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Sailor Pro Gear Slim, Extra Fine?


dzarren

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Ive been really interested in the quest to find a japanese super fine pen for quite a while now.

 

At first i looked into the platinum ultra extra fine 3776 century, but many many people have said it feels very plasticky and almost cheap ish, and im not really one into light pens, i dont mind them, but if i could choose a slightly more substantial pen, i would.

 

so I discovered the Sailor pro gear slim, or sapporo. Im on the quest for the ultimate fine, and ive heard legends of the saibi togi nib. This sounds just amazing, it writes super fine, but if you flip it, it gives a medium ish line, how awesome.

 

BUT, so the crux is that the saibi togi is really expesive, and for some reason, i the only pen i can get it in, is a wine red pro gear, with a rhodium plated nib. not really my style.

any other option with the saibi is over 350 dollars which is a bit much for me at the moment, my most expensive pen is a twisbi.

 

But i can find a black pro gear slim with an extra-fine nib 14K for about 120 shipped.
OR
I can also get a regular progear with a 22K extrafine for about 190 shipped.

 

I really like the sound if the progear slim, but the retail for the regular progear is about twice that of the slim, and its only costing me about 70 dollars more, is it worth the bit (lot) extra? and about the nib, ive heard that 21K is not necessarily ideal, because it can never really be worked on after, at least worked on to a lesser extent than the 14K nib can be. (and the 21K is two toned, which looks fabulous. 14K is just solid gold in color.)

 

 

 

Also, ive heard from some, that sailor extra fines are not really that fine, which is really the main reason as to why i havnt even bought this yet. Finer than a german extra fine, but nothing like the pilot or platinum. I suppose the saibi togi is comparable to the UEF by platinum or something.

 

 

 

so really what im asking is if i Should I hold out and look for a saibi togi nib in a pen i prefer? or should i just go for the extra fine, and hope its not too FAT. My local pen shop tells me that nothing can get finer than a sailor extra fine. but some people have said here that its not really that fine, while others have said its TOO fine. (no such thing! hehe)
and if 14K is a better choice for a japanese pen noob like me, as opposed to the 21K.

 

I dont want to shell out a large amount of money, just to find it writes kinda fat ish.
I have the following pens:

Twsbi mini extra fine
Nemosine singularity extra fine ( ive heard from some that this is almost like a japanese extra fine? if so, its too fat!)
Lamy safari extra fine

 

bunch of jinhaos and heros.

 

 

Thank you for reading my garrulous speech of the day. I really appreciate it!

 

So, Sailor pro-gear slim in Extra fine? aww yeah!

Oh, i should mention, im not a fan of rhodium plated nibs, accents alright, but not the entire nib please!

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Sorry, one last thing i promise. Does anyone know if the sections on the Progear sapporo and the progear sapporo MINI are swappable?

because the site I plan on ordering from offers the option of just buying the body of the sapporo mini alone, with no nib unit.

If they can be swapped, I could basically have two pens, and which ever i fancy for the day could come along with me.

 

I really hope it does it, its like getting a whole nother pen for 40 bucks.

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Personally, I find my Sailor EFs (I have 3) as fine as my Platinum UEF -- but then again, I've noticed that my Platinum UEF is not actually as fine as my Nakaya SEF. I have small handwriting and find the Sailor EF to be very pleasing actually -- not so fine that I need a dark ink or it looks like chicken scratchings, but not so wide that it makes my handwriting look messy. (For example, the Danitrio EEF is too broad for me.)

 

I have a Sapporo, and personally I find it a little small and am going to let it go (I have two other Sailor EFs so there's no need for the Sapporo). I can't speak for the Progear Slim.

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I believe the progear slim IS tha sapporo, perhaps i am mistaken

 

 

Would you be able to provide me details on your sapporo you plan on releasing into the wilderness?

Edited by dzarren
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Is there any reason you're specifically looking for Japanese pens?

 

Why not get a pen of your choice custom ground to an XXF or even a XXXF? It'll be tuned to write as you need. Off the shelf extra fine nibs tend to have issues with scratchiness. In regular production, it's just not possible to tune a nib precisely.

Edited by proton007

In a world where there are no eyes the sun would not be light, and in a world where there were no soft skins rocks would not be hard, nor in a world where there were no muscles would they be heavy. Existence is relationship and you're smack in the middle of it.

- Alan Watts

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hmm well its just that i have no pens that are really worth the treatment, like i said, my most expensive pen is a twsbi, and i dont think i want to spend perhaps 60 dollars making its 20 dollar nib finer.

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hmm well its just that i have no pens that are really worth the treatment, like i said, my most expensive pen is a twsbi, and i dont think i want to spend perhaps 60 dollars making its 20 dollar nib finer.

 

That makes sense.

While a Japanese EF is always an option for a regrind afterwards, you can also take a look at Binder XXF (and finer) nibs for Namiki Falcon.

