Pilot Penmanship

[HenryLouis]

Why no petroleum jelly?

 

I'm just guessing, but it has a really low melting point and can probably creep into all the parts of your pen you don't want it in. Maybe even clog the nib or feed.

 

Sounds reasonable. Maybe I'll just refill the cartridges until I can actually pick up some silicone grease

[runadog]

Without a clip! Not a good pen to carry around in pocket. But it looks great, I prefer EF and transparent ones.

A Sakura SumoGrip mechanical pencil clip fits it perfectly.

[hecya]

Where did you buy it? I have seen one on ebay that goes under the title "New Pilot Human Engineering" and is white in color. Even when it looks like a giant sperm cell I like it but the biding always finishes close to US$30.00.

[runadog]

JetPens.com $7.50 plus shipping

http://www.jetpens.com/product_info.php/cPath/214_856_759/products_id/4008

[dwong]

I might have to add this onto my next Jetpens purchase. It looks like writes a very fine line!

[amateriat]

After buying both a Custom 823 and Custom 74 Demonstrator, I guess Pilot Fever got the best of me, and I ordered a black Penmanship, and CON-20 converter, from JetPens a little under two months ago.

 

The CON-20 fit just fine from the get-go, so I never bothered with the included cartridge. First time I inked it up, the pen seemed a tad too scratchy for my taste. Some very minor and mild tweaking smoothed things out to the point where it feels just south of scratchy, but still obviously less-smooth than either my 823 or 74. It's very good for quick, short notes, having tons of line control, even on relatively lousy paper. Yes, not having a clip reduces this pen's take-along utility, but I bought it to keep at home, and as an alternative to a dip pen (couldn't find a dip pen I liked).

 

Currently, the pen is filled with Pilot's "Signature" ("For Documents") permanent-black ink, and the combination has reasonable smoothness/flow.

 

For well under ten bucks, it's an interesting and worthwhile little pen.

 

 

- Barrett

[bluemagister]

CON-50 and -20 fit perfectly into the Plumix (US version) and Penmanship. I have CON-50s in two Penmanships and they function perfectly with HoD and Lexington Gray. My Plumix has a CON-20 and a 50/50 dilution of Nakahama. All 3 are flawless writers.

[cocojj]

I'm sold!

 

 

Does anyone have any idea how much these pens (Penmanship and Plumix) sell for in Japan? I'm trying to decide whether to buy from Jetpens or ask a family member who's going to Japan to get them for me.

Edited September 26, 2010 by cocojj

[GooseDeluxe]

Great review---the body kind of looks like the Plumix body but the nib is obviously different.

 

I <3 this pen... it's my first fountain pen that writes as thin as my favored gel pens. I'm not as fond of the grip, but for $7.50, it's a toothless complaint. Plus I can put the nib/feed into my Prera.

 

Wait, I am a little confused. I know the nibs in the Plumix and Prera are interchangable. So if Kirianth can put the Penmanship nib in the Prera, then shouldn't the nibs for all three pens be the same?

 

Ah, or... Kenshin, did you mean the nibs are different in that the Plumix nib is a medium italic while the Penmanship is a regular extra fine?

 

I am tempted to get one and see what a Pilot extra fine nib is like.

[ehebert]

Wait, I am a little confused. I know the nibs in the Plumix and Prera are interchangable. So if Kirianth can put the Penmanship nib in the Prera, then shouldn't the nibs for all three pens be the same?

 

Ah, or... Kenshin, did you mean the nibs are different in that the Plumix nib is a medium italic while the Penmanship is a regular extra fine?

 

I am tempted to get one and see what a Pilot extra fine nib is like.

 

 

The nib of the Plumix, Penmanship, Prera, and the 78G are all interchangeable. For some reason, an extra fine nib is only available on the Penmanship. An italic/broad nib is only available on the Plumix or 78G. So if you like a certain pen’s body, but the nib width you want doesn’t come with it, you can swap nibs from another pen. I think the Pilot Knight might also have the same nib.

