‘Coarse it is…

A little bit of history  Back in the days of space flight, one of the big problems was getting home safely. Vehicles come in fast, that compresses the thin air below them, and this generates enormous heat. Finding the right shape to survive the experience involved some serious trial-and-error. The Americans tried an inverted cone, which got very hot indeed, while the Soviets tried a spherical design which was, inevitably, tricky to steer. The solution, it turned out, was a bluff body – broad, blunt, fairly flat, with rounded corners. This proved to be so stable and reliable that every space programme currently in operation uses it. Oddly enough, a bluff body is also a promising format for a fountain pen nib; a large contact surface to make a wide mark, and smooth edges to reduce friction. But Bluff would be an awkward name for a nib type, as the letter B is already taken. It’s definitely the opposite of Fine, though, so it appears that Platinum broke out the thesaurus, looked for an antonym to fine, and settled on coarse. So, now we have a C nib. C for confusing, it appears…

How it looks  Until you pick this up and write with it, the pen looks like a standard #3776 – which is what it is. Our test body has the pleasing red bourgoigne finish, and it looks terrific. But a glance doesn’t quite tell the whole story.

How it feels  This is a light pen and the nib is fairly smooth in use, albeit with the slight ‘toothiness’ common to many Platinum offerings. It’s worth trying in person as we think it’s one of those love-it-or-hate-it propositions.

How it fills  A classic-cartridge/converter system, this, although only Platinum’s own kit will fit. The cartridges aren’t too difficult to find and the converters are some of the more reliable of Japanese pistons.

Crucially, how it writes…  Fat and flouncy, in short. Imagine the illegitimate offspring of a BB and an Italic, adopted and raised by a Music nib, and you might not be far off. There’s a touch of tooth, but many of us found that it grew on us.

Pen! What is it good for?  Here’s a pen for having fun with, in short. You could probably write distinctive signatures with it if you took it to work, but its greatest joy is writing flamboyant birthday cards and thoroughly jolly notes to friends.

VFM  This is a well-made pen with an unusual ‘niche’ gold nib, so it’s not cheap as chips. But shop around and you ought to be able to find it for less than £200, which is pretty good. We do feel that for that sort of money Platinum ought to include a converter as a standard part of the package, though.

The only way is ethics  We’ve got no complaint to make here; the pen’s made in a place with good labour standards, the packaging isn’t over-the-top and you can buy it from a specialist retailer who’ll back up the purchase with customer support.

If this isn’t quite your cup of tea, but almost…  Platinum’s Music nib is similarly impressive. If you want an alternative Coarse nib, Pilot make one too – but it’s very hard to find in the UK.

Our overall recommendation  Coarseness is in the eye of the beholder – or perhaps in the hand. This is such a surprising nib to use that it’s rather difficult to describe at a distance, so it’s worth trying out in person if you can. But if you like it, bag it; this is a great value proposition.

Where to get hold of one  The shop which lent us this review sample might not be a bad place to start…

This meta-review references:

Thanks to  Write Here of Shrewsbury for lending us this unusual pen. One of the team liked it so much that they bought it!

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