Monteverde Regatta Or Twsbi 700

[Varekai]

Hello all, made an account here so I can ask this question. I have always loved fountain pens, and have always had cheap $5-12 ones. They always stopped working on me after a couple weeks, no matter how much I cleaned them. So I am looking to get a decent pen. I have done lots of reading and reviewing, tho I know I haven't touch nearly half the fountain pens out there, and have landed between the Monteverde Regatta Sport in black and the TWSBI 700. They both have their pro's and con's to me and I just cannot make up my mind. I found a good deal on the Monteverde that puts it only $5 more than the TWSBI at $75 so they're relatively the same price, and both a 1.1 stub. I love how the monteverde looks, but I worry about reviews about it being uncomfortable and the relatively low ink supply compared to the TWSBI, where what I like about that is the large ink supply but it is kind of plain looking. So I was wondering if anyone who has owned either or both of these could chime in. Or maybe knows of another pen that looks somewhere along the lines of these two and isn't more expensive that $100. I plan on this being my go to pen, I just simply can't afford multiple pens. I appreciate the time anyone has taken to read and respond to this.

[benincanada]

TWSBI

[Baric]

I have nothing to base this on except aesthetics, but I'd favor the Regatta, it's just cooler. The concave barrel on the TWSBI and the shiny chrome band kind of ruins it for me. The step down from the barrel to the section on the Regatta is pretty extreme and sharp looking, though, not sure how comfortable it would be in the hand if you like a high grip.

 

I have no clue on relative quality, performance, or first hand ergonomics.

 

How's that for an uninformed opinion?

[Icywolfe]

Dat step looks deadly.

 

I have the vac700 and it's a pretty good pen.

[tonybelding]

I have two Vac 700s and I love them and I hate them. The cap on one of them came apart, and I had to send for a replacement. I didn't drop it, it just broke in half spontaneously. I had cracked parts on my TWSBI 530s as well, so it seems to be a persistent problem for them. Both Vac 700s also suffer from a flow problem where sometimes the feed will just dry out while I'm writing, and then I have to jiggle the filler knob to get ink flowing again. That's a nuisance.

 

Aside from those two problems, the Vac 700 is an amazing and wonderful pen. It looks good, feels good, writes well, fills and flushes quickly, holds a lot of ink. They also sell a special ink bottle to aid in filling it, which makes it easer to get the entire reservoir full of ink.

[sirius1906]

Twsbi 700 for the cool vac fill mechanism.

[WaskiSquirrel]

I own both.

 

The TWSBI has a much more fun filling mechanism. The Monteverde is a simple converter. Certainly the TWSBI holds more ink, but I don't think it matters. It's a lot of writing to go through that much ink in a day.

 

The Monteverde makes up for the filling mechanism with a really fun magnetic cap. I can sit and play with it over and over.

 

I find the TWSBI to be prone to breakage more than the Monteverde, but the company is good about replacing parts.

 

Both are equally comfortable in the hand. The difference is that the Monteverde is a heavier pen. I'm not a fan of a really heavy pen like that.

 

I find the Monteverde has slightly more line variation, and I like a black nib. It also has a wetter flow than the TWSBI.

 

The TWSBI has a better clip. The Monteverde tends to grab at my shirt when I clip it.

 

 

Personally, if I had it to do over, I don't know if I'd go for either pen, but I don't know what to recommend at this price point in their place.

[Bennett]

In my opinion, the Regatta is the better looking pen. It also has more weight to it. If I recall correctly the cap has a magnetic closure with the pen barrel. Monteverde nibs are generally good. I have one with a 1.1 mm italic and it performs well enough.

 

However, if you are seeking a workhorse that will be a daily writer, TWSBI is probably the better choice. It will hold more ink and keep up with your note taking.

 

But if this addition will be a pen you use once in a while, then the Regatta will probably make you happy.

 

Good luck in making the best choice.

Edited September 16, 2014 by Bennett

[Varekai]

I own both.

 

The TWSBI has a much more fun filling mechanism. The Monteverde is a simple converter. Certainly the TWSBI holds more ink, but I don't think it matters. It's a lot of writing to go through that much ink in a day.

 

The Monteverde makes up for the filling mechanism with a really fun magnetic cap. I can sit and play with it over and over.

 

I find the TWSBI to be prone to breakage more than the Monteverde, but the company is good about replacing parts.

 

Both are equally comfortable in the hand. The difference is that the Monteverde is a heavier pen. I'm not a fan of a really heavy pen like that.

 

I find the Monteverde has slightly more line variation, and I like a black nib. It also has a wetter flow than the TWSBI.

 

The TWSBI has a better clip. The Monteverde tends to grab at my shirt when I clip it.

 

 

Personally, if I had it to do over, I don't know if I'd go for either pen, but I don't know what to recommend at this price point in their place.

