending yourself from marauders. In between, you might just find yourself staring at it in wonder.

VFM  The current Kickstarter has this individually-made artisan product for the ludicrously modest price of £120 for bare metal, or £150 for the yaketsuki finish. That’s a bargain, in our books. Everyone who has tested the prototype so far has found themselves putting in an order for a Shibui pen, which probably tells you all you need to know.

The only way is ethics  Ruth’s the real deal and we’ve got no qualms about materials, pricing or packaging here.

If this isn’t quite your cup of tea, but almost…  Talk to Ruth and work out a custom design. There are plenty of variations possible on the theme.

Our overall recommendation  If you like the idea of a Japanese pen-maker plying here trade on these shores, now might be the time to back this new brand. The Kibo is a remarkable writing tool at an extraordinarily reasonable price point, and it should be start of great things to come, too.

Where to get hold of one  Right now, Kickstarter is the place to be if you want one of these.

This meta-review references:

Thanks to  Ruth for letting us take part in the birth of a beauty!

Dodecagon and on and on

Meta-review, ,

A little bit of history  One of the most frequent questions we get asked here at the Inkdom’s secret bunker is what can be sensibly procured for careless beginners with small-ish hands. We don’t want to put them off with a lousy writing experience, but then again we’d rather it didn’t cost a fortune when the pen is sat on, melted over a Bunsen burner or lost on the school bus. Venerable British firm Manuscript, which has been supplying study desks since the days when that ink-well hole was in every-day use, turns out to be still in the business of providing a solution. Of course we had to give it a try!

How it looks  The Dodec has a slim barrel with, as the name suggests, twelve sides. The plastics in use range over sky blue turquoise, magenta, black and transparent finishes. With knurled grip sections the overall look is economical and functional, which is pretty much the Dodec proposition in a nutshell. There’s no mistaking it for a boring old ballpoint, though.

How it feels  Light and easy to handle – as long as you don’t grip that non-slip section too tightly. The nibs feel positively laser-guided on the page, though; there’s no tactile clue as to how astonishingly inexpensive the Dodec is.

How it fills  This is a straightforward cartridge filler, for most purposes. The dimensions are built to a budget and the barrel is actually too tight a fit for a standard Schmidt converter. However, the long ‘international’ cartridges sold by Waterman and Pelikan fit perfectly and allow for a useful squeeze when the nib has run dry – which can happen occasionally.

Crucially, how it writes…  Now here is where it gets more complicated than might have been expected from the tiny price tag. For Dodecs sport two completely different types of nib! The ‘handwriting’ nib is essentially a folded or butterfly design, which writes amazingly smoothly without employing a harder metal on the tip. It’s a great introduction to what a proper fountain pen feels like, and in the unlikely event of wearing it out a replacement is very, very affordable. The italics, meanwhile, are of the classic ‘crisp’ variety and come in a dizzying range of sizes which encourages experimentation – they’re fun to use but can also produce seriously impressive results too.

Pen! What is it good for?  The handwriting pen is obviously great for beginners but often impresses even grizzled gold nib fanatics, so it serves as everything from first fountain to everyday shopping-list-compiler. The italic nibs are made for having fun with, but even proper calligraphers approve. The Dodec is built down to a budget and this occasionally shows up as inconsistent ink flow, but reseating the friction-fit nib and feed when required is a very simple job. In return, you can afford to abuse them a bit and innovate. 

VFM  Shop around and you can often pick these up about £1.50 a go. You’d be hard-pressed to find a decent ballpoint at that sort of price – if such a thing even existed, of course. That’s hard to argue with, really.

The only way is ethics  Made right here in Blighty and using fairly minimal packaging, there’s not much to worry over and a fair bit to feel good about.

If this isn’t quite your cup of tea, but almost…  The rest of the Manuscript range is probably worth a look instead. Some people do prefer the rounder, less nobbly ‘Classic’ from the same stable, which is similarly stonking value.

