Olive Wood Flat-Top Fountain Pen

[Soot]

INTRODUCTION:

Fine Writing International (FWI) is a small Taiwanese firm that sells and distributes high-end stationery goods to the local Taiwanese market. In addition to the stationery goods, FWI also commission fountain pens with special or exotic materials in small numbers.

 

This Olive Wood Flat-top is one of them.

 

 

Appearance & Design

The marbling color of the Olive Wood was the reason that drew me to this pen, it reminded me of cheesecake: the marbling kind . The scent of the Olive Wood might not be as sweet as cheesecake, but nevertheless it still has an attractive woody scent.

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8522/8599547679_f053f3a3a8_z.jpg

 

Okay, I digress. Anywho, it's a flat-top made with Olive Wood, need I say more? Okay, the texture of the barrel is smooth to the touch, a very natural feeling.

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8380/8599548549_deb65ec5c2_z.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8092/8600648860_72320949c7_z.jpg

 

 

Construction & Quality

Turned Olive Wood barrel, ivory acrylic section, plastic feed, and 18K nib made by Writing Instrument Network.

 

 

Weight & Dimensions

Length Capped: 143mm; Opened, nib tip to barrel end: 132mm

Barrel Diameter: 13mm; about the thickness of a Montblanc 149

As for weight, I didn't measure.

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8381/8599547975_652b5e55fd_z.jpg

 

 

Nib & Performance

I have tried all the nibs that was available for this pen, EF/F/M/B/Stub, and I found EF was most suited for me. It is a western EF line, so it's not as thin as the Japanese type. The nib has some give for a modern nib, and not boring without feedback. A plus for a modern pen.

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8385/8599546461_cef12e3be1_z.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8521/8600648050_698b644972_z.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8097/8600647786_a79f4a03ac_z.jpg

 

 

Filling System & Maintenance

Plain vanilla Cartridge & Converter. No exotic flavor here.

 

** Because the wood has not been treated with any finish, it's prone to stain if ink accidentally gets splattered on the barrel.

 

 

Conclusion

I enjoy this pen, it is aesthetically pleasing as well as its practical side. The cost of this pen is about the average ending price of a 149 on the auction site, not cheap, but considering it's handcrafted with many hours of labor and passion [insert expletives] involved, one can understand the reason for its pricing. They also have to make profit, you know.

 

To each its own, of course. This was one of mine.

 

Related Reading: Here...

 

 

--- Soot

[alvinlum]

Nice review, beautiful pen. Never heard of FWI until now, thanks for letting me know.

[Audit This]

Very nice!

[notVirtuThe3rd]

Great review! Thanks for the sharing this.

 

From Japan,

Kota Adachi

[lovemy51]

lovely pen! OMGoodness, what a beautiful nib!!!!!!!

 

the only thing that puts me off is the white section (maybe in black...?).

[jacksterp]

Nice review. Striking pen. Enjoy!

[paolino_paperino]

Nice review and pen

[Soot]

the only thing that puts me off is the white section (maybe in black...?).

The color of the section can be selected to your liking; the default color was black and I had it replaced with this lighter ivory color.

 

Some customers had even fitted their section with mottled/colored hard rubber, it was very interesting to see.

Edited March 30, 2013 by Soot

[OakIris]

Very nice looking pen, Soot. I, too, think I would prefer a different colour for the section, but the olive wood body and the nib are beautiful. (And they have a stub nib available, too.... ) Thank you for the review!

 

Holly

[Inkheart]

How beautiful!

 

Thank you for sharing such a thorough review. I am definitely intrigued.

[cambookpro]

Wow! Never heard of this pen before, but it looks beautiful.

[AShrewdLawn]

Wow, that's gorgeous.

[lintonwang]

FWI is quite famous in the Asian market.

Their nibs are relatively thin, suits the need of Chinese writing.

 

Btw, the pen looks really elegant with the cap unscrewed~~

[Penne Stilografiche]

lovely pen! OMGoodness, what a beautiful nib!!!!!!!

 

the only thing that puts me off is the white section (maybe in black...?).

+1

[lovemy51]

the only thing that puts me off is the white section (maybe in black...?).

The color of the section can be selected to your liking; the default color was black and I had it replaced with this lighter ivory color.

 

Some customers had even fitted their section with mottled/colored hard rubber, it was very interesting to see.

i like that. i was wondering how cool it would be if they had it in a mottled style.

congrats!

[Sblakers]

Beautiful pen ! Is there an option for treating the wood ? I'm afraid it is impossible for me not to soak half the house in ink whenever I fill my pens.

[Soot]

Beautiful pen ! Is there an option for treating the wood ? I'm afraid it is impossible for me not to soak half the house in ink whenever I fill my pens.

That option is available if you prefer it.

 

Many of the buyers (that bought the wooden pens) opt-outed that option because it didn't have that natural "wood" feel with the finish. It felt like resin/plastic, like those that OMAS made.