 

As for the extra fine nib, it’s great if you can match it with the right ink. I’ve had about 50/50 chance of good performance with the inks I have tried. I’ve also found these nibs to be very forgiving when “worked on”. I’ve used a razor blade to open up a few fine 78G nibs that refused to write. I’m far from an expert at altering a nib, but all of my hack jobs resulted in great writers. So even if you don’t like the extra fine nib, you can widen it with a razor.

[Robert Alan]

Without a clip! Not a good pen to carry around in pocket. But it looks great, I prefer EF and transparent ones.

A Sakura SumoGrip mechanical pencil clip fits it perfectly.

 

Clever. Very clever!

R.

[Robert Alan]

QUOTE (Sailor Kenshin @ Sep 8 2009, 04:59 PM) Sounds reasonable. Maybe I'll just refill the cartridges until I can actually pick up some silicone grease

 

 

Vegetable-based silcone grease can be found at dive shops. A small container goes for a couple of dollars and should last quite a while.

R.

[Daisy]

I’ve also found these nibs to be very forgiving when “worked on”. I’ve used a razor blade to open up a few fine 78G nibs that refused to write. I’m far from an expert at altering a nib, but all of my hack jobs resulted in great writers. So even if you don’t like the extra fine nib, you can widen it with a razor.

 

Hey, thanks for the tip! I just bought a Plumix this evening that was very dry and toothy out of the package. I was very disappointed until, after reading your post, I took a fresh box cutter blade to it (it's what I had handy) and gently opened the tines. Now it's *much* better -- almost like the Varsity pens I got the other day, which are very wet writers and quite smooth. Thanks!!!

[dudaymd]

I'm definitely trying out the eyedropper conversion with my pilot penmanship to see how it handles. Would automobile silicone oil do the trick though?

[Pentangeli]

The Pilot Penmanship, Pilot Pluminix/Plumix, Pilot Prera, and Pilot 78G, all use same nibs. They are all excellent nibs made by Pilot/Namiki. So if you're looking for something wider than an EF on your Penmanship you can use the wider nibs (F, M, B, BB) offered on some those other Pilot pens I mentioned. I own a Pilot 78G (M) and a Prera (F) whose nibs and feeds interchange without a hitch.

[Blorgy]

My two transparent Pilot Penmanship fountain pens have cracked barrels, but I like them anyway. I wonder if hard containers would reduce the chances of cracking occurring during shipping ?

[sokuban]

The nibs are interchangeable between these pens yes, but which nibs are "aesthetically interchangeable"? From my understanding, the Prera nibs are silver-coloured, and the 78G nibs are gold-coloured, so if you interchange these, they may not fit the style. Are the nibs on the Penmanship the same gold colour as those of the 78G?

 

I'm thinking of getting a Penmanship to put an EF nib on a 78G.

[GoldenGirl]

I also tried a Pilot Penmanship clear body, my pen worked okay for awhile, then during a refill the ink exploded out of the nib...

I tried both the eye dropper and converter methods of filling.

 

I also found the nib very scratchy, and my Noodler's ink did not flow well at all. I was constantly fixing letters that were only half there.

 

I would love to find an extra fine nib that writes smoothly/wet with no scratchiness.

[drgoretex]

<!--quoteo(post=1156954:date=Jul 27 2009, 02:03 PM:name=johnnyies)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (johnnyies @ Jul 27 2009, 02:03 PM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1156954"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->how does the con-20 converter work?<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

 

The con-20 does not form a good seal no matter how hard I push it in. It sits too loosely in the section. The con-50 worked fine though. I had it in the pen for two weeks and no leaks or problems--other than the pen's scratchy nib, which had nothing to do with the converter.

 

I have found that the CON-20 is quite variable in tightness. One will fit snug, the next far too loose. If you are getting a CON-20 - using pen, may be worth buying an extra CON-20 with it, or get a CON-50 or 70 depending on size of the pen.

 

 

Hey, GoldenGirl - I see you have been to Vulcan (Alberta)! Great pic.

 

Ken

[GoldenGirl]

Hey, GoldenGirl - I see you have been to Vulcan (Alberta)! Great pic.

 

 

Ken,

 

Live Long And Prosper