Our overall recommendation  A Dodec costs less than a something a barista could make for you once upon a time, and you’ve had a year off from that so, seriously, what are you waiting for?

Where to get hold of one  The handwriting and italic versions of the Dodec can often be found in ‘thrift’ outlets like Boyes and The Range, as well as from educational stationers in bulk. If that doesn’t appeal, plenty of online retailers and art supply shops stock a full range and you can even buy them from Manuscript direct. Try an online search for ‘Manuscript Dodec’ and you may be pleasantly surprised.

This meta-review references:

Thanks to  Manuscript for kindly furnishing us with samples to show what the Dodec can do.

Schon DSGN insert-laboured-pun-here Brass in Pocket 6

Meta-review, ,

A little bit of history  The pocket pen used to be a veritable institution, albeit a sexist one. The assumption was that a big ‘manly’ pen would not fit into the small, unaccommodating sort of pocket with which ladies’ attire was furnished, and so in the early twentieth century many a manufacturer competed to fulfil this niche demand, in a manner which was, infuriatingly, both aesthetically pleasing and massively patronising. Nowadays such nonsense no long prevails and a pocket pen is a handy thing for anyone who likes pens and has, err, pockets. But slung into the side pocket of a pair of jeans, for instance, it’s going to take some punishment  – so Ian Schon, an enterprising Philadelphian, set out to engineer a durable solution.How it looks  It’s a short featureless tube, basically. If you’re still stuck in gender discrimination mode, it could conceivably be mistaken for a portable mascara applicator, or an emergency Spitfire cockpit canopy removal tool. Obviously these are both foolish misperceptions, but such is the fate of the common-or-garden dinosaur. The rest of us can either polish the brass or let it elegantly corrode (‘patina’ is a lovely euphemism for brass rust, isn’t it?), while wondering what lurks within.

How it feels  Heavy, obviously – it’s made of brass. No messing (k-bmm, tssk!). But when the Pocket 6 is fully assembled, which is easy enough with the screw-in cap posting arrangement, it both looks and feels like a fairly full-sized pen. If the weight is a bother, which it seemed to be for some of our reviewers, then lighter aluminium versions are also available – with some eye-popping paint jobs.

How it fills  This is a straightforward ‘short international cartridge’ affair – although there is always the trusty syringe for added variety.

Crucially, how it writes…  Pretty well, for this has a nice big #6 steel JoWo nib. Very few pocket pens house a full #6, and indeed only the Kaweco Supra comes close, so this is the essential MacGuffin which makes the Pocket 6 so unusual – and, obviously, which provides its name.Pen! What is it good for?  Errm, putting in your pocket, maybe? It will take some bashing-about and still write well when you need it to – although the time involved in reassembling the pen before writing might not make this the ideal jotter for very quick notes.

VFM  Reasonably competitive. in our view. With price tags usually well into triple figures this is certainly not cheap, but for a well-engineered and meticulously produced pen which is likely to outlast most purchasers, it’s certainly no rip-off either.

The only way is ethics  These are made by Ian Schon himself, without masses of added packaging  and with no obvious risk of poor labour conditions.

If this isn’t quite your cup of tea, but almost…  The Kaweco Supra, without the extension tube, does a similar job – albeit with a Bock nib instead.

Our overall recommendation  If you want a pocket pen which last for a century and has a ‘proper’ nib on the front, this does the job in style. Just beware that the brass version is hefty, and the aluminium version seems to be very popular too, quite possibly for that reason.

Where to get hold of one  Ours came from Nero’s Notes, but in the UK Izods also stocks them.  Alternatively, you could go straight to the source.

This meta-review references:

Thanks to  Nero’s Notes for furnishing us with this remarkable pocket pen.