Waski, since you have had both and mentioned not going for either, what would you recommend,assuming the price isn't too much over? Weight doesn't bother me, I have big meat hands. Edited September 16, 2014 by Varekai

[tonybelding]

I noticed Richard Binder is having a sale on Bexley Admirals, which puts them in the same price class. They aren't exotic pens, but I know from experience that Bexleys are well made and solid. The roller clip is nice, too.

 

Some of the other Monteverdes look good to me -- like the Intima in "volcano gray" for example.

Edited September 16, 2014 by tonybelding

[Varekai]

Thank you all, I bit the bullet and got the Regatta. I checked out the Richard Binder pens and the ones I could afford didn't do anything for me.

[Blue_Moon]

This is after the fact, but I would have gotten the TWSBI. I have two TWSBIs and I had two Monteverdes - the Intima and the Prima. The Monteverdes were dry writers plus they skipped and hard started (both of them) out of the box. I sent both to Yafa (the manufacturer), and they came back with no skips or hard starts. However, they continued to be dry writers. I prefer wet writers, so I sold them both.

 

I would consider getting a Goulet nib for your Regatta if you have the same problem.

[Blue_Moon]

Actually, rather than a TWSBI or a Monteverde, I would have gotten the Italix Parson's Essential. Wonderful pen and it writes like a dream. See website:

http://www.mrpen.co.uk/contents/en-uk/d184.html

 

If you want a bigger pen, go with the Churchman's Prescriptor or the Captain's Commission - also Italix pens.

Edited September 16, 2014 by Blue_Moon

[tonybelding]

However, they continued to be dry writers. I prefer wet writers, so I sold them both.

 

I would consider getting a Goulet nib for your Regatta if you have the same problem.

 

The nibs are not that hard to adjust, to change the ink flow, if you are inclined to tinker just a bit.

[Varekai]

Actually, rather than a TWSBI or a Monteverde, I would have gotten the Italix Parson's Essential. Wonderful pen and it writes like a dream. See website:

http://www.mrpen.co.uk/contents/en-uk/d184.html

 

If you want a bigger pen, go with the Churchman's Prescriptor or the Captain's Commission - also Italix pens.

Wish I had checked these out, I like the fact that they come in a fine italic option.

[Varekai]

I got my Regatta in yesterday, but I had to wait for my ink to come in today. I had a really old bottle of parker quink but I wanted to get some nice ink for this pen so I got a bottle of Pilot Iroshizuku Shin-Kai which is a blue black, really pretty ink but is more blue than black. Love the pen, after it sits a while I have to bend the tip just a tad to get it going again, and definitely better to write with un posted.

[masterguns]

I have the Regatta in black as well. I mostly use it at work, and thats where the magnetic cap really shines. It goes on and comes off all day long, so a twist cap is less than ideal for me. I ordered mine with an F nib, but I didn't care for it too much; it is slightly misshapen. Do yourself a a favor and check out Goulet pens. He offers #6 nibs (which fit on the Regatta) in EF-1.5 stub. I put an EF on my Regatta and love the thing. Nib changes are a breeze, so you could get several different nibs for $15 apiece and have all the options you want.

[Aurko]

The Regatta is a nice pen, and nicer than the TWSBI in my opinion. I hope you'll enjoy the pen. The nibs are quite good for the price.

[Varekai]

I have the Regatta in black as well. I mostly use it at work, and thats where the magnetic cap really shines. It goes on and comes off all day long, so a twist cap is less than ideal for me. I ordered mine with an F nib, but I didn't care for it too much; it is slightly misshapen. Do yourself a a favor and check out Goulet pens. He offers #6 nibs (which fit on the Regatta) in EF-1.5 stub. I put an EF on my Regatta and love the thing. Nib changes are a breeze, so you could get several different nibs for $15 apiece and have all the options you want.

Thanks, I checked out some replacement nibs and I liked the Edison ones, always had a thing for two tone, and it got god reviews. I'm pretty good with a dremel tool so I may get one of the edisons in 1.1mm stub and take it down some so I have a smaller italic nib.

[Man O War]

I have a Regatta Sport in yellow... I love the magnetic cap (though a tad loud at times), weight, and detail in the the almost 3D appearance to the black "carbon fiber" like bands. The Monteverde steel (silver) fine nib it came with writes like a dream (Pilot Irishizuku inks on mostly Rhodia paper), but the fine feathers a tad on cheap paper at work (that's a paper/ink issue more than a nib).

 

I bought the black 1.1mm stub and it writes very dry and is prone to skipping and hard starts. I seem to recall a Goulet video stating the black coating, while not think, was just enough to make it particularly tight to slide into the section and feed when swapping nibs. I suspect this extra thickness also causes the dryness, skipping, and hard starts experienced.

 

I might need to widen the tines a bit (I know the tines are clear because of my use of the Goulet brass sheet), though am a bit timid to try, or could perhaps make the channel in the feed a bit wider or deeper, though that would affect every nib and the fine, as mentioned, is awesome. So, I'm leery of that approach.

 

Overall, it's a terrific pen!