Are You Sure It's Real Gold

[Icywolfe]

That question is bugging me for the past week.

 

(He actually took it from my hand as I was writing.)

 

One of my friends saw the 14k on my Justus95 and he asked a few questions. Then he could've believe anybody will pay more than 5 bucks on a single pen. Then I said the gold nib and the tension bar when to the cost. Then he calls me dumb saying something like this: "Are you that dumb? You gotten your money stolen from you. That is just a piece of metal painted gold and not real gold. Are you that gullible? Companies just want your money."

 

I have no way prove it's gold besides the stamp. Oh yeah he is a evil Ballpoint Bic user.

 

That said if a Chinese pen company out there stamps 14k gold on a gold plated steel nib. How can you tell if it's steel or gold? Because some gold nibs are stiffer than steel while others are soft and mushy. Same for steel some are soft while others are stiff like a rock. Price can't be a factor if you buy something on the bay and they make it expensive.

[Komitadjie]

Not a for-sure check, but just try a magnet on it. Some stainless alloys are non-magnetic, of course, so it's not foolproof by any means, but it's a good first test.

[Reefallo]

This is a "friend"?

[Icywolfe]

This is a "friend"?

Classmate. But school isn't on so a friend.

 

Also he is the type that always looked at me weird for using such ancient technology while he sort of enjoyed using my FPs. I let him use my Ahab, preppys, and Carbon Desk pen.

Edited August 27, 2014 by Icywolfe

[Lyander0012]

Haha, considering my recent experience with a Sailor Emperor tab, I'm a bit more wary of manufacturer's claims of gold content; the tab was claimed to be 21k gold, which I actually thought slightly impractical since such a soft material being hammered into as thin a shape as the Emperor tab sounded like a recipe for disaster, but it turns out that the thing was merely gold-plated. That does increase my confidence in its durability quite a bit, but the plating's starting to wear off a bit around the edges, and it doesn't look all that tidy next to the super-yellow of Sailors 21k nibs.

 

When it comes to the nibs themselves, though, I'm fairly certain that no reputable manufacturer would deign to mislabel their nibs, as that would probably cause one heck of an uproar among FP fans. Besides, you can't really get the same "feel" with a plated nib; gold nibs may not necessarily have an advantage in terms of smoothness, but there's no arguing their being softer and more pliable.

 

Also, yeah, I can see how someone accustomed to BICs/Biros would instantly be suspicious of anyone's "wasting" actual gold in making a nib. There's no real helping it, since some people are inherently distrusting of advertisements like that, owing to any of a number of societal factors.

 

 

Cheers!

Kevin

[Downcelot]

Your friend sounded like a hater. Trying to trash other people's stuff to justify him using lesser quality product is a child play way of arguing. I'm sorry but he's clearly not a friend who you should take advice from...

[KBeezie]

It'd be easier to make that accusation at something like Jinhao, I know the Jinhao are most likely not 18K gold Plated

 

I guess you could always just be like if it wasn't gold it'd be corroded by now (ie: something to just end the argument or something... which would probably continue anyways).

 

In regards to the 'pay more than 5 bucks for a pen'... there are rollerballs more expensive than the Justus 95... and I bet most people who make that argument complain of hand cramps if they have to write for any considerable length of time (and probably don't even bother with cursive).

 

Classmate. But school isn't on so a friend.

 

Also he is the type that always looked at me weird for using such ancient technology while he sort of enjoyed using my FPs. I let him use my Ahab, preppys, and Carbon Desk pen.

You should just gift him a Preppy, Varsity, or Petit1. Fun for Under $5 and is going to kick the **** out of any RB/BP for the same price. (well... Pilot G2 is nice though).

Edited August 27, 2014 by KBeezie

[my63]

Ask him how he knows his bic is a real bic and not some cheap copy,

Try to smile and keep using ancient technology better friends will come along or he will grow up.

[Lorna Reed]

Personally, I wouldn't let this so-called friend use any of my pens. He doesn't sound the sort of 'friend' who would respect other peoples property. Just my two-pennyworth!

[lahlahlaw]

Sounds like an ol' fashioned bully to me. Don't worry, you need not prove anything to him.

 

Your Pilot has a solid gold nib unless it's counterfeit, and I've never heard of these getting copied.

[estie1948]

How can you tell if it is really gold? Well, I can't. I have an expensive golden pen (I will not name the brand) that I was given by a friend a few years ago. I appreciate the gift and the thought behind it, but I don't use the pen and never will. It is one of those "jewellery type" of fountain pens. About a month ago my granddaughter was experiementing with a magnet and picked up my "golden" fountain pen. While I am reminding her that she is not to muck about in my pens and pen things, she says my grandson (her brother) has been using my "golden" fountain pen all summer long as a torpedo with his planes and ships. I examine the pen more closely and sure enough there are strips down the back side of the pen where the true, steely metal shows through. I feel sorry for my friend who paid so much for my "golden" fountain pen.

 

I did some fountain pen repairs for a doctor friend of mine about a year ago. He had one fountain pen made by "a reputable, world famous fountain pen maker" that just did not flow well. When I seperated the 14K gold nib from the feed, I found that there was some excess gold plating that was coming loose and plugging the feed. It was an easy fix and he is still very happy with his pen. (Every time I bump into him I am reminded of the musical group "six pence none the wiser".) Until I seperated the nib and feed, I didn't know it wasn't a 14K gold nib.

 

I have some fountain pens with gold nibs. I'm not going to take them apart and check for plating or test them to see if they are gold. I am simply going to trust that they are and not worry about it. I like a nib that is smooth and writes well. I don't care what it is made of. And I am not going to worry about what anyone else thinks about my pens, either.