One’s Estie-mable Friend

Meta-review, , ,

A little bit of history  Cornwall has exported many a mining engineer to the world beyond, and many a Davy lamp too, but Richard Esterbrook left the peninsula with a rather smaller and more refined form of engineering in mind. Relocating to the US in 1856, he founded a long-running pen brand, supposedly even making a pen for Abraham Lincoln himself. The marque went from strength to strength for much of the following century, and is still well-respected in vintage pen circles for its dizzying range of specialist nibs. As was the case for most US-made pens, though, by the end of the twentieth century cheaper manufacturing elsewhere marked the end of the line. The reborn Esterbrook brand is just that – a brand, owned by firm called Kenro. But the products, largely unrelated to the old Esterbrook as they may be, look good enough to eat… or at least to write with. We thought we ought to give the flagship Estie a try.

How it looks  The Estie, in any size, is a classic ogive-ended cylinder, with a plain clip and subtle branding on the cap. What really distinguishes one from another is the colouring of the material; the plain black is plain indeed, but the lilac is spectacular in either chrome or gold trim, and occasional special editions like the ‘evergreen’ really look the business.

 

How it feels  About the right size in the hand, as long as you go for the shape best for you. Most of us eschewed the ‘slim’ version (with its humble #5 nib) for the standard edition, which is a happy medium. If you like a pen which is just a bit fatter without being unwieldy, though, the ‘oversize’ version delivers without looking disproportionate, at least by modern standards. As Mick found, however, the new Estie looks quite formidable compared to the more modest dimensions of many a vintage Esterbrook, so brand afficionados might be in for a bit of a surprise.

How it fills  The Estie is a straightforward cartridge/converter number, and as customary there’s a basic cartridge in the excellent packaging (along with a rather terrific red cleaning cloth) – but you’ll probably prefer to fit the included adapter and employ whatever ink you please.

 

Crucially, how it writes…  Esties are fitted with a JoWo #6 nib, which makes for ample adaptability. The Esterbrook-branded steel nibs work well in all the usual point sizes, as well as a good 1.1mm italic option. If spoiling your Estie rotten is on the agenda, you could even screw-in a gold nib unit instead. But the really clever party piece is the retro-compatible alternative section, sold as a ‘nib connector’, into which you can fit a vintage Esterbrook nib which was actually, ya know, made by Esterbrook. It’s only available in black, but it works, and that nod to the brand’s roots is to be applauded.

Pen! What is it good for?  The black version could certainly be carried to an office, if any of us ever set foot in one again, while the very colourful cracked-ice variants would look good at home or, as Ania rightly points out, on the Orient Express. Thanks to the internal sprung cap this won’t dry out in a hurry, so it’s a good choice for infrequent or occasional use too.

VFM  Here’s where the Estie struggles a bit at the moment, in our view. It’s a good pen which looks the part and feels well put together too, but a custom instrument hand-made by an artisan this ain’t. At the moment Esties are promoted at £150 for the standard size and £185 for the ‘oversize’ version, which is quite a big ask; at those prices, a gold nib really wouldn’t be too much to expect in return. With a steel nib, we think that around £85 and £95 respectively would have been reasonable price tags.

The only way is ethics  The packaging delights in trumpeting Esterbrook as ‘America’s original’, but as far as we can discern the nib is made in Germany and the rest of the pen in China. That doesn’t necessarily indicate a major problem, and we have no immediate evidence of poor labour conditions in the factory, but then again neither do we have much in the way of reassurance. This is perhaps an area in which the brand owner would be wise to be a little more proactive.

If this isn’t quite your cup of tea, but almost…  We really like the Estie a lot, but if for some reason you can’t find one in exactly the colour you want it shouldn’t be difficult to find alternatives; this is not a complicated or unusual shape, and #6-nibbed pens are available from almost every manufacturer. Most custom pen-turners will be delighted to run a similar-shaped pen off the lathe, while The Writing Desk’s range of Edison Colliers are US-made pens taking a #6 at a very similar price to what the born again Esterbrook are asking for. It’s fair to say that the pen fan has plenty of options here.