 

In a world where there are no eyes the sun would not be light, and in a world where there were no soft skins rocks would not be hard, nor in a world where there were no muscles would they be heavy. Existence is relationship and you're smack in the middle of it.

- Alan Watts

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If you do a bit of searching on Rakuten, you'll find the SEF Sailor for around $150 (Cdn), with probably another $15 for EMS shipping.

Yes, sections (as are the nibs and feeds) are swappable between Sapporo/Slim and the mini version and the smaller 1911/Profit. Even the $18 Junior Profit will happily take the Sapporo section. (Not the nib and feed themselves, tho.) So you could (presumably) stick that nib into pretty much any body you like the look of.

As for the EF: it's definitely, unmistakably an (extra-)EF. Mine's finer than a 005 Prismacolor fine-liner, if that means anything. (My nib might be a touch on the drier-side, however.) So i don't think you should worry about it being too thick.

(You can also, speaking of nib-flipping, flip the EF for an even finer line. :P )

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Seriously? Could you PLEASE point me in that direction, I thought i browsed that site well enough. Im trying again now, but cant find much under 200

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If you don't care for smallish, light weight pens I would not buy a Sapporo (Yes, the Slim and the Sapporo are the same.). The Pro Gear is more substantial.

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Hey thanks! Saimi grind? Is it to be trusted?! and what is "name characters into"

 

 

haha! Thanks a bunch.

 

 

 

Hmm well, Id definetly go for the Progear, not the sapporo, BUT its just that ive heard not negative things, about 21K nibs, but its just that they are what they are, and you cant add flex or do anything really. but with a 14K the world is your oyster. Apparently. I dont know anything really though.

 

 

GAH its also 70 dollar extra, more than the cost of pretty much all my pens combined. not really but almost! Thats just the extra bit! But you are right, it says that its about 5 grams heavier than the slim.

Edited by dzarren
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Since i'm just sitting here drinking coffee and doing very little anyway, here's a writin' sample of my EF Sapporo.

Guess i could probably figure out what all the inks are, but it doesn't matter, really. The Sapporo has Waterman SSB, and the Lamy 2000 (as noted) has a thin-running Aurora Black. The Pro Gear has a Sailor black cart right now.

Maybe this is useful, and maybe not. (Maybe it won't even upload properly?...)


(PS: Pardon the handwriting. It IS like 7:00am, and all that.)


http://postimg.org/image/nryck6wlb/



EDIT: Paper's from a little Rhodia pad.

Edited by inBOIL
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Thanks for doing that, i appreciate it! I dont have any of the pens you have though, so i cant compare directly! I do have a 0.7mm pencil though.

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You've got the Safari EF. :P (The rest were just stuff in my pen case, and i felt like playing with them.) You can see, anyway, that it's not a wide nib at all.

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excellent!!!

 

I actually went down to my pen shop today, just got back. I actually read the personal message from you while i was in there.

 

I had a try of a 1911 H-EF nib. He said it was the same nib that was going to be on the Sapporo slim. Well for sure it is, they were both 14K. But the shop was selling both pens for 250, so a bit above my range.

 

But i got to try the EF nib that ill be obtaining, and i got to fondle a sapporo a tid bit.

That Ef nib is great, i think its exactly what i want, i really think any thinner is not really needed, see i still need to be able to read it! hahaha!

 

seems like the perfect width actually. i heard sailor is SLIGHTLY hit or miss, so i hope the one i get online is awesome.

 

And so thanks to all you guys and gals help i have decided on a Sailor Sapporo in H-EF.

 

Id get the progear, but it costs too much for me, and for the price of the progear minus a bit, i can get myself a saporro, PLUS the body of a mini sapporo, with a mini converter. Sweet!

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I'm myself trying to decide wether to buy the Pro Gear Sapporo Slim or the 1911 Profit Standard. On a side note: my favorite EEF-writing pen thus far is the mighty 8 dollar Pilot Penmanship. It writes very well for such a fine nib and it has a nice springiness to it.

 

Some people have also used it as an eye dropper, but when I tried it it just gushed ink through the nib.

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I like the Sapporo much more. Something I really like about its flat ends.

 

I'm trying to decide if I want the regular progear or the Sapporo. I'm not sure if an extra 70 dollars is worth it for the extra 5 grams it weighs.

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  • 5 months later...

I received a Pro Gear Slim today, with a H-EF nib. I like the pen, but the nib is so small even Clairfontaine paper feels scratchy. The MB Royal Blue ink appears faint and very dry. My favorite combination is very wet Iroshizuku Asa Gao in a Pelikan, or a Pendleton Brown modified Sailor music or H-M. They all have rich dark variable lines. This H-EF has almost no line. I write with some flourish that is ridiculous with this nib. I'll get used to it, but I'll have to have a more concentrated, darker, well lubricated ink. I hope such an ink will fit through this nib. Does anyone know if it would?

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