 

What your friend says or thinks about your pens is your friend's problem. Not yours. Now your friend may be your problem . . .

 

-David.

[Effin1]

If you really must be certain it's gold you can buy a gold tester kit. I had a Victorian dip pen/pencil combo which I was certain was gold but it was not hallmarked so I bought a kit and it tested positive for 9ct.

With a nib you would have to take it out of the pen and test the back of the nib low down because the chemicals can leave a mark. Is it worth the effort? I think not.

[thedraperyfalls]

I am simply going to trust that they are and not worry about it. I like a nib that is smooth and writes well. I don't care what it is made of. And I am not going to worry about what anyone else thinks about my pens, either.

 

What your friend says or thinks about your pens is your friend's problem. Not yours. Now your friend may be your problem . . .

 

-David.

 

I think David has hit the nail on the head.

 

Personally, I am not fixated on whether it is genuine gold - so long as it writes well.

 

My reasoning is simple:

 

1. I buy a pen for the overall writing experience.

2. A gold nib enhances the tactile experience. For me, they feel smoother and more springy.

3. A gold nib enhances my enjoyment perceptually. They look nicer and their beauty inspires me.

 

Therefore, it does not matter if the gold nib is 100% genuine or not.

To me, so long as the 'gold' nib satisfies all the above requirements, I am happy and contented.

They have served their function to perfection, and I cannot ask for more.

 

It must be noted that I buy pens to write with. I do not concern myself with their resale value.

If your motive is to buy pens as an investment, then I would imagine that it would be very different for you.

 

So, I guess the question is, are you a writer or a collector?

[KBeezie]

I'm not even sure why it would matter if it's gold or not outside of the "luxury" aspect of it. Especially since most of the nibs I have are pretty stiff anyways, and gold vs steel doesn't determine flexibility or springiness, and I've had steel nibs that were just as nice and smooth to write with as gold nibs.

 

The main difference appears to be longevity, such as steel possibly corroding over time long before solid gold would (if it could corrode that is). Unless someone can show me otherwise (I'm not a metallurgist), gold doesn't stain, rust or tarnish as it's one of the most non-reactive metals out there. But is it a better performer for pens? not always, it's just likely to last longer and handle certain inks better than steel in the long run.

 

So the whole gold aspect to the layman just seems to be more of a status symbol than an element of practical usage and I think that's where some of the shallow ridicule comes from.

 

If it were me though, I wouldn't even bother arguing directly, probably just trying to get a rise out of you.

[tinysnail]

If it were me though, I wouldn't even bother arguing directly, probably just trying to get a rise out of you.

 

Bingo!

[Lyander0012]

Hmm, I'm in agreement, come to think of it. If you'd been pushing him to try a pricey gold FP, then I'd understand his being irritated with you; grabbing that Justus out of your hand and then critiquing it just sounds like absolute bullocks, if you pardon my saying so. Sure, the concern about the gold's genuineness is a valid one, since there remains the possibility that you actually are getting scammed out of your money, but to speak derogatorily of a company without being properly informed tells me that this friend of yours is close-minded and arrogant. I considered placing air quotes around the pronoun, but thought better of it as some good people merely have deeply unfortunate shortcomings over the most trifling things; one needn't immediately judge Messr. BIC before getting to know him better— perhaps he has some profound reason for his distaste for expensive things.

 

 

Kevin

[Icywolfe]

We both still are young so. Taking it out of my hand is not that uncommon with the younger people here. It normally happens to cell phones. They will often say the word "zoink" and look at it and give it back. That is I'm fast on my draw to lock my phone whenever a person I know comes up. They can't read my emails I'm sending (yes emails, I rarely text.) It's like free will curiosity.

 

In my school there are a lot of "rebels without a cause" and they are very distrustful of the government and any company. And my new friends are in said school.

[pajaro]

Many people today are skeptical about corporate honesty. They are suspicious that companies are using sharp practices to cheat the buying public. My wife was showing me an analysis of the ingredients in a pumpkin latte, for example, that showed that there was no pumpkin in the ingredients, and that there were ingredients supposed to be carcinogens. While you might want to take this with a grain of salt and reserve judgement, it is the kind of thing that arouses people's suspicions of corporations and their products. You might regard this incident in such a light and conclude that the friends suspicions might be conditioned by spread of conjecture like hamburger meat being composed largely of "pink slime", whatever that might be. Corporations in some cases might not be doing themselves any favors by misleading their customers, if that is what they are doing.

 

When I was young in the 1960s and 1970s people were often so suspicious of government and industry that they would disbelieve everything claimed.

Edited August 27, 2014 by pajaro

[TheDarkFaery]

There is not much we can do against the Bic Ballpoint users. They will never understand

[Kimo]

Some countries have very strict laws about marking gold and if the pen were made in one of those countries I would have absolute confidence so long as the pen was not counterfeit. For example, countries like the US, western European countries, Japan and the like. Other countries, including China, many other Asian countries, Eastern European and former Soviet Union countries as such typically have weak or unenforced laws about counterfeits or markings and for pens from those countries I would have little confidence. Counterfeits seem to be available in many famous brands, but in my experience the brand that seems to be most counterfeited is Mont Blanc pens. Gold testing kits are pretty much useless as all they will tell you is what is the metal on the surface. In order to tell what the metal is throughout you would need to cut deeply into the metal to expose some metal from the interior and test that, but that is not very useful since it would destroy whatever you are testing. That is only good for when you are scrapping and melting things.