Our overall recommendation  If there’s a material you really love the look of, and you can justify paying a little over the odds for it, you’re not going to be disappointed. If you have an old Esterbrook nib fitted to a pen which has seen better days, the ‘nib connector’ is a clever way to give it new life. Should the shape alone appeal, it’s not unreasonable to shop around or, possibly, wait for the price to regulate downwards somewhat.

Where to get hold of one  Most of your favourite online sellers have the Estie in stock – and in the far distant future, we may even dream of visiting shops which display them, in the flesh, there in front of our eyes.

This meta-review references:

Thanks to  Studio Pens, Esterbrook’s distributor, for easing access to test pens for four of our penthusiasts.

Supra Dupra Steel

Meta-review, , ,

A little bit of history  Kaweco’s Lilliput is beautifully minimalist but, as we’ve mentioned before, tiny. A scaled-up version with a #6 nib would be more like the thing for adult hands, surely? Kaweco agreed, and so the Supra was born, with a twist we’ll come on to in a moment. At first it was only available in brass, which looks great but isn’t absolutely everyone’s olfactory cup of tea. Then the steel version was born, and we just had to have a play!

How it looks  The Supra appears, from a distance, to be a Lilliput with a cinched waist. Up close, it’s evident that, if anything, it’s a Lilliput which has been to sumo training camp and bulked-up mightily; this thing has a nice big #6 nib, for starters! Then, if you remove the extension tube, it suddenly looks like a tiddler again. Hmm.

How it feels  That extension is the Supra MacGuffin. Fit it between barrel and section, and the result is a standard-length pen which feels about right in the hand, albeit a little long with the cap posted. Omit the extension tube, and the Supra is a pocket pen which feels about right with the cap posted, even if the large #6 nib can be a bit of a surprise to anyone more used to the dainty 060 (small #5) of the Lilliput and Sport models. Once you’ve worked out which length works for you, this feels solid and well-balanced, although the somewhat short grip section might not suit everyone.

How it fills  In short form, one can either syringe-fill a standard ‘international’ cartridge or use one of Kaweco’s tiny plunger converters. In long form, a normal converter fits perfectly. There’s little drama either way, and thankfully this is not a leak-prone pen either.

Crucially, how it writes…  As is usual for the more ‘premium’ Kaweco models these days, the Supra is equipped with a screw-fit Bock nib, so how it writes depends largely upon what hardware you choose to install. Our test unit was equipped with a Kaweco-branded steel M, which complemented the material of the pen itself and wrote without fault for our testers. So, nothing to complain about there, and there are ample options for upgrading too, not least the Kaweco-branded two-tone gold nib – or any Bock 250 unit, actually.

Pen! What is it good for?  The full-length Supra has no clip, so it is perhaps best carried in pen sling attached to a book – as one of our reviewers did with the brass version for a year. The shortened Supra is perfect as a pocket pen. In either incarnation, once you get the right posted or unposted length for you, it can serve for extended writing sessions should you need it to – as long as you get on OK with that short section and those exposed screw threads.

VFM  This isn’t cheap, with current retail prices getting dangerously near three figures. It’s a good, solid, reliable fountain pen which will probably outlast most purchasers, but that’s still quite a lot of money for a moderately stylised length of plumbing. Whether the value proposition adds up largely depends upon whether the feel of the pen works for you so well that you want to pick it up again and again. We’d really like to see Kaweco sell the unadorned short-form Supra for those who just want this, with the extension tube available as an optional secondary purchase, both to reduce waste and get that price down a little. In the mean-time, while half of our testers found the pen a bit too heavy and ‘industrial’ for their tastes, the other half loved it and two are now proud owners.

