Fosfor Bangalore fountain pen review

A little bit of history  We’ve covered the affordable-but-quite-nice end of Indian fountain pen production in our previous Fountain Pen Revolution article, but Fosfor is quite a different proposition; the brand is essentially one man, Manoj, hand-making pens from scratch in Pune.Banga1How it looks  Like a work of art, which is what it is – or, at the very least, the product of expert craftsmanship and painstaking care.  The material (polyester, in this case) supports some wildly contrasting colours, and every one is essentially unique.orange writing sample 3How it feels  Warm, light… and large.  This isn’t one for grabbing in a hurry to jot notes; for one thing, it takes a while to unscrew (somewhat to Ruth’s frustration!), and that big #6 nib lends itself to calm composed writing rather than hasty scribbles.  Despite the generous proportions, it doesn’t feel overbalanced, and those who like their pens on the big side will find it handles very well.

still unscrewing
Still unscrewing!

How it fills  This is a straightforward cartridge/converter model, and none the worse for that.

Crucially, how it writes…  Of course that depends upon the nib, but the #6 JoWo steel nib which this test unit was fitted with was impressively smooth.Ruth writing with the Fosfor

Pen! What is it good for?  There’s no clip, and the vivid colour-schemes perhaps don’t naturally lend themselves to the office, so this is perhaps ideal for journalling, note-taking or doodling at home.

VFM  It’s not cheap, but it’s far from exorbitant either; prices compare well with hand-made pens from John Twiss or Edison, for example – and so does the quality, we think.

If this isn’t quite your cup of tea, but almost…  Well, Manoj takes on personal commissions, if your budget will stretch to bespoke design.  His triangular pen, for example, is quite something to behold.orange writing sample 1

Our overall recommendation  If large pens in vibrant hues are your thing, Fosfor pens are worth checking out.

Where to get hold of one  Now that’s a little tougher, but you could try Fosfor’s own site of course.orange writing sample 2

This meta-review references:

Fosfor on wood

Give-away   To enter, we asked readers for their ideas for what Manoj should consider having a crack at next – whether that was new colours, new shapes, or a return of something old but good.  There’s more on that in the comments below…

6 thoughts on “Fosfor Bangalore fountain pen review

  1. Oh wow – this one is gorgeous! I also love the pens Manoj does with the M1000 nib and the ebonite feed. How about something like the pen shown here but with flame red and a M1000 nib + ebonite feed? That would be lovely.

  2. It would be interesting to see a pen with two different swirl patterns along the length of the barrel, joined neatly. Even better if one side had an opaque plastic and the other translucent. Purples and blacks.

  3. These pens really make your mouth water, I love the individuality of them. I think that the more vibrant colours work best as in order to get noticed in the blossoming pen business from India you need to be distinctive, so just keep those bold numbers coming.

  4. Oliver F27 with the original Schmidt Nib. – Kinda hard to find but if you do please let me know where are these are brilliant pens and I want more of them in my collection.

    It is another Indian pen and when they were in normal production they were dirt cheap. When I do see them available now they are for silly money.

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