If this isn’t quite your cup of tea, but almost…  That largely depends upon what it is that doesn’t quite float your boat. If the pocket configuration still feels a bit bulky but you like the looks, Kaweco’s own Lilliput might suit you better. If you warm to the full-length configuration but find the extension tube a bit fiddly, then there are other metal pen makers we can introduce you to, even if they are perhaps best not named here following some mutterings of potential litigious unpleasantness (which all involved have hopefully now stepped smartly aside from). If you just want a pen this shape but made of plastic, though, the options are almost endless.

Our overall recommendation  As is so often the case, try before you by. As a heavy, uncompromising and essentially indestructible pen it won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. But if you’re the sort of rugged EDC fan who likes to be able to smash your way out of a burning car using the same pen that you deploy to write a note to the insurers immediately afterwards, a Bauhaus-toting art-school grad with strong hands, or just a sniper with literary aspirations, this is absolutely the pen for you.

Where to get hold of one  All your favourite fountain pen specialists are likely to stock this. You won’t have trouble finding one if you want it – indeed, the only challenge is likely to be in deciding between the steel you see here and the equally splendid brass version.

This meta-review references:

Thanks to  Kaweco for the kind review sample – which has travelled well!

It’s the most colourful time of the year

Meta-review, ,

A little bit of history  Advent calendars started in Germany, or possibly Austria, but at any rate fairly close to one of the great homes of nibmeisters then and now. Beloved of Lutherans in particular, the versions with pretty pictures cheered up the home in winter, and the versions with sweets made up for that monotonous Diet of Worms. But it took Scousers to come up with a version of the advent calendar which would brighten your life for the rest of the year without threatening one’s waistline, and thus in 2019 the Inkvent calendar was born. Twenty-five little bottles of ink, all of them new, behind cardboard doors. Some of us gave in immediately. Some of us waited until we could buy full bottles individually. But all of us wanted to share the results.

How it looks  It looks much like an ordinary advent calendar with something boring like chocolate inside, but that’s just a cunning disguise. There’s a jolly snowman design printed in blue, which might be why the inks are now labelled as ‘Blue Edition’… but that’s probably not what you wanted to know about. The new bottles are amazing four-legged contraptions which look like they could canter away at any moment if you don’t put down that wretched ballpoint and play with a real pen. But perhaps that’s not what you’re after either? Oh – the inks!! Well they look amazing as a range, don’t they? We were a little surprised to find quite so many browns and dark greens, but the whole palette of midwinter hues is here. There are also plenty of traditionally festive reds, some very groovy blues, a gold, a silver, two cracking purples and a terrific turquoise. Unusually for a set released together, some are ‘solid colours’ but many feature sheen, shimmer or both, which is showing off really, but if you can’t do that on special days when can you?

Crucially, how it writes…  These all seemed to be fairly well-behaved inks for our expanded testing team (these are very popular inks), although the usual caveat about shimmering inks applies; i.e. use these only in pens which can be readily dismantled for full cleaning (and, preferably, reassembled without consulting a Haynes manual).

Ink! What is it good for?  These aren’t inks for taking to the office, to be honest, but as those are all closed at the time of writing perhaps that’s no bad thing. They’re inks for having fun with – and they’re just right for it!

VFM  These are not the cheapest inks Diamine has ever produced, but they’re nevertheless admirably affordable by international standards. The prices are variable depending upon complexity, too, so the standard inks are about £8 , and the shimmery sheen monsters about £11, depending as ever upon where you shop. For 50ml that’s not bad value, especially when the results look this snazzy.

If this isn’t quite your cup of tea, but almost…  Seriously? Come on, there a lot of really interesting inks here. If there isn’t a single thing which takes your fancy, we’re probably not going to be friends. But if you want a second chance, there’s a fair bet that another one is on the cards for this Yule, when we’ll all need some more cheering-up after all.

Our overall recommendation  Have a meander around the detailed reviews which this article draws upon – links below – and see what grabs you. Something will! Top tips from our gang include sheeny blue Polar Glow, teal/red sheen monster Season’s Greetings, robust red Fire Embers, tinsel-turquoise Blue Peppermint and shiny dark Winter Miracle, which looks like Scribble Purple with bright blue glitter and is none the worse for it.

Where to get hold of some  These are new, but they’re not limited editions; available then, at any good stationery shop – and until those are open, on all decent fountain pen retail websites.

This meta-review references:

Thanks to  Diamine for inundating us with a postcard from quite near North Wales, actually, and an awful lot of sample pots.

Take Five

Technical information, ,

Bedoooby-dooby-doooooby-doo, doobedy do do, doobedy-dooo, as Mr. Brubeck so memorably put it. But back in the non-jazz world, we know and love #5 as denoting one of the most popular sizes of nibs. But is it one size or two? No, it’s three. Hmm. Maybe we should give you the long version…

OK, here we go – and be warned, this will get geeky. Firstly, let’s cover what distinguishes a #5 nib from, say, a #6, or even a #8. An obscure mystery, surely? Well not really; the feed is 5 millimetres wide. That’s it.

So how can there be so much confusion between small #5s, large #5s, and sort-of in-between #5s? Possibly because we don’t have clearly established names for them. But it turns out that, actually we do.  In the language of nib-smiths Bock AG, they are the 060, the 180 and the 076, which might not be memorable labels but they could grow on you (you’ve read this far without dozing off, so there’s hope at least). The simple thing would be to just refer you to the handy guide on the Bock website, but that’s hardly the basis of a riveting article either.

Instead of just reeling out some not-terribly-vital statistics, then, we turned to Phil from Beaufort nibs, who has many advantages over Peter Bock, not least still being with us in the land of the living, a convenient base in Devon, and the lack of a dubious toothbrush moustache (top tip: avoid this unless you actually are Charlie Chaplin). Phil kindly supplied a sample of each, which we fitted to appropriate products from another company which started out in Heidelberg, and filled with various shades of Beaufort ink.

So, let’s start with the version of #5 which you’re probably most familiar with, the humble but sturdy ‘short’ #5 which Bock calls the 060. The reason you’ll know it is, in all likelihood, because you’ve encountered one of two Kawecos; a Sport or a Lilliput. In both cases, the diminutive nib looks the part on a small pen, and with little space to spare in the cap it’s really the only practical choice. Nibs aren’t always perfectly tuned when straight from the factory, so a hands-on supplier like Phil can be good to know if you have one of these pens and fancy changing the business end. We fitted one to a ‘stonewashed’ Sport to put it through its paces. With a short slit measuring 0.85mm from tip to centre of the breather hole, there’s not much wiggle room here so line variation is rare in the steel version, although gold can have a bit of bounce if you ask nicely.

The middle option, sometimes referred to as a ‘standard’ #5 in the trade, is the 180, which is just as narrow as the 060 and with a slit only a millimetre longer, but a more generous tail on the back. You may have seen these on pens like the late lamented Dex, the affordably splendid Super 5 (the name’s a clue), and of course the TWSBI Eco. It can be fitted to Kaweco pens which are narrow but have longer caps, like the Special – so that’s what we did. ‘Worked a treat.

Last but literally not least, there’s the big bold 076, which despite boasting a smaller number than the 180 has considerably wider shoulders. More importantly, it has the longest slit of all three (10.5mm), and thus naturally more flexible tines, whatever the material. You’ll be used to this size of nib in pens like the TWSBI 580, and it also fits many of the larger Kawecos, including the sadly missed All-rounder, the Student and the Dia. On these fairly big pens it looks correctly proportioned, and works better too. Maybe Kaweco should fit them in the first place – although with a minimum order of 5,000 pieces, it’s perhaps understandable that they haven’t yet rushed. In the meantime, have fun experimenting yourself!

In the spirit of fairness we should also mention that lots of other manufacturers offer #5 nibs too, sometimes even in new shapes like JoWo’s ‘arrow’ unit – but by golly life would be simpler if they’d adopt a straightforward numbering system…